MONTREAL – Quebecor Content has scored the French-language rights to U.S. game show The Wall for TVA.
Created and produced by legendary NBA player LeBron James and Maverick Carter for SpringHill Entertainment and Andrew Glassman of Glassman Media in association with Universal Television Alternative Studio, The Wall is a tense, heart-stopping quiz that requires the right answers and the right bounces for contestants to win cash prizes.
Currently airing on NBC in the U.S. and on TF1 in France, The Wall has also recently been acquired in Germany and Spain. Broadcast details on TVA will be announced at a later date.
“We…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – The CRTC has ordered Videotron to comply with its decision to no longer zero-rate its music streaming service Unlimited Music.
In a letter to Quebecor Media dated June 15, the Commission said that Videotron failed to demonstrate that there is substantial doubt as to the correctness of Telecom Decision 2017-105, which found that that Videotron violated subsection 27(2) of the Telecommunications Act by providing certain customers with access to Unlimited Music at no charge and not having it count against their data plans. Therefore, continues the letter, Videotron’s request to review and vary the decision is denied.
The…
Continue Reading
MONTREAL – Quebecor Content has finalized an agreement with Blue Ant International to provide premium nature content for Videotron’s Indigo, illico and Club illico platforms.
The agreement includes four 4K series – Coastal Africa, Attack and Defend, Secrets of Wild Australia and Waterworld Africa – that will be available to Videotron customers on various platforms starting in July.
“Offering the best content experience to Quebec audiences is at the heart of Quebecor Content’s mission, and Blue Ant’s top-quality 4K documentary series are a great addition to the wide range of programming already enjoyed by Videotron customers on the Indigo, illico and…
Continue Reading
MONTREAL and CALGARY – Videotron is continuing to shed its wireless spectrum outside of Quebec, announcing early Tuesday that Shaw Communications has bought seven licences for $430 million.
The sale includes three 700 MHz licences covering southern Ontario and the entirety of Alberta and British Columbia, and four 2500 MHz licences covering Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver.
The transaction is subject to required approvals from regulatory authorities, including the Competition Bureau and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. It has already received all required internal approvals at Shaw and Videotron parent company Quebecor.
Videotron said that the proceeds of the sale will…
Continue Reading
CALGARY – Shaw Communications has sold off its Denver-based subsidiary ViaWest Inc. for approximately C$2.3 billion (US$1.675 billion) to GI Partners portfolio company Peak 10 Holding Corporation.
The deal is subject to customary conditions, including U.S. regulatory approval, and is expected to close by the end of the company’s fiscal 2017 year-end in August. It is not subject to a financing condition.
ViaWest provides hybrid IT solutions, including colocation, cloud computing and security and compliance for North American enterprises. Shaw, which bought ViaWest in 2014 for US$1.2 billion, said that it expects to realize net cash proceeds of approximately C$900…
Continue Reading
MONTREAL and TORONTO – Videotron has sold its AWS-1 spectrum licence in the Greater Toronto region to Rogers Communications for approximately $184 million, pursuant to the transfer option held by Videotron since 2013.
Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) approved the transfer on Friday, and Videotron parent Quebecor said the transaction is expected to close within the next few days.
The proceeds of the deal will assist in funding Videotron's ongoing network investment plans in Quebec and Eastern Ontario, continued Quebecor, which include an “aggressive” 4G network expansion and densification, an anticipated 5G network deployment and upgrades to its IP wireline…
Continue Reading
MONTREAL – Rising revenues were not enough to offset first quarter net losses at Quebecor, the company said Thursday.
For the period ended March 31, 2017, revenue of $996.4 million was up 2.2% year-over-year. Revenues increased in Telecommunications ($27.4 million or 3.5% of segment revenues) and in Sports and Entertainment ($1.1 million or 10.7%), though revenues decreased in Media ($10.3 million or -4.7%).
The company reported a $200,000 net loss to shareholders in the period, compared with net income attributable to shareholders in the amount of $69.9 million in the same period of 2016, primarily due to an unfavourable variance of $70.1 million unfavourable variance in losses and gains…
Continue Reading
MONTREAL – Despite gains in its broadcasting and production segments, TVA Group Inc. saw its first quarter losses deepen by more than $0.6 million, the company announced on Tuesday.
TVA Group, a subsidiary of Quebecor Media Inc., reported a net loss attributable to shareholders of $8.0 million in the first quarter of 2017, compared with a net loss attributable to shareholders of $7.4 million in the same period last year. It also posted a consolidated adjusted operating loss of $594,000, a negative variance of $891,000 year-over-year.
The company’s Broadcasting & Production segment experienced a $657,000 adjusted operating income, a favourable variance…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – Continued flooding in Gatineau, home of the CRTC and many of its staff, means the big decisions planned for this week have been put off until next week, Cartt.ca has learned.
Multiple sources have been told by the Commission that since some staffers are dealing with flooding in their own homes (the Regulator’s offices have not been flooded) that the decisions on the license renewals for the large French-language ownership groups and large English-language ownership groups, originally intended for this week, had to be pushed back to next. The CRTC office was also closed Monday and remains so…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – Irwin Gotlieb’s company is in charge of a third of the world’s advertising budget and he came to Toronto last week to tell Canada’s broadcasters to get on with addressable advertising, measure better, and work co-operatively, or his company will soon be spending its clients’ money elsewhere.
In an appearance at the Future of TV Ads Conference Thursday at Steam Whistle Brewery and in an interview with Cartt.ca, the global chairman of Group M implored Canadian broadcasters – especially those with TV distribution arms as well – to follow the lead of much of the rest of the…
Continue Reading
