OTTAWA – Mario Mota, vice-president of broadcasting policy and regulatory affairs at the Canadian Media Production Association has decided to leave the organization, members were informed this week.
After nearly five years with CMPA (formerly the CFTPA) Mota tells Cartt.ca that he intends to work on his private consulting practice he runs with his wife, Boon Dog Professional Services – and may even do some work for the association.
“Over the past four and a half years Mario has been a key asset to the Association,” said CMPA president and CEO Norm Bolen in a note to the membership. “His passion,…
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TORONTO and CALGARY – After decades as one of the leading Canadian media companies, the name Canwest will fade into the history books, replaced by Shaw Media.
After Shaw Communications assumed full ownership of Canwest Global’s TV assets on Wednesday, the company unveiled its new broadcasting group – to be known as Shaw Media – plus its new branding and management team.
"The Asper family built a broadcasting organization which served our country well. We look forward, under our stewardship, to strengthening these important assets for the benefit of all Canadians", said JR Shaw, executive chair and founder of Shaw Communications.
"Today…
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TIMMINS – MTS Allstream dropped a number, a big one, onto the CRTC’s lap this morning as to what it would cost to serve the remaining 5% of Canadians who can’t get access to broadband because of their remote locations.
Seven billion dollars. More specifically, $700 million spent per year over 10 years.
MTS executives faced the Commission Wednesday morning in Timmins at the CRTC hearing into the telecom industry’s “obligation to serve” and offered a much different opinion than some of its incumbent telco counterparts who said yesterday that the market can take care of getting broadband to the…
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GATINEAU – The CRTC has changed next month’s hearing into Quebecor’s Sun TV News application to a non-appearing hearing.
Tuesday’s notice cites Quebecor’s decision to drop the “must carry” status for the category 2 English language all news specialty channel as the reason for the change.
The hearing is scheduled to begin November 19 in Gatineau.
www.crtc.gc.ca
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OTTAWA and TORONTO – Glassbox Television has received CRTC approval to buy digital specialty channel travel + escape from CTV for $10 million.
As part of the deal, the Commission accepted Glassbox’s proposed tangible benefits package totalling $1 million over seven years to be allocated as follows:
– $850,000 to a self-directed fund to be known as the Glassbox Travel Multiscreen Fund. This fund will finance travel-related audiovisual content development, from concept to screen, by travel writers and emerging producers;
– $150,000 for social benefit initiatives, allocated in the following manner:
• $50,000 to the National Screen Institute;• $65,000…
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TIMMINS – Bell Aliant’s service areas are, quite literally, all over the map of eastern Canada.
From the tip-top of Quebec to southwestern Ontario, the westernmost regions of Ontario to New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI and Newfoundland & Labrador. It provides fully half of all high-cost serving area customers in Canada.
And while the wheels are rolling towards where it will be re-incorporated inside of Bell Canada, “our company is at a crossroads,” said Denis Henry, vice-president of legal, regulatory and governmental affairs to the CRTC during the opening morning of the Obligation to Serve hearing (CRTC 2010-43). “(W)e face declining…
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TORONTO – The Ontario Association of Broadcasters (OAB) celebrated 60 years as over 100 delegates packed its annual conference and awards dinner in Toronto last week.
To mark the anniversary, OAB recognized some of the people who were instrumental in the organization’s early years including Gerry Acton, Ross McCreath and Pip Wedge who were in attendance. CRTC Commissioners Rita Cugini, Leonard Katz and Peter Foster were also among the attendees.
The OAB Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Jim Waters and Duff Roman, while the 2010 Community Service Awards were presented as follows:
– Radio Large Market – Award: The…
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TORONTO and OTTAWA – Shaw’s acquisition of the TV assets formerly controlled by Canwest Global garnered cautious approval from a number of industry stakeholders.
After the Commission gave its official thumbs up to the deal on Friday, the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) issued a statement saying that while it welcomed “the stability (the acquisition) will being to Canada’s broadcasting sector”, it said that the deal’s tangible benefits package “falls short”.
The group, which represents professional performers working in the English-language recorded media in Canada, also said that it is “wary of the extreme level of convergence in Canadian media”….
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CALGARY – Shaw Communications will take full ownership of Canwest Global on Wednesday, the company announced this afternoon, just after the CRTC said it approved of the transaction.
"We are pleased with the comprehensive and expeditious review of the transaction conducted by the CRTC. We felt that we had a constructive and positive dialogue with the CRTC, and other interested parties, with respect to the transaction’s impact on the Canadian broadcasting industry,” said CEO and vice-chair Jim Shaw, in a release.
“We look forward to strengthening the Industry going forward through innovation, technology enhancements, additional investment, and a commitment to…
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CALGARY – As has been expected, Brad Shaw, the younger brother of CEO Jim, has been appointed chief executive officer of Shaw Communications, effective January 13, 2011. After 12 years as CEO, Jim has decided to step down and recommended Brad as his successor, the company reported this morning.
The younger Shaw fils has been taking on more of a public profile for the last 12 months or so, appearing at a number of industry events, even leading the Shaw team through much of the Shaw-Canwest purchase hearing in front of the CRTC in September.
(We even speculated, correctly as it…
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