HALIFAX – The inaugural recipients of Canada’s new export funding program were unveiled Wednesday in Halifax by Andy Fillmore, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism and Halifax MP.
The Creative Export Canada program, launched last June by then Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly, provides companies and organizations that are ready to export and work in a creative industry, or in support of one, with funding to make it easier for buyers and audiences abroad to discover Canadian content.
The first 20 projects will share a total of nearly $7.8 million in funding. The projects, in alphabetical order, are:
Apollo Boutique Musicale…
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MISSISSAUGA – New technologies and access to vast quantities of data promise to create smart cities, which improve sustainability, create economic development, and enhance quality of life for people living and working in them. At Commtech East last week, a panel of industry experts (pictured) offered insight on what has to happen if our cities are to get smarter.
John Jung, executive director of Intelligence Community Forum (ICF) Canada, explained there are now about 200 cities all over the world the ICF has recognized as intelligent communities. He added there are likely thousands of additional cities which could be added…
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Canadians still want loads of video, and are getting it from many sources
WHILE CANADIANS CONTINUE to pull back on their traditional subscription TV services, their interest in video overall shows no signs of shrinkage as they add tens of thousands of subscriptions to various over-the-top providers (but yah, mainly Netflix).
According to new research from Victoria, B.C.’s Convergence Research, cord-cutting in Canada is proceeding at about a 2% rate per year right now. “We estimate 2018 saw a decline of 204,000 Canadian TV subscribers, 2017 a decline of 210,000 TV subscribers, and we forecast a decline of 253,000 for 2019,”…
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SAINT-SAUVEUR, QC – The Canada Media Fund (CMF) and the Quebecor Fund have announced a new partnership program that will provide additional funding to French-language drama series created by Quebec-based producers that are intended for international markets.
Eligible projects must be live-action, French-language television series that meet the CMF's definition of Drama programming and demonstrate a viable path to generate a return on investment. The projects’ financing for the domestic version must be entirely secured. Click here for the program guidelines.
Chosen in collaboration with the Quebecor Fund selection committee, the projects must first be submitted to the Quebecor…
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GATINEAU – Don’t do it again, or else.
The CRTC released its ruling on the Quebecor vs Bell dispute over TVA Sports Thursday afternoon. As readers will recall, Quebecor’s TVA Group pulled the TVA Sports signal from Bell TV on April 9th in a dispute over wholesale fees – and Quebecor CEO Pierre Karl Péladeau’s desire to see specialty service regulations changed.
Following yesterday’s hearing, the CRTC said Thursday afternoon it found Quebecor guilty of violating section 15(1) of the Discretionary Services Regulations (the Regulations) and issued a mandatory order requiring the company to provide the TVA Sports feeds to…
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LAS VEGAS – With the Walt Disney Co. planning to launch its widely awaited subscription OTT service, Disney+, this fall, industry analysts and executives are expecting truly enchanted things from the Magic Kingdom
In fact, speaking on a Streaming Summit panel at the NAB Show here last week, some industry experts said recent Wall Street forecasts for Disney+, while seemingly sky-high, may actually prove to be way too low. Most recently, for example, MoffettNathanson predicted that Disney+ will bring in 7.1 million subscribers in its first year and grow to nearly 24 million customers by the end of 2022.
"That number…
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GATINEAU – On Wednesday morning the CRTC held a rare show-cause hearing to determine whether TVA Group is in violation or has violated CRTC regulation by withdrawing TVA Sports’ signal from distribution by Bell Canada (Bell), and if the CRTC should issue a mandatory order requiring the licensee to comply with the said regulations (not to mention more consequences).
In principle, it is a legalistic argument and a little dry. Of course, Quebecor CEO Pierre Karl Péladeau (pictured today in a CPAC.ca screen cap, right) used his time in front of the Commission today to continue…
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TORONTO – Evanov Radio Group’s Carmela Laurignano has been named this year’s recipient of the Rosalie Award, as part of Canadian Music Week next month.
Named in honour of Rosalie Trombley, renowned music director at Windsor-Detroit Top 40 powerhouse CKLW-AM "The Big 8", the Rosalie Award was established in 2005 to recognize Canadian women who have blazed new trails in radio. Recipients are women who are successful in the radio industry and are seen as leaders, mentors, and people making a difference in the business.
Carmela Laurignano is vice-president and radio group manager at Evanov Radio Group (ERG) as well as part owner of four…
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MONTREAL – Former CRTC chair and Astral Media president André Bureau succumbed to cancer on Friday, April 12. He was 83.
A lawyer and communications business executive, Bureau was the illustration of a generation of smart, ambitious and well-connected young French-Canadian men that emerged after the “Révolution Tranquille”.
Born in 1935, in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, he studied Law at Université Laval in Québec City and was called to the Quebec Bar in 1959. He also received a doctorate in comparative law at the Sorbonne, in France, in 1960.
In private practice from 1960, he practiced in his home town, where Le Nouvelliste (the…
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Industry, others, provide feedback
OTTAWA – On February 26th, the Government of Canada proposed new CRTC Policy direction to put Canadians at the forefront of future telecommunications decisions, as Cartt.ca reported.
By law, this proposed Order must be put for comments for a period of 30 days after being published in the Canada Gazette. April 8th was the deadline for intervenors to make their comments known to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development.
(Ed note: By law, the federal government doesn’t have to listen to any of the recommendations, if it has already made up its mind,…
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