OTTAWA – The CRTC has pushed back the deadline for comments on amendments to certain rules pertaining to the implementation of the national emergency alerting system.
After calling for feedback last month due March 31, the Commission said Tuesday that the deadline for receipt of comments has been extended to April 17, 2014.
The move comes at the behest of BCE, Cogeco Cable, Corus Entertainment, Newcap, Quebecor Media, Rogers Media, Shaw Communications, and Vista Radio which sent a joint letter to the Commission requesting the extension to provide comments in the proceeding.
The CRTC reiterated that the amended deadline does not…
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RICHMOND, BC – Noting that “you can't stay a virgin forever”, Vancouver radio station CKZZ-FM has returned to its Z95.3 moniker following its recent sale to Newcap Radio from Bell Media.
The station was most recently known as Virgin Radio 95.3, but the rights to the Virgin Radio brand and the Virgin morning show with Nat & Drew remain Bell's property. As Cartt.ca reported, Newcap received CRTC approval last week to proceed with its purchase of five radio stations, including CHHR-FM (Shore 104.3 FM), CISL-AM (AM 650) in Vancouver plus CHBM-FM (Boom 97.3) and CFXJ-FM (93.5 Flow) in Toronto.
The new Z95.3 said Monday that it will…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC is welcoming spring with a fresh new look: to its website, that is.
The new site, unveiled Monday is now organized by themes and topics, designed to make it easier to find information. The new pages can also be viewed on mobile devices.
“Due to the size of our website, we are rolling out our new look in a phased approach”, reads a Commission-issued news release. “You may notice the old look as you delve deeper into the site, but don’t worry we will be continuing our improvements throughout the year.”
The CRTC reminded frequent visitors to the…
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THE EIGHT HOUR DIFFERENCE between the eastern time zone and Sochi, Russia meant many of us who wanted to see Winter Olympics action live had to tune in at work using our PCs, smartphones and tablets.
By most accounts, the CBC ran a splendid Olympics broadcast, on regular TV and digitally. While some quibbled with the ad load on its Apple, Android and Windows smartphone apps, for most viewers, the live streams and video highlights ran seamlessly. I watched many hours of the CBC’s coverage on my Android phone and it worked very well, every single time. Two taps and…
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OTTAWA – Newcap may officially proceed with its purchase of five radio properties formally owned by Bell after receiving CRTC approval of the deal Wednesday.
As Cartt.ca reported, Bell Media agreed to sell five of 10 radio properties as part of a list of conditions set by the CRTC pending its approval last June of BCE Inc.’s acquisition of Astral Media for $3.2 billion. Newfoundland Capital Corp.’s wholly-owned subsidiary Newcap Inc. agreed to buy the stations for $112 million.
For Newcap, which already owns 90 radio stations across Canada, the deal marks the company’s foray into two of Canada’s largest radio…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – Hearing or speech impaired persons in Metro Vancouver and surrounding areas may now communicate with emergency services using Text with 9-1-1 (T9-1-1).
On Tuesday, E-Comm, the emergency communication centre that provides 9-1-1 service to the region, became the first Canadian public safety answering point to introduce T9-1-1 service for the deaf, deafened, hard of hearing or speech impaired (DHHSI) community.
DHHSI members in E-Comm's service area must first register with their wireless service provider in order to access the service. When a DHHSI person requires 9-1-1 services, they dial 9-1-1 on their cell phone. There is no need…
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TORONTO – Almost eight in 10 Canadians think it’s a good, even excellent, idea to be able to choose TV channels a-la-carte, according to a recent survey by Toronto firm Solutions Research Group.
Not only do Canadians want more choice and control in what they watch on television, they say they’re willing to pay more on a per-channel basis to get it, says the company’s recent Digital Life Canada Quarterly Study, which followed the federal government’s request that the CRTC study ways to have TV providers provide more options (something the CRTC had already started to do).
SRG’s survey shows that…
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DARTMOUTH, NS – Newfoundland Capital Corporation subsidiary Newcap Inc. received CRTC approval Friday to proceed with its purchase of CHNI-FM in Saint John, NB from Rogers Broadcasting.
The Commission also approved Newcap’s request to delete conditions of licence relating to the station’s programming, allowing it to move from a News/Talk to a music format, and approved changes to the authorized contours of CHNI-FM.
"This licence is a great fit for our company as it expands our presence in New Brunswick and represents our entry into the Saint John market”, said president and CEO Rob Steele, in a statement. “We are…
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MOST AGREE THE PRIMARY reasons why Netflix – and for that matter all web-based media – has a growing advantage over traditional media are the streams of data they gather and use to make real-time decisions. It’s the so-called Big Data that web-based companies gather to make magic and produce profits.
At Thursday’s Content Industry Connect event hosted by the Banff Media Festival organizers, one attendee (we’re told it was a fellow named Ahmad Iqbal from a company called Atendy) asked what is the best question I’ve heard put to a panel of broadcasters in a very long time, saying:…
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TORONTO – Many folks love to tell Canadian TV executives what they should – or should not – be doing. Really, anyone with a TV set does that regularly.
But when it comes to those with a keyboard and a national platform, or with a famous name or job, their gripes often offend and are taken to heart. At Thursday’s Content Industry Connect day put on by the Banff Media Festival, broadcast executive, investor and producer Peter Sussman kicked off the industry leaders panel by quoting noted thorn-in-the-Canadian-TV-industry’s-side, Globe and Mail TV critic John Doyle. In a fall 2013 column…
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