DARTMOUTH – Newcap Radio owner Newfoundland Capital Corporation credited strong listener ratings at its stations in Toronto and Ottawa for a lift in fourth quarter revenues and profits.
For the period ended December 31, 2016, revenues of $47.0 million were up 3% from $45.5 million year-over-year, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) grew 15% from $14.5 million to $16.7 million as a result of higher revenue and reduced operating costs in the company’s broadcasting segment.
Profit for the period of $10.4 million was $2.5 million higher than the same quarter last year, primarily as a result of revenue growth,…
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TORONTO – The Canada Media Fund (CMF) has unveiled a series of tangible measures that it pledged to put in place to increase women in key roles on CMF-funded productions.
The organization said Wednesday, on International Women's Day, that the initiatives will include concrete changes to the CMF’s guidelines and policies, a commitment to achieving gender parity in all juries that are put in place to evaluate projects, and support for third-party initiatives, among other measures to be implemented in the upcoming fiscal year and subsequently.
According to research conducted in different markets around the world and by the CMF’s own…
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TORONTO – Blue Ant International has named Nick Solowski as its director of international sales and acquisitions.
Solowski (pictured) was most recently senior director of international sales and acquisitions at Tricon Films & Television. In his new role, operating out of the distribution group’s Toronto office, Solowski will be responsible for licensing Blue Ant International’s catalog of premium content across Canada, U.S.-Hispanic, LATAM, Iberia, Australia, New Zealand and Ancillary.
“With over a decade of film and television industry experience, Nick brings to the table a proven track record in creating strategic partnerships between producers and content buyers,” said Blue Ant International…
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TORONTO – The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) has chosen Canadian actor, humanitarian and activist Tina Keeper as its 2017 ACTRA National Woman of the Year.
The award is bestowed annually on an ACTRA member who uses her passion to support her fellow female ACTRA members and women within the audiovisual industry as a whole. Keeper (pictured) joins past recipients Shirley Douglas, Tantoo Cardinal, Sandi Ross, Mary Walsh, Jean Freeman, Amanda Tapping and Catherine Joell MacKinnon.
An active member of Canada's film and television industry for over 30 years, Keeper is well-known for her role as RCMP officer…
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TORONTO – CTAM Canada is again inviting its members to apply for a scholarship to attend the prestigious Cable Executive Management Program at Harvard in June.
One successful applicant will be selected to attend the program at Harvard Business School that this year runs from June 11-16, 2017. The week-long study program focuses on strategic marketing and business principles using detailed case studies taught by HBS professors and key industry leaders.
Details on the program and the application form are available here. Applicants must submit a current CV and a recommendation letter from their company, plus compose an essay on the specific…
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CALGARY – Former Shaw Media exec Christine Shipton has been named chair of the board of directors of the Shaw Rocket Fund, replacing the retiring Annabel Slaight.
Funded by contributions from Shaw Communications and Shaw Direct, the Shaw Rocket Fund is a not-for-profit corporation that focuses on stimulating excellence in the Canadian children's production industry in Canada through equity investment and industry initiatives such as the Shaw Rocket Prize and Startoon, an online development program for animators.
A seasoned television executive with experience in both production and broadcast organizations, Shipton (pictured) was most recently SVP of content for Shaw Media. She…
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TORONTO — The media industry is “filled with promise”, said Wade Oosterman, group president for Bell Canada, but competing in a global economy offers a wide variety of battles to be fought on many fronts.
For Bell, deploying fibre and wireless networks is very expensive – while funding TV content also takes a lot of cash, he said, adding that media companies also need a regulatory environment that doesn’t hinder their ability to compete against the likes of Netflix, Amazon and Apple TV.
Oosterman, who oversees Bell Media, Bell Mobility, and Bell Residential and Small Business, made his comments during a…
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TORONTO – The North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) has thrown its support behind a voluntary North American digital radio standard.
A position paper developed by the NABA Radio Committee’s digital radio working group says that harmonizing regulatory and technical elements in Canada, Mexico and the United States would encourage the rapid adoption of the technology and enhanced digital services, which will benefit the consumer and all industry stakeholders.
“The development of a voluntary digital radio broadcast standard in North America will greatly benefit listeners by providing for new and enhanced broadcasting services that are accessible across the entire continent”, reads…
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TORONTO – Despite major technological innovations and new digital strategies that have changed the audiovisual industry around the world, the demand for exclusive, original and quality content is still strong, says a new report from the Canada Media Fund (CMF).
The Digital Puzzle: Piecing Back Together the Content Value Chain examines the value creation opportunities that have emerged from this major industrial reorganization.
Unlike previous Trends Reports that have examined a range of transformative phenomena that remain relevant and evolving, this edition focuses on four fronts: technology and innovation, consumer habits, business models, and markets and competition. It discusses the…
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OTTAWA – After securing a global Netflix streaming deal for its new original show, Wow! Unlimited Media’s CEO Michael Hirsh says opportunities abound for Canadian content.
Wow! Unlimited Media (formerly Rainmaker) scored its big win earlier this month when it announced that Netflix would stream Castlevania, the first proprietary production from its subsidiary Frederator Studios. The program, a mature-rated animation project, is written by best-selling author and comic book legend Warren Ellis.
The original Netflix series, which is to debut in 2017, is a dark medieval fantasy that follows the last surviving member of the disgraced Belmont clan, trying to…
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