OTTAWA – Listeners in Ontario's North Bay may soon have a new radio station after the CRTC determined that the region can support one.
The Commission said Thursday that it is not necessary to publish a call for applications for new stations given that Vista Radio was the sole party to express an interest in serving that market.
Located in northeastern Ontario, approximately 120 kilometres east of Sudbury, the North Bay radio market currently has four English-language commercial radio stations: CHUR-FM, CKFX-FM and CKAT, which are operated by Rogers Media, as well as CFXN-FM, operated by Vista. The market is also…
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BANFF – New to the Banff World Media Fest this year was The Banff Debate.
The inaugural topic was “Media, Creativity & Technology: Thriving Ecosystem or Future Monoculture?” and framing that debate was moderator Jesse Wente, who is director of Canada’s Indigenous Screen Office.
Wente noted the conundrum of international and local players all competing for global audiences and asked:
What does this all mean for creator opportunities and consumer choice?
Will domestic screen cultures get hammered?
Are local-only platforms and business models even viable in a globalize industry?
Or are we all Chicken Littles here, where instead of a plummeting sky, the digital future…
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BANFF – The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and CBC have announced a new creative and commercial collaboration aimed at enhancing the reach and impact of the broadcasters’ content across both countries.
The two national public broadcasters said Monday at the Banff Media Fest they have signed a three-year memorandum of understanding (MOU) to co-develop English-language drama, comedy, factual, children’s and podcast content to try and maximize the value of their public funding for audiences. The deal will also provide further opportunities for co-financing and format sales of drama and children’s content.
“At a time when public broadcasters are competing with the…
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BANFF – CBC/Radio-Canada announced today at the Banff Media Fest a new “commitment to diversity” for all of its English and French-language commissioned programs across scripted and factual genres.
The pubcaster made this announcement in the context of its new strategic plan, “Your Stories Taken to Heart,” which, among other things, prioritizes giving underrepresented Canadians greater opportunities to build their skills, experience and relationships in the industry.
“By 2025, CBC/Radio-Canada aims to ensure that at least one of the key creatives in all scripted and factual commissioned programs will be held by a person from a diverse…
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Blames pressure on traditional TV on unfair practices
MONTREAL – Quebecor Media's TVA Group announced Wednesday morning it has eliminated 68 jobs in its television group.
“The decision was made necessary by numerous unfair practices that have been undermining the television industry for years. It is the result of government inaction and the failure to modernize the system in order to keep businesses based in Quebec and the rest of Canada competitive,” reads the TVA press release.
"The status quo is crippling our industry, weakening our culture and driving us to the cliff's edge," said France Lauzière, president and CEO, in the…
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TORONTO – Telecommunications companies had better drop their deceptive and bullying consumer sales practices before they gets smacked by Ottawa, the head of a consumer group warned industry leaders.
"This will continue to be a political issue for you and it may trip up your other businesses because it resonates with the public," John Lawford, executive director of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC), said Monday during a panel discussion on improving customer experience at the annual Canadian Telecom Summit.
"You guys are too big and too important now to think that what you do for business is your only consideration."
His…
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OTTAWA – A growing segment of TV viewers is seeking out content in a language other than Canada’s two official languages, says a new report from Media Technology Monitor (MTM).
Watching TV in a Language other than English or French: Analysis of the Canadian Market looks at Canadians who watch TV and movie content in a third language.
Highlights from the report include:
– One fifth of Canadian TV viewers say they have watched content in a language other than English or French.
– Visible minorities and those born outside of Canada are among those most likely to be watching other language…
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TORONTO – Janet Yale, chair of the Broadcast and Telecom Legislative Review panel, told the telecom industry on Monday morning that they will have to think far more broadly than their quarterly numbers and short term business plans when her panel makes their final recommendations to the federal government in January.
In a keynote speech at the start of the Canadian Telecom Summit on Monday, Yale said she had initially hoped to bring copies of the panel’s interim report for delegates, but it’s not quite ready for release, so instead she focused her remarks on reminding the telecom folks in attendance…
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TORONTO – As Canadian broadcasters pitch linear TV as a safer space for brands than toxic social media platforms during their upfront presentations, it was some surprise to see on stage Thursday at Twitter's TwitterFront event in Toronto top execs and talent from Corus Entertainment, CBC, Rogers Media and Bell Media.
"Everyone is working with us," Paul Burns, a former digital exec at Shaw Communications and now Twitter Canada’s managing director, told Cartt.ca about Canadian media players who are increasingly making the most of a social media platform often derided by critics for being a land…
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OTTAWA – Speaking before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage in Ottawa, CBC President and CEO Catherine Tait said public and private broadcasters in Canada are seeing their territory invaded by multinational foreign giants that have disrupted the very nature of the country’s media landscape.
“We know that our industry is facing real challenges,” Tait said during the meeting where the committee is studying the mandate of CBC/Radio-Canada as it relates to the Broadcasting Act. “We want to work with Canadian partners, both public and private because today our competition is not with each other. Our competition is Google, Facebook,…
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