GATINEAU – Rogers Communications and Corus Entertainment have told the CRTC that it must reconsider the usefulness of Terms of Trade (ToT) agreement between broadcasters and independent producers in creating independent Canadian programming. On the other hand, the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) argues that in a new broadcast environment with greater pick and pay options ToT will become increasingly important.
In their respective interventions to the Commission’s Let’s Talk TV Conversation with Canadians, Rogers and Corus claim that ToT (a deal hard-fought for by the CMPA and others which was developed and demanded over a number of years) is…
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WINNIPEG – Pierre Blouin will step down from atop MTS Allstream later this year, and the search for his replacement is already underway, the company said Tuesday in a surprise announcement.
Blouin, pictured, was named CEO in December 2005. Under his watch, MTS expanded its fibre-to-the-home network in 14 communities in Manitoba, grew Allstream's national network of connected buildings to over 3,000, acquired EPIC Information Solutions, and invested over $50 million to build a state-of-the-art commercial data centre in Winnipeg, enabling a new and lucrative portfolio of IT services for MTS Allstream for years to come, according to the company’s…
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JUST BECAUSE BELL Canada, Quebecor Media, Rogers Communications and Shaw Communications are all broadcasters, specialty service operators, TV distributors, phone companies and broadband providers doesn’t mean they think alike. They do, however, agree on this generation’s “Death Star”. We’re looking at you, Netflix.
In their submissions to the CRTC’s TV Policy Review, the four big vertically integrated behemoths are on board together with certain things, such as maintaining simultaneous substitution (which is actually something virtually every industry submission we’ve read demands be kept), decreasing the amount of Canadian content which must be shown, while spending more money on fewer big…
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TORONTO – Blue Ant Media announced this morning it is expanding its distribution division with the hiring of Gwen Jones McCauley as director, international sales.
With over fifteen years of distribution experience, she was previously VP, content sales at THA Inc. and BBC Worldwide Canada where she gained extensive background in content media sales and customer relations’ management, says the press release. Jones McCauley will officially join the Blue Ant International team on August 18th (well in advance of MIPCOM) and her territories will include Latin America, U.S. Hispanic, Spain, Portugal and Africa.
“As our catalog continues to expand exponentially, we…
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MONTREAL – Bell Mobility continues to lead the Canadian wireless industry in EBITDA and ARPU growth, as shown through its second quarter results released this morning.
"Rapid expansion of our mobile 4G LTE network, including to hundreds of small towns and rural communities across Canada, is promoting smartphone use and growing Bell's lead in mobile TV and other data services,” said George Cope, president and CEO of BCE and Bell Canada, in the company’s press release. “Our strategy of leading investment in Canada's communications infrastructure and new customer service initiatives delivered a quarter of strong financial and operating results. We…
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GATINEAU – Despite the fact cable and other TV carriers in many countries are compiling and using data gleaned from customer set top boxes to modify their programming and advertising, Canadian companies seem loathe to do the same or are apathetic about moving quickly to gather that real-time information, according to their submissions to the CRTC’s TV Policy Review, slated to get under way a month from tomorrow.
The Commission asked nine different questions about establishing a set-top box (STB) audience measurement system in Canada, covering issues from consumer privacy to costs and governance. With a few exceptions (especially from…
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CAIRO/LONDON – Despite an uncertain future, Wind Mobile continues to add subscribers in good sized chunks, adding 38,875 net new customers in the quarter ended June 30th – according to the financial results of its parent company Global Telecom Holdings (part of the VimpelCom empire).
To put it into perspective that’s more net new subs than Vidéotron (one of Wind’s apparent suitors) and equal to the net new wireless postpaid subs which Rogers attracted in the second quarter.
As of the end of June, Wind Canada had 741,000 customers (20% more than the end of the second…
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CALGARY and DENVER – Shaw Communications announced today it will acquire a 100% interest in call centre company ViaWest from Oak Hill Capital Partners and other shareholders for an enterprise value of US$1.2 billion.
Based in Denver, ViaWest is one of the largest privately providers of data centre infrastructure, cloud technology and managed IT solutions in North America. It employs over 350 people and services more than 1,300 customers across Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Minnesota, Oregon Texas and Utah.
The Company has a strong record of financial growth and over the last decade, ViaWest has grown from five data centres in two…
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OTTAWA – The Public Interest Advocacy Centre and the Consumers Association of Canada Tuesday published an open letter to CRTC chairman Jean-Pierre Blais decrying the Commission’s decision to call carriers in for a meeting on paper billing practices instead of allowing for a public process.
Both PIAC and the CAC had submitted a formal application to the CRTC, asking it to prohibit charging Canadians an extra fee to receive a paper bill.
The CRTC issued a press release last week noting it has called the industry in to explain itself. "We are concerned that not all Canadians…
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TORONTO – MDL Communications announced Tuesday it has added Boris Eventov to its list of expert consultants.
Widely regarded as an authority within Canada’s cable industry, Eventov (pictured) was responsible for designing, and overseeing the suite of digital video services (SDV, VOD, digital simulcast, headend consolidation, targeted ad insertion, fibre interconnections among other implementations) at Cogeco Cable Ontario, reads the MDL release.
He was also responsible for strategic planning for future network capacity and reliability requirements, as well as signal acquisition negotiation and interconnect agreements between different MSOs. He also published multiple articles in industry journals, as well as presenting at…
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