GATINEAU – Broadcasters, distributors and special interests all took predictable stances on the CRTC's proposed framework for the distribution of national news services in interventions published this week.
The comment period for the framework, which launched from the Commission's August decision to deny mandatory distribution to Sun News Network, ended on Monday night. Last-minute submissions were posted to the CRTC site Tuesday and Wednesday. The Regulator’s proposals include rules on carriage, packaging and channel placement for national news services licensed as Category C, which would categorize all such services – new and…
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TORONTO – Five major Canadian digital media funding organizations have hammered out a new framework designed to help international digital media co-productions access their respective funding programs.
The framework, developed by the Canada Media Fund, the Bell Broadcast and New Media Fund, the Independent Production Fund, the Quebecor Fund, and the Shaw Rocket Fund, addresses the need to facilitate international co-productions in digital media between Canada and other countries in order to access new opportunities and partnerships. Furthermore, existing audiovisual co-production treaties do not address digital media production, the announcement continues.
The framework is being implemented on a trial basis and applies…
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NEW YORK – Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam told Bloomberg News on Monday that his company will not be entering the Canadian wireless marketplace after all and that it wasn’t all that interested in the first place.
He told the news organization in no uncertain terms the company is not interested in investing here and all the speculation that it might enter the Canadian market was “way overblown”. He told Bloomberg that Canada held some limited appeal for the company, but now that it announced it will pay British telco Vodafone $130 billion…
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THURSDAY SAW THE continued condemnation of the federal government’s wireless policies by three of the country’s telecom executives as they reported their quarterly results.
Each of Quebecor CEO Robert Dépatie, BCE CEO George Cope and Telus CEO Darren Entwistle used their second quarter 2013 conference calls with financial analysts to take additional public shots at the federal government, whose 700 MHz auction rules coupled with altered AWS spectrum transfer conditions seem poised to give American cellco Verizon an easy, cheap way into the Canadian market. That assumes reports that the American company hopes to purchase Wind Canada are true and…
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quarter reported increases in its telecommunications revenue that were offset by declines in its news media and interactive technologies divisions.
The net loss attributable to shareholders was $45.1 million (or $0.73 per basic share), compared to a $65.5 million net profit in the same quarter a year earlier. While declining news media revenues were a contributing factor, Quebecor said the loss was mainly due to $130-million non-cash writedown of the valuation of financial instruments.
Overall revenues were at $1.09 billion, an increase of $8.6 million (0.8%) over Q2 2012. Quebecor’s telecommunications business reported revenues of…
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WHILE THE LOBBYING intensifies here as everyone awaits word on whether Verizon will venture north in advance of the 700 MHz spectrum auction, the American cellco is doing lobbying of its own, Stateside, as the industry there prepares for a spectrum auction in the 600 MHz band.
A research report which is part of the U.S. wireless industry’s lobbying efforts actually casts doubt on our own government’s assertion it is bringing more competition to the Canadian wireless market with restrictive auction rules.
Scotia Capital analyst Jeff Fan noted in a report to clients what could be…
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GATINEAU – For many companies there is much riding on what the CRTC has to say at 11 a.m. this morning.
The Commission will make public its decisions on a wide range of license application requests and renewals Thursday morning, but a few will get far more notice than most. For example, if Sun News does not get its must-carry (and must-pay) status, will owner Quebecor Media really follow through on its threat to close up shop?
Did all-Canadian movie channel gambit Starlight pull the right heartstrings with the panel of commissioners to be granted an all-Canadian…
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MONTREAL – A day ahead of announcing its second quarter financial results, Quebecor announced today that its board of directors have approved a two-for-one stock split of the company’s outstanding Class A multiple voting and Class B subordinate voting shares.
On August 14, shareholders will receive one additional share for each share owned, subject to approval of regulatory filings with the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Quebecor shares after the stock split are expected to begin trading on August 16.
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MONTREAL – Selling its majority stake in Sun News Network helped boost Quebecor-owned TVA Group’s net profits for the second quarter to $7 million or $0.29 per share, the company announced Friday.
In comparison, TVA Group’s net profit for the same quarter in 2012 was $10.2 million or $0.43 per share.
On June 30, TVA Group sold a 2% interest in Sun News Network News to Sun Media Corp. (which is also a Quebecor subsidiary) for $765,000, leaving it with a 49% interest in the company.
Revenues from TVA Group’s television and publishing and…
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OTTAWA – The CBC has refused to air an advertisement produced by watchdog group Friends of Canadian Broadcasting which challenges the government’s takeover of the national public broadcaster, saying it could imply endorsement of the group’s campaign.
A 60-second version of the ad, released by Friends at a news conference Monday morning, features an actor as a CBC reporter questioning Prime Minister Stephen Harper (or an actor playing the PM) why he hasn't delivered on his promises of accountability and transparency. After listing about a dozen transgressions that start with the robocalls, G20 abuses, and end…
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