Search Results for: cbc

Radio / Television News

Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy coming to CHCH fall schedule

TORONTO – Independent broadcaster CHCH is hoping that viewers may be missing some of the big U.S. programming eschewed by other conventional broadcasters, and has offered them a new home in its fall primetime schedule. The Channel Zero-owned broadcaster revealed Wednesday it its 'upfront' presentation that it has added long running game shows Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! to its fall schedule which kicks off September 3 (they last aired on CBC).  Other highlights include news magazine shows 20/20, 60 Minutes and Nightline, true-crime series 48 Hours Mystery, new seasons of dramas Supernatural and Hart of Dixie, plus episodes of Bones and… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Catto returns to CBC in new role

VANCOUVER – Sally Catto is returning to the CBC in the role of executive director, commissioned and scripted programming, effective June 18. Catto (pictured) will be based in Vancouver and assume responsibility for drama, comedy, children's and documentary programming.  Her initial focus will be on the reorganization of the department to streamline the administration and management, and to update it ensuring resources are focused on content creation, reads the announcement.  Her former role at CBC was executive director, arts & entertainment, and most recently she held the position of executive vice-president of Cineflix Studios.

Radio / Television News

Radio revenues surge back to pre-recession levels

OTTAWA-GATINEAU – Canada’s 669 commercial radio stations saw 2011 revenues increase by 4%, on par with pre-recession levels, according to data released Monday by the CRTC. For the broadcast year ending August 31, 2011, total revenues for AM and FM stations increased from $1.55 billion in 2010 to $1.6 billion in 2011, though expenses also rose from $1.21 billion to $1.26 billion during the same period. As a result, profits before interest and taxes (PBIT) climbed from $298.3 million to $311 million, and the PBIT margin went from 19.2% to 19.3%. AM radio The number of AM stations in Canada continued to decline from… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

No sports? No problem for Shaw Media (but it might take an Olympic look)

TORONTO – At his company’s Wednesday morning executive briefing to kick off its upfront presentations, Shaw Media president Paul Robertson told TV writers that the company’s near total lack of sports content doesn’t concern him a bit. When compared to Rogers Media (owners of the Sportsnet brands, The Toronto Blue Jays, NFL games on Citytv and some others) and Bell Media (TSN brands, RDS, NFL games on CTV and soon, co-ownership of Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment with Rogers), Shaw has almost no sports – save some professional golf on Global on the weekends. No biggie, though, said Robertson. “You… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

FEATURE: As new media drives engagement deeper, there are no limits on the costs for sports rights

TORONTO – The sheer numbers some sports produce are staggering – and we’re not talking about the ones you see on the scoreboards in the stadiums or arenas. When it comes to sports television, the National Football League is the big kahuna. The league’s current $20 billion U.S. broadcast contracts with Fox, CBS, NBC and ESPN end in 2013, and the new deals, worth almost $40 billion over eight years will kick in for 2014. Speaking at The Cable Show in Boston on May 23rd, NBA Commissioner David Stern told delegates that between the league, its teams and players, the league… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

CTV covets ‘Hockey Night In Canada’, Olympic rights

TORONTO – CTV executive Phil King may be in charge of programming for the country’s largest conventional network, but it’s clear that sports are as big a part of that as are the slate of new fall shows that the network announced Thursday. Speaking with Cartt.ca prior to Bell Media’s ‘upfront’ event, King, who broke in to the business at TSN before that network was acquired by CTV, admitted that the next round of NHL hockey and Olympic broadcast rights are never far from his mind. “The (Canadian NHL) rights discussion is still two years away, but I find it… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

CBC Music launches Android app

TORONTO – CBC Music is now available for Android devices via a new mobile app launched Wednesday. The free digital music service offers Canadian and international music through 40 genre-specific web radio stations as well as CBC Radio 2 and CBC Radio 3. The CBC Music Android App is available free here, while Apple product users may visit the iTunes store or the App Store on their iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. www.cbcmusic.ca Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

CTV, Shaw Media vie for top spot as TV season draws to a close

TORONTO – The end of the 2011/2012 television season sparked a war of press releases from Canada’s private broadcasters headlined by declarations like “we’re the most watched!” and “we’re growing the fastest!” After cutting through the hype, what’s clear is that with the exception of NHL hockey, Canadian audiences still opt for the big American hit shows.  Of the top 20 most-watched shows this season, The Big Bang Theory, The Amazing Race and Survivor ranked number one, two and three for total viewers, with all averaging audiences north of 2.5 million.  CBC’s Hockey Night In Canada (east) ranked ninth with 2.07… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Last chance to register for CTAM’s ‘Baseball Night in Canada’ event

TORONTO – This is the last chance to register for the CTAM panel ‘Sports Television: Will the Goose Stop Laying it’s Golden Eggs’ taking place on Tuesday, May 29 at the CBC building in Toronto. Moderated by Cartt.ca editor and publisher Greg O’Brien, the lively discussion will feature John Levy, chairman and CEO of The Score; Jeffrey Orridge, executive director of sports properties for CBC; David Purdy, SVP of content for Rogers Communications, and Sean Riley, SVP of Fox Networks as they share their thoughts on whether the rights to live sports and league content will continue to drive the TV business or whether… Continue Reading

In-Depth

Cartt.ca IN-DEPTH: Former chief of CBC English Services Richard Stursberg is better than Stalin

RICHARD STURSBERG CAN be a polarizing figure. He knows he rubs some people the wrong way (and I think he kinda likes being the thorn in some sides). You can read that personality throughout his recent book, Tower of Babble: Sins, Secrets and Successes Inside the CBC. He admits as much on many pages, calling himself “arrogant”, “insouciant” and “insubordinate” and reading through some of what he describes about his time at the Corp., it’s hard not to disagree with his self-assessment. Stursberg was actually my first interview when I started covering the electronic media industry in… Continue Reading