Search Results for: cogeco

Radio / Television News

Bravo readies new dramas for spring freeview

TORONTO – The second season of hit drama The Handmaid’s Tale will headline Bravo’s nation-wide free preview  that will kick off April 24. The Bell Media-owned service said that other high profile premieres rolling out during the freeview include original Canadian crime drama series Carter, starring Jerry O’Connell, on May 15 at 8:00 PM ET, plus detective crime drama Hard Sun, which will make its exclusive Canadian series premiere on May 6. Season two of the Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning The Handmaid’s Tale will debut with a two-episode premiere event on April 29 at 9:00 PM ET.  Viewers wishing to catch… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Ontario ISPs band together to fight pole rate increases

TORONTO – Internet service providers of every size and shape (except one big one) have launched a new coalition to rally Ontarians to help them battle large proposed rate increases for utility pole attachments. While some local hydro companies have been pushing rates far higher, the Ontario Energy Board wants to set a standard rate across the province of $52 per pole per year, far above the current rate of $22.35. The three largest utilities, Hydro One, Toronto Hydro and Hydro Ottawa, have already boosted their rates to $41, $42 and $53. Such rate increases for pole attachments will only… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News, Radio / Television News

Cord-cutting slows thanks to Shaw’s BlueSky TV

However, it's likely just temporary OTTAWA – While Canada’s publicly traded television service providers lost almost 20% fewer TV subscribers in 2017 versus 2016, this is likely a temporary positive turn in a long road of permanent TV subscriber declines in the future, according to new research released Wednesday. Ottawa-based research and consulting firm Boon Dog Professional Services found that BCE, Rogers, Shaw, Vidéotron, Cogeco, and Telus combined lost approximately 166,000 in their respective 2017 fiscal years, down from an estimated 205,000 lost in the previous year. Boon Dog partner Mario Mota credited the improved cord-cutting numbers for 2017 to the… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News, Radio / Television News

CBSC’s Courtemanche among WCT annual award winners

OTTAWA – Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) chair Sylvie Courtemanche has been named Woman of the Year by Women in Communications and Technology (WCT). Prior to joining CBSC in January, Courtemanche (pictured) was a senior executive at Corus for both regulatory matters and government relations.  She has also held roles as EVP policy and regulatory affairs for the Canadian Association of Broadcasters, legal counsel at the CRTC, and had her own consulting practice related to broadcasting and telecommunications in Canada. Cogeco Connexion was named company of the year, and WCT also named 9 other recipients of its annual awards, which recognize… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News, Investigates, Radio / Television News

Cartt.ca enquête; Pierre Karl Péladeau demande au gouvernement fédéral où est sa vision?

5e partie dans notre série sur la révision des Lois sur la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications. Une entrevue exclusive EN 1999 LORSQUE PIERRE Karl Péladeau était le PDG de la plus grande imprimerie au monde et un important propriétaire de journaux, il ne connaissait sans doute pas l'ordonnance d'exemption relative aux nouveaux médias (OERNM) du CRTC, rendue publique cette année-là. Et pourquoi aurait-il été préoccupé? À cette époque, les téléphones cellulaires étaient encore un nouveau phénomène utilisé que pour faire des appels téléphoniques et qu’une personne sur cinq possédait.* Tout le monde regardait la télévision grâce à des oreilles de lapin ou au… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News, Investigates, Radio / Television News

Cartt.ca Investigates Altering the Acts: Pierre Karl Péladeau asks the federal government, where’s the vision?

Part V in our series on rewriting the Broadcasting and Telecom Acts. An exclusive interview BACK IN 1999, WHEN Pierre Karl Péladeau was the CEO of the world’s largest printer and a significant Canadian newspaper publisher, he didn’t know or care about the CRTC’s New Media Exemption Order, released that year. Why would he? Back then, cell phones were still-new devices that primarily just made phone calls – which only about one in five of us owned.* Everyone got their TV off-air or via cable and just over a quarter of Canadians reported a home internet connection – upon which precious… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News, Radio / Television News

ANALYSIS: Why more mergers aren’t a good answer (part two)

The big four have not become the content exporters they were supposed to LAST WEEK, I RESPONDED to a Scotiabank report which said the success of Netflix in gaining subscribers, along with Google and Facebook’s dominance of the Canadian advertising market, meant a merger of Bell and Corus was a logical market response to ensure we remain competitive. I question the strategy of further vertical integration in light of its obvious failure. My core argument is VI has failed because it did not properly take into account the competitive advantages of the vertically integrated companies. As their… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Radio show was sexy, not sexist, but shouldn’t have aired during daylight

OTTAWA – The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) today said a Quebec radio show did not violate one broadcast code, but that its sexually explicit dialogue from one day was better suited for an after-hours broadcast The open-line show Doc Mailloux et Josey on Cogeco stations CJMF-FM (FM 93, Quebec City) and CKOB-FM (106,9fm, Mauricie) is a talk show hosted by psychiatrist Pierre Mailloux and Josey Arsenault where they and their callers discuss social issues and interpersonal relationships. On the challenged broadcasts, they discussed a study that had surveyed young men about sexual assault, a controversial speech by a female artist… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News, Radio / Television News

New coalition says CRTC, with help, needs to lead the fight against online piracy

Proposes new agency to battle billion-dollar problem OTTAWA – FairPlay Canada, a new coalition of Canadian artists, content creators, unions, guilds, producers, performers, broadcasters, distributors, and exhibitors is has filed an application with the CRTC urging the Regulator to have Canadian ISPs shut down access to websites which enable content piracy. According to the coalition, the jobs of hundreds of thousands of Canadians who work in the creative sector (songwriters, set builders, TV writers, makeup artists, reporters, as well as cable technicians, engineers and customer service reps) are at risk as a result of increasing online piracy… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Discovery Velocity kicks off free preview

TORONTO – Discovery Velocity has opened up for a month-long national free preview, on now through February 8. Billed as Canada’s only home for factual turbo programming, Discovery Velocity will serve up live coverage of the most spectacular classic car auction event of the year, Barrett-Jackson Live (pictured, from January 16 – 21), alongside new series Texas Metal (January 12), and the return of Wheeler Dealers on January 22. The freeview is available through television service providers including Bell, Bell Aliant, Cogeco Connexion, Eastlink, BellMTS, Rogers, SaskTel, Shaw, Shaw Direct, Telus, Videotron, and several CCSA partners including Access… Continue Reading