Search Results for: quebecor

Radio / Television News

UPDATE: Bell satellite customers lose Sun News in carriage fee battle

TORONTO – Quebecor’s Sun News was removed from the Bell TV satellite lineup at 10 a.m. this morning (Tuesday, May 3). While the channel slot itself remains, the feed has been replaced with text telling customers that the channel “has been taken down at the request of the owners of Sun News." According to Sun News head of development Luc Lavoie, Bell forced Quebecor’s hand and it had to demand signal removal. “They have carried the signal on their satellite without trying to even have an agreement with us,” he told Cartt.ca this morning. When Sun News launched last month, it… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

BREAKING NEWS: Carriage fee spat means Sun News has cut Bell off

TORONTO – According to a source with direct knowledge of the matter, Quebecor’s Sun News was removed from the Bell TV satellite lineup as of 10 a.m. this morning (Tuesday, May 3). According to the source, and confirmed by another, the channel slot itself will remain but the feed has been replaced with text telling customers that the channel “has been taken down at the request of the owners of Sun News." When Sun TV undertook its rebrand last month, Bell approached the CRTC to clarify under which license the newly branded channel fell under (either the old over-the-air license or… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

UPDATE #2: Bell satellite subs lose Sun News in carriage fee battle that’s part of a bigger fight

TORONTO – Quebecor’s Sun News was removed from the Bell TV satellite line-up at 10 a.m. this morning (Tuesday, May 3) but it turns out that this is but one of multiple disagreements that the companies have with each other. While the Sun News channel slot itself remains, the feed has been replaced with text telling customers that the channel “has been taken down at the request of the owners of Sun News." According to Sun News head of development Luc Lavoie, Bell forced Quebecor’s hand and it had to demand signal removal. “They have carried the signal on their satellite… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Vertical Integration Primer: “We need new rules” vs. “No, we don’t”

THE INCENTIVES FOR THE great, big vertically integrated Canadian cabletelbroadcellcasters to act unfairly towards everybody else has become too great to ignore and new protections against potential perils are needed, say many companies in their submissions to the CRTC ahead of June’s hearing into vertical integration. (Editor’s note: This preview originally ran on April 29th. We’re re-running it here as a preview of the hearing, which gets under way Monday in Ottawa with Rogers first up. As usual, Cartt.ca will be there. But if you can’t be there, it will be streamed live on cpac.ca – and available for… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Sun News Net revealed

MONTREAL – Not surprisingly, Quebecor-owned Videotron was the first TV service provider to trumpet the arrival of the Sun News Network, also owned by Quebecor, which launched nationally Monday afternoon. Canada’s newest all-news channel, a re-brand of the over-the-air Sun TV in Ontario and simltaneously a digital specialty channel elsewhere, “is poised to shake up the Canadian news media landscape”, according to Videotron’s news release.  With a mixture of “hard news” by day and “straight talk” by night, the network features talent such as Charles Adler, Ezra Levant, Theo Caldwell, Brian Lilley, Krista Erickson, Pat Bolland, Alex Pierson and David Akin. “The network is… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Other carriers ponder AVP, but still back UBB

OTTAWA – As Bell Canada stole the show with its usage-based billing (UBB) backdown earlier this week, the fact that the cable companies also suggested that billing on an aggregate use basis might be a more palatable approach was overlooked.  Under this type of model, the independent ISP which leases network capacity from a facilities-based carrier would be charged for a pre-determined amount of bandwidth that it could then offer to all of its customers. If the small ISP exceeds this amount, it would be charged additional fees. The current UBB approach contemplates charging independent ISPs on per-customer basis…. Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Heritage Committee wants CRTC to look at Cancon regs for foreign OTT players

OTTAWA – Granted, it’s just another in the thousands of oft-ignored parliamentary committee reports, but a new one released today by the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage wants the CRTC to hold a public hearing about whether or not the likes of Netflix, Google TV, Apple TV, etc., should be contributing funds to the Canadian television industry. The report, “Impacts Of Private Television Ownership Changes And The Move Towards New Viewing Platforms,” was informed by five fall 2010 meeting days which heard from 21 witnesses representing Canadian media companies (big and small), carriers, producers, Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Bertrand heads up BoD at Quebecor

MONTREAL – Françoise Bertrand has been named chair of the board of directors at Quebecor Inc. effective immediately, the company announced Monday. Bertrand, who has been a member of the board since 2003, is also chair of Quebecor’s compensation committee and a member of its corporate governance committee. She replaces Jean Neveu who passed away earlier this month. “A consensus quickly emerged around Françoise as the new Chair of Quebecor’s Board,” said board vice chairman, the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney, in the announcement. “She has an exceptional track record and strong moral authority. Françoise has already demonstrated a tremendous capacity… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Quebecor remembers board chair Jean Neveu

MONTREAL – Jean Neveu, chairman of the board at media giant Quebecor, died Saturday at his home in Florida. He was 70 years old. Quebecor president and CEO Pierre Karl Peladeau described Neveu as "one of the great builders" of the company. "All his friends knew him as a man of tremendous integrity and forthrightness," Peladeau said Saturday in a statement. "I thank him and I pay tribute, as my father would have done in his day, to Jean’s passion, loyalty and dedication to the success of the Quebec institution that Quebecor has become during the past 40 years of growth…. Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Wireless takes its toll on Quebecor’s 2010 results

MONTREAL – The costs behind Quebecor’s new wireless network helped to weigh down profits at the Quebec-based media giant. Consolidated net income for the year ended December 31, 2010 was $230.1 million, a 17.1% drop from $277.7 million in 2009.  Revenues hit $4.0 billion, up 5.1% from $3.81 billion last year. Over at Videotron, the company’s wireless network ended the year with 136,100 subscribers after adding 41,000 new customers in the fourth quarter.  Videotron also reported 1,811,600 subscribers to its cable television service (including 1,219,600 for illico TV); 1,254,400 subscribers to its cable Internet access service and its new high-speed mobile Internet service; and 1,114,300 subscribers… Continue Reading