By Denis Carmel
GATINEAU – Interconnecting on your competitor’s network can be a long, protracted process and Videotron, which is trying to get a foothold in northwestern Quebec, is discovering how frustrating it can be.
If it is tedious for a company of the size and sophistication of Videotron, imagine what it is when you are a smaller entity.
In September 2019, Videotron announced it would offer in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue “a full line of telecommunications services, including Internet, television and IP telephone service” by the end of 2019. But, to do so the company had to ride on Cablevision’s network as…
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By Steve Faguy
MONTREAL — In the last six hours of its licence, CJMS 1040 AM program director Jocelyn Benoit hosted a special show reminiscing about the station’s 21-year history, interviewing various guests and playing country music hits.
Though he promised the station, based in the Montreal suburb of St-Constant, would live on as an online-only stream run personally by him, it was clear this would be more of a death than a rebirth.
A few seconds after midnight on Sept. 1, Benoit was cut off mid-sentence, and the station went dead on schedule.
Except the next morning, it was back on the…
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By Greg O’Brien
THERE ARE FOUR ways to subscribe to Corus Entertainment channels Adult Swim, Food Network, Global, HGTV, History, National Geographic, Slice, Teletoon, Treehouse, Showcase, W, and YTV through Rogers Communications.
The first three are pretty standard: They can be purchased one at a time; in certain theme packages; or part of a bundle of broadband, TV, home phone, wireless and security, or some combination of those services.
The fourth way, however, is new.
In July, Rogers launched a new video service called Ignite SmartStream. It’s a nifty little device that delivers popular video apps direct to Rogers Ignite broadband customers…
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GATINEAU — Having already revised intervention deadlines twice and suspended other filing procedure dates for its consultation on potential barriers to the deployment of broadband-capable networks in underserved areas in Canada, the CRTC is now asking telecom service providers, incumbents, cable carriers and other intervenors to provide additional information to the proceeding.
In a Commission letter dated August 31, several requests for information are made, related to existing transport services, the economic viability of contemplated transport and access projects, access to dark fibre, rights of way issues, and whether or not the Commission should create an infrastructure database and/or maps…
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TORONTO — On the first day of its new CRTC licence term, OMNI Television today announced it is delivering new daily 30-minute newscasts to allow Filipino and Arabic-speaking Canadian viewers to enjoy local, national and international news in their native languages, starting today.
To support the new newscasts, OMNI created 25 new editorial, digital and video-journalist positions, with OMNI News: Arabic Edition and OMNI News: Filipino Edition being produced in-house at OMNI’s studios in Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, and Edmonton. Content such as this were part of the promises the Rogers-owned broadcaster made to earn its licence from the Commission.
“Our new…
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GATINEAU — The CRTC today announced it has approved a broadcasting licence for Toon-A-Vision, the kids channel owned and operated by Dartmouth, N.S.-based Atlantic Digital Networks.
Toon-A-Vision currently operates as an exempt programming service, but with today’s CRTC decision it is now licensed as a national, English-language discretionary service. The animation channel launched in 2018 and is widely distributed on Eastlink and Bell. Earlier this year, Toon-A-Vision announced it was launching on Cogeco. Exempt specialty services have to apply for a licence once they reach 200,000 subscribers.
Toon-A-Vision has been granted a five-year licence which will expire August 31, 2025….
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By Steve Faguy
MONTREAL — Quebecor has cut funding for MAtv, Videotron’s community channel in Montreal, by 45%, prompting an anglophone member of its advisory committee to resign in protest.
Fortner Anderson, a local artist, said he can “no longer in good conscience” remain on the committee because the latest cuts “will substantially alter and reduce the benefits MAtv provides to the English language community of Montreal, and because they will diminish the vitality of that community.”
The 45% cut is the result of Quebecor’s decision to take advantage of an allowance the CRTC gave large vertically-integrated companies in 2016. As part…
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GATINEAU — Giving a Quebec ethnic radio station one last chance, the CRTC announced Thursday it is renewing CJWI Montreal’s broadcast licence for just two years and issuing several mandatory orders forcing the station to comply with its regulatory obligations or have its licence suspended or revoked.
Operated by CPAM Radio Union, AM station CJWI Montreal serves the large Haitian community in Montreal. For several years (and several consecutive licence terms) CJWI Montreal has been non-compliant in a number of ways: failing to file annual returns; not maintaining program logs, audio recordings and accurate music lists; and not meeting its…
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French fund, however, will close in February
TORONTO and MONTREAL — Bell Media confirmed today it is starting to wind down its Harold Greenberg Fund, beginning with the French-language program of the Fonds Harold Greenberg which will close by February 28, 2021.
After that time, the French-language program will transfer any remaining funds to another certified independent production fund, says the news release.
For now, the English-language program is continuing operations “for at least the next 12 months”, says the release. The English program is currently being supported by Crave, and the Harold Greenberg Fund is inviting additional partners to invest…
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Pandemic has accelerated structural decline and ideas abound, but government has not responded
OTTAWA — The Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) today released an economic study by media economist Communications Management Inc. (CMI) which projects the possible closure of up to 40 local TV stations and 200 radio stations within the next three years.
According to CMI’s The Crisis in Canadian Media and the Future of Local Broadcasting report, within four to six months up to 50 radio stations could close, with an additional 100-150 radio stations possibly shutting down during the next six to 18 months. In addition, CMI…
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