OTTAWA – Telus, Cogeco, Eastlink and MTS Allstream have all told the CRTC that they are opposed to BCE and Rogers’ proposal to take control of sports channels Leafs TV, NBA TV Canada and Gol TV Canada from parent Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE).
The interventions filed by the independent distributors claim that the move, which comes as part of the BCE/Rogers $1.32 billion bid for a majority stake in MLSE, “are bad for the Canadian broadcasting industry, further extending the control exerted by these large vertically integrated conglomerates”.
“Increasing the already extensive market power enjoyed by vertically integrated programming…
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TORONTO – Rogers let go 375 employees on Tuesday in the face of stiff competition and declining revenues.
Company spokesperson Patricia Trott told Cartt.ca that the layoffs, which are effective immediately, are spread across Rogers’ cable and wireless businesses in areas including operations and sales/marketing, plus includes some management roles.
“It was a very, very difficult decision for us, and is part of a comprehensive approach that we announced earlier this year around cost management and improving productivity”, she said in the interview.
Trott said that Rogers is also reviewing other cost saving initiative such as trimming discretionary spending and tightening up its supply…
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TORONTO – RTNDA Canada, The Association of Electronic Journalists, celebrated its national and network award winners on Saturday night in Toronto, honouring the best programs, stations and newsgathering organizations in both radio and television.
The winners are as follows:
National Television Winners:
Bert Cannings Award – Best Newscast
– CBC North for Northbeat (Small Market)
– CTV Barrie for CTV News at Six (Medium Market)
– CTV Edmonton for Slave Lake Disaster (Large Market)
Adrienne Clarkson Award – Diversity
– Global Saskatoon for Accessible Saskatoon, Not!
Charlie Edwards Award – Spot News
– CP24 for In The Line Of Duty
Dan McArthur Award – In-depth/Investigative
– CTV Montreal for Dirty Little…
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TORONTO – Bell Media and CBC/Radio Canada have ended their Olympic bid partnership after two failed bids for the exclusive Canadian media rights for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games and the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
During their partnership, the organizations submitted two bids for the Canadian broadcast rights that were turned down flat by the IOC. The duo said in a joint statement on Monday afternoon that they will formally dissolve their bid partnership as a result.
"We presented not one, but two fiscally responsible bids that are reflective of the Canadian marketplace," said Phil King, president of CTV programming and…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – The CRTC has given Rogers the green light to move ahead with its acquisition of Saskatchewan Communications Network (SCN), however, the deal may be a little more expensive than Rogers had anticipated.
The Commission said Thursday that Rogers may continue to broadcast commercial programming and advertising on the educational service, as its previous owner Bluepoint Investments was allowed to do. But it also directed Rogers to invest an additional $1 million on independent production in Saskatchewan over the course of the six year licence term in order to “maintain the integrity of its licensing process and properly reflect SCN’s…
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LAS VEGAS – The National Hockey League has given its blessing to Rogers Communications' and Bell Canada’s acquisition of the Toronto Maple Leafs, as part of the companies' majority ownership purchase of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE).
The League issued a brief statement from its annual Board of Governors meeting saying that its approval of the sale of the Leafs, the anchor of the $1.32 billion deal, was unanimous. It also approved a subsequent restructuring of the ownership of MLSE.
However, a report in the Globe and Mail says the league also told the team's about-to-be-owners…
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TORONTO – Toronto Blue Jays owner Rogers Communications is sponsoring an application by the MLB Network that could make the baseball network available for distribution in Canada.
The U.S. cable channel has officially applied to be added to the list of list of non-Canadian programming services authorized for distribution in Canada on a digital basis. Dedicated solely to coverage of major league baseball, MLB Network says that it covers all 30 MLB clubs through its original sports news, talk and analysis programming, and the live broadcast of up to 150 regular season and spring training games.
In its application, the channel maintains that it…
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GATINEAU – The CRTC will stage a public hearing starting Tuesday morning to consider 18 renewal applications from radio stations that are in apparent non-compliance with the Commission’s radio regulations and/or certain conditions of licence.
One of the applicants, Aboriginal Voices Radio (AVR), issued a statement Monday accusing the Commission of censorship after being directed to restrict its presentation to matters pertaining to its licences for CKAV-FM Toronto, CKAV-FM-2 Vancouver, CKAV-FM-3 Calgary, CKAV-FM-4 Edmonton and CKAV-FM-9 Ottawa. AVR, in association with the National Indigenous Media Association of Canada, had proposed that the CRTC also review its native broadcasting policy at that…
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TORONTO – Rogers technicians will begin walking the picket lines on Friday morning, according to their union.
Members of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada, Local 5011, will walk off the job after failing to reach a new collective agreement with Dependable Home Tech and Intek Communications, who employ 200 technicians in the Simcoe and Greater Toronto Area regions. These techs provide installation and repair services to Rogers customers.
"These employees have the legal right to strike, and no amount of employer intimidation will change what will happen tomorrow," said Kim Ginter, CEP VP for the Ontario Region, in…
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TORONTO – Popular Canadian daytime show Cityline has undergone a makeover, after 28 years of offering them to its viewers.
The show, which airs weekdays at 9:00 am ET/PT on Citytv, unveiled a revamped set, logo and on-air graphics this week. Debuting simultaneously, the show’s refreshed brand is also reflected on every on-air element, including graphics, logo and the new, community-oriented intro, which is shot on-location throughout Toronto.
“It was time for the studio to evolve to accurately reflect Cityline’s status as the leader in the lifestyle genre. It’s the same content viewers have come to know and trust – but now…
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