OTTAWA – It is often said that those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
And as the clock ticks down on the Canadian Association of Broadcasters, some of its soon-to-be former members have begun to look ahead to the future while keeping those lessons firmly in mind.
Bill Roberts, who was the first senior vice-president of television at the CAB as well as a former board member, said that he first expressed concern for the association’s future when the Specialty and Pay TV Association was folded in to the CAB in 2000.
“I was worried, I think…
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THE LEADERS OF SHAW Communications took a look at the media landscape around us and decided that if they’re going to be a player in the new always on, video on demand culture, one which is expanding by the second, they had better own some hit shows. Some good brands.
And Monday it announced a $2 billion deal to purchase the TV assets of Canwest Global outright – a move that will cement it as the leading media and distribution company in Canada. The prior deal Shaw announced earlier this year was to purchase just 20% of the company.
Rogers…
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TORONTO – International news channel Al Jazeera English took to the Canadian airwaves Tuesday on Bell TV, Rogers and Videotron.
Additionally, the channel announced plans to open its first Canadian bureau in Toronto next month, a move that it says “signifies the channel’s commitment to presenting Canadian news and perspective to a global audience”.
"We are extremely pleased that AJE’s groundbreaking news and programming is now available in Canada, one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world”, said AJE managing director Tony Burman, in a statement. “Over the past year, I have had the opportunity to travel throughout…
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TORONTO – Rogers Media president and CEO Tony Viner has announced his retirement.
Viner, 63, will stay with the company until a successor is named to ensure an orderly and seamless transition, the company said Tuesday. He joined Rogers in 1982 when the division consisted of only three radio stations.
"Tony has been a key part of our management team and has delivered solid results," said Nadir Mohamed, president and CEO of Rogers Communications, in a statement. "Our media division has dramatically expanded and thrived under his leadership so that today Rogers Media has many of the country’s premier media brands."
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FREDERICTON – Bell Aliant has won a court injunction preventing Rogers from claiming to have the ‘fastest and most reliable’ high speed Internet product.
Tuesday’s ruling in a New Brunswick court ordered Rogers to stop using phrases like the “fastest speed,” “most reliable speed,” or “fastest and most reliable speed” in its advertising. Bell Aliant president and CEO Karen Sheriff said that the company “very pleased with the judge’s ruling”.
“We undertook this action to ensure that our customers have access to clear and accurate information”, Sheriff said in a statement. “We understand that marketing and advertising in a competitive industry is…
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WINNIPEG, REGINA and SASKATOON – Rogers has rolled out its High Speed Packet Access Plus (HSPA+) network in Winnipeg, Regina, and Saskatoon, the company announced Tuesday.
A Rogers spokesperson confirmed to Cartt.ca that it will extend its network in the province of Manitoba later this year to allow for the launch of mobile broadband devices and smart phones such as the iPhone.
In Saskatchewan, the Rogers network can only be accessed through its HSPA+ mobile Internet stick at this time. The Rocket Mobile Internet Stick can provide download speeds of up to 21 mbps.
The stick features a USB connection to a…
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OTTAWA – Rogers’ testimony at the CRTC community TV hearing may not have been entirely accurate, according to the Canadian Association of Community Television Users and Stations (CACTUS).
In a statement on Tuesday, CACTUS noted that Rogers TV VP Colette Watson said that "close to 60%" of the programming on Rogers’ Ottawa channel was "access programming", or made by members of the public. But a review of Rogers’ Ottawa schedule posted on-line reveals that almost all the daily shows on the programming schedule list Rogers employees as producers, CACTUS maintained.
The group also expressed concern over the number of community station closures, and said that part of…
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EXTON, PA – Three industry veterans have been named to the electoral slate to represent Canada on the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTE) board of directors for 2010.
The candidates for the position of Director-At-Large Canada (representing SCTE’s Canadian members) are:
– Boris Eventov, director, digital video engineering, Cogeco Cable;– Tony Faccia, vice president, wireline access networks, Rogers Cable Communications; and– Bruce Marshall, technical director, Shaw Cablesystems.
Rogers’ Dermot O’Carroll is the current Canadian board rep. Newly elected directors will begin their two-year terms on October 19th in conjunction with the SCTE Cable-Tec Expo 2010 set for October 20…
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TORONTO – Rogers says that small business is big business.
With its small business customers squarely in mind, the company launched an initiative called Rogers Live Agent to provide immediate, direct access to a live representative when calling for support. The service rep will authenticate the customer, assess the business needs, and then engage the appropriate sales, customer care or technical support required, streamlining communication and reducing time-to-resolution.
"At Rogers, we understand the speed of business today”, said Gordon Stein, VP of Rogers’ business segment, in a statement on Monday. “Our small business customers need quick, efficient conversations that provide them with needed information on…
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TORONTO – When it comes to our steadily evolving media world – one which is branching out like a spider web in all directions – there are a total of eight different media consumer personas, according to Richard Bullwinkle (pictured below).
He is the “chief evangelist” for Rovi Corp., the digital media company perhaps best known for supplying the electronic program guides found in so many cable and satellite boxes, and Wednesday evening was the guest speaker for a CTAM Canada event held at the Rogers Centre.
The company conducted a trio of studies in 2009/10 with businesses and consumers in…
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