MONTREAL – The SayNoToBell.ca campaigners claim that nearly 50,000 Canadians, both consumers and industry leaders, have signed their petition urging the CRTC and government to deny the Bell/Astral merger. CRTC hearings into the proposed deal are poised to begin next week.
SayNoToBell.ca says 42 of the 60 interveners to be heard have already publicly opposed the deal or questioned the transaction. Notable industry presentations include:
• Québécor – Monday, September 10
• Eastlink – Tuesday, September 11
• Cogeco Cable – Wednesday, September 12
• Rogers Communications – Wednesday, September 12
• Telus – Wednesday, September 12
• Canadian Cable Systems Alliance – Friday, September 14
Notable…
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“OH, PEOPLE CAN COME UP with statistics to prove anything… 14% of people know that.” – Homer J. Simpson
Released this week, the 240-page mound of data known as the CRTC Communications Monitoring Report was reduced to a pair of press releases this week, one which purported that Bell buying Astral was a very bad and scary thing, and the other that Bell buying Astral was a very good and normal thing.
According to the Say No To Bell forces – the public relations effort put together by Quebecor, Cogeco and EastLink and co-ordinated by National Public…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – In unveiling its highly anticipated three-year plan the CRTC says it will focus efforts on three key pillars it refers to as “connect,” “create” and “protect.” The commission said it will be targeting specific results from each of the pillars and will report annually on its progress towards their achievement.
For example, it pledged to keep a close watch on the availability of Canadian programs, the amount spent annually on their creation and the audiences they attract. The regulator will also monitor broadband speeds and the choice of Internet service providers available to Canadians, as well as…
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GATINEAU – The CRTC has re-launched the public process for the renewal of CBC/Radio-Canada’s broadcasting licences, a process that began last summer but was postponed on July 8, 2011.
In the corporation's updated application, the national public broadcaster is urging the CRTC to accept two provisions it says are critical to preserving the key elements of the CBC’s 2015 Strategy:
1. A modern regulatory framework that will enable the public broadcaster to implement its strategy across all platforms and allow it to evolve with its audiences, with technology and with its changing environment;
2. Opportunity to generate new revenue to meet…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – Canadians appetite for content continued to grow last year in all media including TV, radio and Internet. But increasingly that content is being purchased primarily through the five largest communications companies (Astral, Corus, BCE, Newcap, Rogers) who together captured 83% of revenues. In comparison the next five companies captured 10%.
This according to figures released in the CRTC’s Annual Monitoring Report that provides an overview of the Canadian communications industry. Given the level of industry consolidation, the commission says it has acted to ensure these companies “do not harm their competitors or restrict consumer choice.” For example,…
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WE DRILL DOWN into the analytics of our content quite a lot at Cartt.ca, studying what resonates with our valued readers and what doesn’t. We learn a lot and try adjust our coverage accordingly. So, to give you a peek at what the folks in the cable, radio, television and telecom business have been paying the most attention to for the past year, we publish the top 25 stories of the past 12 months on the day after Labour Day.
As those in the TV business will tell you, September is really the beginning of the year – and September…
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MONTREAL – TSN Radio in Montreal is moving down the AM dial from 990 to 690 effective September 4.
The new, previously clear frequency will improve the reception of the all-sports station, which airs both local sports and live coverage of all Montreal Canadiens games.
A TSN spokesperson confirmed to Cartt.ca that the move has been in the works since last year, and is independent of TSN parent Bell Media’s recent application to the CRTC asking to convert TSN Radio (now 690) to RDS Radio (now 690).
www.tsn.ca
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GATINEAU – CRTC chairman Jean-Pierre Blais announced Friday that he has created a new position within the Commission: Chief Consumer Officer.
It’s first CCO will be Barbara Motzney, who is currently director general, border policy and international affairs at Public Safety Canada. Prior to joining Public Safety, she was director general of copyright policy at Canadian Heritage where she lead the introduction of two Bills to modernize Canada’s copyright legislation, and virtual and in-person national consultations on the topic.
“I am pleased to announce the creation of the position of Chief Consumer Officer and the appointment of Barbara Motzney to this…
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THE BACK-AND-FORTH paper war between Wind and Telus will not abate until the CRTC says one way or another whether it will call a hearing into the matter.
On one side we have Wind (also known as Globalive Wireless), which spent two years fighting off allegations from Telus, Public Mobile and others that its level of Canadian ownership did not satisfy Canadian regulations. That battle went all the way to the Supreme Court. On the other side we have Telus, which has run into some unexpected rough waters trying to convert its two share structure into…
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OTTAWA and GATINEAU – The CRTC has told broadcasters and television service providers how it intends to enforce its new rules controlling the loudness of television commercials which kick in on September 1.
Thursday’s bulletin directed TV broadcasters and BDUs to submit a report before October 15, 2012 to the Commission confirming that all applicable steps have put in place and are being followed in order to comply with the new rules.
Those regulations, announced in May, require Canadian broadcasters to adhere to the Advanced Television Systems Committee’s (ATSC) standard for measuring and controlling television signals to minimize fluctuations in loudness between…
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