OTTAWA – Astral Media Radio Inc. is proposing a $63.3 million benefits package over seven years as it seeks regulatory approval for its $1.082 billion acquisition of 52 over-the-air radio stations and two small-market TV stations from Standard Radio Inc. Astral also pledges to take measures to ensure compliance by the Standard Radio stations that didn’t meet licence conditions with regard to Canadian content, and to pay any outstanding tangible benefit amounts connected to stations previously purchased by Standard that are included in the Astral deal.
Referring to the deal as “evolutionary, and not revolutionary,” Astral tells the CRTC…
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TORONTO – Billing itself as "The Canadian Solution", Canadian investment banker Catalyst Asset Management has announced a bid for Bell Canada Enterprises which, on the face of it, presents no regulatory hurdles whatsoever.
The bid, the fifth one to become public, would maintain Bell Canada as a stand-alone public company, and would benefit "all Canadians and Canada," says the press release.
Catalyst’s proposed transaction would be completed by way of an exchange offer by a Canadian Corporation formed exclusively for this purpose. That new company will offer one "stapled security" in exchange for each outstanding common share of Bell…
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GATINEAU – Having received applications for a new radio station in each of Peterborough, Ont., and Ottawa-Gatineau, the CRTC has opened a broad call for new applications, as is its practice, for both markets.
The application deadline is August 21, 2007.
Click here for more.
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TORONTO – Except for the five Citytv stations going to Rogers Communications, CTVglobemedia said Friday afternoon that it has closed the transaction for CHUM Limited, having satisfied all of the conditions for approval as set out in the June 8th CRTC decision.
CTVgm CEO Ivan Fecan held a town hall-style meeting today to address employee concerns and allay fears, telling employees that changes will be minimal but that the A Channels will likely be rebranded.
Also this week, CHUM CEO Jay Switzer announced he is stepping down.
All of the assets of CHUM Limited have now been released…
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CALGARY – In the face of a chipper AGM report from the Canadian Television Fund, Shaw Communications CEO Jim Shaw remains displeased over how the CTF is run.
Thanks to a serious amount of pressure put on the Minister for Canadian Heritage, Bev Oda, and the CRTC by Shaw – and then Videotron – when the two companies pulled their funding from the CTF early this year, the Commission created a special panel headed by broadcasting vice-chairman Michel Arpin.
The panel is examining everything about the CTF, top to bottom, front to back and will file its…
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OTTWA – Rogers Broadcasting Ltd. has applied for a licence for another sports channel, called Sportsnet 2, which would primarily cover soccer, cricket and rugby. The application for the national Category 2 digital licence was gazetted Thursday by the CRTC (Broadcasting Notice 2007-7).
The new channel would seek “a limited ability to cover other sports,” but is prepared to accept a condition of licence prohibiting coverage of North American professional sports leagues (National Hockey League, Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, Canadian Football League and National Football League).
Rogers tells the CRTC in its application that Sportsnet 2 would…
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OTTAWA – Canadian Heritage minister Bev Oda said it would be “inappropriate to prejudge its review” of the Canadian Television Fund (CTF) currently underway by the CRTC, in her response earlier this week to a Parliamentary committee’s report on the private-public fund.
The government’s response to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage’s “The Funding Crisis of the Canadian Television Fund,” offered no opinions on the report’s conclusions.
Oda’s response consisted of a summary of events surrounding the funding crisis resulting when Shaw and Quebecor decided to withdraw their monthly contributions to the CTF. Those payments have since been resumed….
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BANFF – Although the combination of two major regulated TV assets was the talk of the 2007 Banff World Television Festival (Hello, Rogers/Citytv), the focus of the event’s final panel was on the potential impact of unregulated new media vs. the fortunes of old media.
In fact, the first question posed by moderator (and festival CEO) Robert Montgomery during his closing session on the BWTVF green Paper to the diverse collection of opinion leaders was: Will the TV industry collapse in the face of broadband Internet and other unregulated platforms?
The question may sound like a Chicken Little approach…
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by Myron Love
WINNIPEG – Having secured the approval of the CRTC, MTS Allstream has begun the process of doubling its pay phone rate from 25 cents to 50 cents a call – despite complaints from advocates of the poor who argue that the increase should have phased in over a period of time.
"We haven’t increased our rates since 1983," says MTS spokesman Michael Bouliane. "Ontario and Quebec already charge 50 cents to use pay phones, Saskatchewan is awaiting CRTC approval and Telus has charged pay phone users 35 cents a call for some time now."
Bouliane…
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WINNIPEG – MTS Allstream has filed evidence with the CRTC saying that it has met the requisite Quality of Service ("QoS") criteria for deregulation of the residential local telephone market in Winnipeg.
The QoS evidence is the last benchmark incumbent telcos are required to meet in order to obtain forbearance or deregulation in local markets.
The ILECs must provide adequate service to their new competition when the newcomers require interconnection to the PSTN, for example.
"We think the current requirements for QoS are fair and achievable," said Chris Peirce, chief regulatory officer, MTS Allstream, in the company’s press release….
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