OTTAWA – The merging of the statutes governing the communications industry has been addressed a number of times in the past. The first panel session at this year’s Communications Law and Policy Conference attempted to put some meat to the bones of whether having unified communications legislation would be good, or bad, for the sector and even if it’s doable at all.
Former CRTC commissioner Tim Denton provided a pretty succinct argument as to why the Broadcasting Act and Telecommunications Act are essentially incompatible, can’t be unified and be effective at the same time. On one hand, the Telecom Act…
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TORONTO – CRTC vice-chair broadcasting Tom Pentefountas told Toronto’s broadcasting and advertising community this week to stop leaving money on the table and get on with addressable, targeted advertising already.
A big fan of shows like Mad Men (the vice-chairman said Thursday morning he was still dejected the series had concluded), Pentefountas noted both the massive amount of quality TV out there, and that the viewers are now in the driver’s seat when it comes to viewing options – something to which the industry has not yet fully responded, he added.
Pentefountas gave the sold-out audience of 200 at the inaugural Future…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – Canada’s television service providers saw their overall revenues increase 1.5% in 2014 despite a dip in subscribers, according to the CRTC’s statistical and financial results for the industry released Thursday.
Broadcast Distribution 2009–2013: Cable, Multipoint Distribution Systems and Direct-to-Home said that combined revenues grew from $8.8 billion in 2013 to $8.9 billion in 2014, while subscribers remained relatively flat over the period, decreasing from 11.5 million to 11.4 million for the year ended August 31, 2014.
The revenues of cable and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) service providers increased by a combined 3% from $6.3 billion in 2013 to $6.5 billion…
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OVERLAND PARK, Kansas – Kevin Crull wasn’t out of work for long. The former Bell Media president was named chief marketing officer for Sprint, the third largest U.S. wireless operator (with about 56 million customers), it was announced today.
In his new role, Crull will be responsible for all products and services, brand and advertising, customer acquisition and retention, and all digital and social efforts. Crull will report to President and CEO Marcelo Claure, says the company’s press release.
Crull was fired from Bell Media in April after the company found he improperly influenced CTV News coverage of…
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TORONTO – Bell Canada and Larry Tanenbaum's Kilmer Group are jointly acquiring the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts from sports entrepreneur David Braley. Financial terms of the transaction, expected to close on December 31, 2015, were not disclosed.
The team will begin leave the Rogers Centre and begin playing at BMO Field beginning with the 2016 CFL season. Located at Toronto's Exhibition Place and operated by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, BMO Field is also home to MLSE-owned Toronto FC of Major League Soccer.
Bell Media's TSN and RDS sports networks have exclusive media rights to all CFL pre-season and regular season games,…
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TORONTO – Bell Media has tapped advertising executive Stuart Garvie as its new president of Bell Media Sales, effective June 8.
Garvie, pictured, will assume the responsibilities of Mary Ann Turcke who was promoted to president of Bell Media last month following the departure of Kevin Crull. In this role, Garvie will oversee the leadership and strategic direction of Bell Media’s national advertising sales across all platforms, namely conventional and specialty TV, radio, out-of-home, and digital, reads Tuesday’s announcement. He will be based at Toronto's 50 Eglinton office and will be a member of Bell Media’s senior leadership team.
Before joining Bell Media, Garvie…
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OTTAWA – “It’s a great day for broadband in rural Canada without a doubt.” That was Chris Johnston, executive VP of marketing at Xplornet Communications Inc., in an interview with Cartt.ca on Tuesday after the company won 42 licences in Industry Canada’s 2500 MHz spectrum auction.
With 25 MHz in 42 markets across the country, the broadband communications company will use the spectrum to rollout a near national fixed wireless LTE network, capable of providing rural Canadians with download speeds of 25 Mbps, the ability to stream HD, and all other manner of things consumers can…
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CHICAGO – Last week’s INTX provided a more diverse, smaller show than the NCTA “Cable Show” from years gone by.
Gone are the days when the major U.S. cable channels bring along major star power and generous premiums. This pared down show now has mostly office alcoves making up the majority of the programmers’ booths. But, Cartt.ca was roaming the floor at the show (the only Canadian media in attendance, we think), so what else did we see we didn’t already tell you?
Ditch the word “cable” or not? Nothing is over-the-top
NCTA president and CEO (and former FCC chair)…
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MONTREAL – Incospec Communications has been named the Canadian distribution channel for GatesAir, a global leader in wireless, over-the-air content delivery solutions for radio and TV broadcasters.
Incospec was founded in 1978 with an emphasis on RF test and measurement within cable TV systems. The company’s focus later shifted to FM radio and UHF/VHF television, where its RF expertise proved valuable to broadcasters seeking solutions that also paved the way for new higher quality, multichannel digital services.
“GatesAir’s innovative technology for offloading high-bandwidth TV content from LTE networks, and delivering it to handheld devices using the more efficient one-to-many broadcast model, is…
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OTTAWA – Wind Mobile’s hopes of securing spectrum in the 2500 MHz band to add to its meager holdings have been dashed, while Telus Corp. was able to secure 40 MHz of the valuable bandwidth in all regions of the country, according to results of the Industry Canada spectrum auction released on Tuesday.
The auction, which had officially ended on May 5, netted federal government coffers more than $755 million. There were 11 companies to begin the auction with nine of them winning licences. Of the 318 licences available, 302 of them were sold. In addition to Wind,…
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