EDMONTON – Super Channel has named Melissa Kajpust as head of creative development.
Reporting to president and COO Malcolm Knox, Kajpust (pictured) will direct a team of development executives to invest Super Channel’s Creative Development Fund. She will begin her role on May 15, and be based in Toronto.
Kajpust most recently held the post of director of programming at NSI where she directed the development of all new programs and was accountable for the delivery of all NSI courses. She also facilitated the Movie Central Script to Screen development program, story edited the NSI Features First scripts, and her previous…
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TORONTO – The global branded entertainment marketplace is gaining traction as content is better integrated into entertainment platforms that consumers want to watch, says a new study from the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA).
According to The Future of Branded Entertainment, the final white paper in a three-part series, this shift is driven by recurring themes of convergence, the blurring of the lines between brand marketing and storytelling, an increased use of video, and an emphasis on experiential, authentic content.
Written by Catherine Tait of Duopoly, the paper examines where the branded entertainment industry is headed and explores some of…
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TORONTO – Can court-ordered mediation help pave the way to a deal between and Telus and Mobilicity?
The struggling wireless carrier said late Friday that Industry Canada has agreed to participate in talks “to mediate any outstanding issues relating to the successful completion” of issues related to Mobilicity's CCAA proceedings, which include Telus’ latest $350 million purchase offer.
“If needed, Mobilicity expects that mediation would proceed over the next few weeks”, reads the statement. Those meetings would be mediated by Warren Winkler, a former chief justice of Ontario who was also involved with Nortel Networks and the CanWest/Shaw Cable restructuring.
In addition…
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OTTAWA–GATINEAU – The CRTC launched the third phase of Let’s Talk TV: A Conversation with Canadians Thursday, a formal review of the television system that draws on the issues and priorities identified in Phases 1 and 2 of the initiative. Phase 3 will also include a public hearing that will begin on September 8, 2014.
The Commission said that it intends to explore “a number of changes to the television system to meet the current and future needs of Canadians as citizens, creators and consumers”. Those changes will include choice and flexibility in programming, ways to encourage the creation of compelling and diverse Canadian…
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REGINA – SaskTel will launch its high speed fusion Internet service to all remaining wireless broadband internet (WBBI) customers across the province before the end of this year, the company said Monday.
SaskTel High Speed Fusion Internet Service will initially be available only to existing WBBI customers and will be the recommended Internet choice for these customers, however, customers may also choose SaskTel Satellite Internet service (legacy satellite service) or 4G mobile Internet service if they are in a 4G coverage area. The company added that it anticipates that its High Speed Fusion Internet Service will be available to new…
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TORONTO – Telus really wants to buy Mobilicity and has made another bid for the company, despite the knowledge the federal government really doesn’t want to see this deal happen.
Late Thursday, Data & Audio-Visual Enterprises Holdings and its affiliates (collectively, Mobilicity) announced Telus would acquire it for $350 million. The proposed transaction will move forward under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act rules. Mobilicity has been under creditor protection since September.
"The transaction is a good outcome from Mobilicity's restructuring efforts and extensive sales process," said William Aziz, Mobilicity's chief restructuring officer, in the press release. "I am confident the transaction…
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CALGARY and MONTREAL – Last week the two biggest Canadian cable companies without traditional wireless assets told their shareholders and other investors they see their wireless future in Wi-Fi – and they plan to lobby the federal government hard for more spectrum.
On March 31st, the Federal Communications Commission altered some of its rules on unlicensed wireless spectrum, making more of it available to network providers in the 5 GHz band. “The new rules will make 100 MHz of spectrum more accessible for use in homes and congested spaces like convention centers, parks, and airports and increase the potential for…
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OTTAWA – Canadian feature films will receive star treatment this summer courtesy of Governor General David Johnston.
The first-ever Rideau Hall Movie Nights will debut this August, featuring outdoor screenings of acclaimed English and French Canadian films, screened on alternate nights, on the grounds of the official residence of the Governor General at 1 Sussex Drive in Ottawa.
The public will be invited to bring their blankets and settle in to watch these films under the stars. Official dates and film selection will be announced soon.
“Enjoyed by millions of people here at home and around the world, Canada’s vibrant film…
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TORONTO – The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) and Bell Media have unveiled the four participants selected for the 2014 Bell Media Showrunner Bootcamp.
The participants are:
– Sherry White, a Canadian-based screenwriter and filmmaker who is currently writing and producing for CTV’s hit series Saving Hope, and is the co-executive producer on the ABC/Global series Rookie Blue. Sherry has also written for Rookie Blue for five seasons. Previously, she has written for series such as MVP: The Secret Lives of Hockey Wives, 18 to Life, and Hatching, Matching & Dispatching. Sherry is currently developing series for both ABC Studios and Warner…
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OTTAWA – Shaw Media and Catalyst Canada are teaming up with Women in Communications and Technology (WCT) on a new initiative designed to expand opportunities for women in Canada’s ICT sector.
Scheduled to roll out this fall, The Protégé Project will help to prepare senior, qualified women for positions of power and leadership in Canada’s largest communications, media and technology companies.
To date, 11 senior executives in leading communications, media and technology organizations have signed on to personally support the project. An equivalent number of up-and-coming female corporate executives and entrepreneurs will be selected and matched to these leaders, based on…
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