MONTREAL – Seems as though in the burgeoning new media world, holding a broadcast license is less of “a license to print money.”
Quebec broadcaster TQS today said it has “obtained an order by Québec Superior Court under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act with a view to protecting TQS and its subsidiaries from claims by creditors and allow it to reorganize its operations,” in the official press release.
In other words, TQS – a broadcaster 60%-owned by Cogeco Inc, and 40% by CTVglobemedia, is now under bankruptcy protection.
Issued for a period of 30 days, the order also applies…
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TORONTO – There are two large cable operators based in the province of Quebec, but each have their own different ideas of where growth will come from.
One, Videotron, envisions building itself into an important wireless player. The other, Cogeco Cable, has so far shunned wireless investments in favor of pursuing growth outside of North America.
Its 2006 acquisition of Cabovisao, which now serves over 300,000 customers in Portugal has been nothing but positive for the company as revenue and margins have risen throughout 2007. The integration of the new division is now complete.
The company launched digital cable…
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IN 2003, WHEN THE HOUSE of Commons Heritage Committee issued the “Our Cultural Sovereignty” report (better known as the Lincoln Report) it recommended that “the existing foreign ownership limits for broadcasting and telecommunications be maintained a current levels.”
At that time, the then Canadian Alliance Party, whose leader was Stephen Harper, put out the following dissenting opinion: “The Canadian Alliance disagrees with (this recommendation). The Canadian Alliance supports relaxing foreign ownership rules on Canadian industry, including telecommunications and broadcast distribution. We suggest conducting an immediate review to determine whether to reduce or completely remove these rules.” Those very same…
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TORONTO – If you’re a hockey fan with a high definition television set, you want to see as many games as possible in crisp, clear HD.
And if your favorite regional National Hockey League team is playing on Rogers Sportsnet, you don’t want to hear the technical and league reasons why there is poker on Sportsnet HD (shot in standard definition) while the game (shot in HD) appears in fuzzier analog on the SD Sportsnet channel.
The reasons why that was, was confusing enough for those of us in the industry, let alone a regular hockey fan.
Years ago,…
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MONTREAL – Cogeco Cable launched its newest personal/digital video recorder, the Motorola DCT3080, in its Quebec territories today (southern Quebec, concentrated around Trois Rivieres).
The box is not available in Ontario (an earlier version of this story said it was. We apologize for the error.)
"Current users will tell you: using a DVR significantly improves your TV experience. The fact that the DVR is simple to use and allows users the freedom to watch programs of their choice whenever they want, greatly improves the television-viewing experience. We’re very pleased to offer this new receiver to our Quebec customers because it completes…
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TORONTO – At 9 a.m. EST this morning, Playhouse Disney began broadcasting its neat-o educational and entertaining programming for young children.
Owned and launched by Family Channel in Canada, the company flew Mickey Mouse in for the official launch as they flipped the switch on the channel this morning, first on Bell ExpressVu and then next on Mountain Cable. According to Family execs, Cogeco Cable is next.
Family and Playhouse Disney held an industry event last night and a public event this morning in Toronto with Mickey and some pals to celebrate the launch.
Playhouse Disney is a commercial-free,…
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MONTREAL – Cogeco Cable’s call centres won a pair of customer service awards this fall.
Two of the them come from the Service Quality Measurement Group Inc. (SQM), an international firm that measures and evaluate call centers in several sectors.
Cogeco’s call centres, located in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec and Burlington, Ontario were awarded the Highest Customer Satisfaction in the Telecommunications/TV Industry Award, and the FCR and/or Csat Improvement Merit Award, which recognizes the best improvement in first call resolution (FCR) and/or customer satisfaction (Csat) greater than 8% over the previous year.
Cogeco accepted the awards this week at the SQM…
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TORONTO – CTAM Canada is hosting a seminar on “How to Market Television Services in a Multi-product World” on November 22 from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Velma Rogers Theater (333 Bloor Street East).
The moderator is Harris Boyd (Solaracom) and the panelists are David Purdy (Rogers Cable), Gary Pelletier (Cogeco Cable), John Piercy (Mountain Cablevision), Domenic Vivolo (Astral Television Networks), Andrew Eddy (Corus) and Cal Millar (Channel Zero).
There will be time for questions and comments from audience members.
The event is free for CTAM Canada members, and registration will be available at the door for new…
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TORONTO – Join CTAM Canada and a panel of experts for a new seminar entitled: "How to Market Television Services in a Multi-product World."
When: Thursday, November 22, 2007
Time: 2:30 – 4:00 p.m.
Location: Velma Rogers Theatre, 333 Bloor St. E.
Cost: Free to all CTAM Canada Members (To become a CTAM Canada Member visit www.ctam.ca for details)
Registration: RSVP to Kirsten McKernan at kirsten.mckernan@chumtv.com or by calling 416-591-7400 ext. 2587
Moderator: Harris Boyd (Solaracom)
Panelists: David Purdy (Rogers Cable), Gary Pelletier (Cogeco Cable), John Piercy (Mountain Cablevision), Domenic Vivolo (Astral Television Networks), Chris Fuoco (Alliance Atlantis…
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MONTREAL – Cogeco Cable has extended its Wi-Fi Internet access to the Kingston and Windsor areas with more than 100 new hot-spots, the company announced Wednesday.
The service, available for free to all Cogeco high-speed Internet customers in Ontario, has also been extended to all non-Cogeco customers on a pay-per-use basis.
Last March, Cogeco launched its Wi-Fi Internet access in Ontario with nearly 150 access points spread throughout Burlington, Oakville and Hamilton.
“Wi-Fi continues to grow in popularity as more and more people need an Internet connection to work, study or surf while they are on the go. We…
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