Search Results for: rogers

Cable / Telecom News

Rogers to raise $1 billion

TORONTO – Rogers Communications is hoping to raise close to $1 billion. The company has priced an offering of $1.0 billion of 5.80% senior notes, priced at $997.67 per $1,000 principal amount, for an effective yield of 5.841% per annum if held to maturity in May, 2016. The net proceeds from the offering, estimated to be approximately $993 million, are intended to be used for “general corporate purposes”, including the repayment of outstanding debt under Rogers’ bank credit facility. The senior notes are being offered in each of the provinces of Canada through a syndicate of agents, and Rogers said… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Commentary: Emptying an in-box full of conventional ideas (TV, that is)

ONE OF THE FORMER rules of thumb when it comes to opinionating was: Never Use “I”. Saying “I think” or “I believe” in a column is redundant and lazy. To paraphrase what more than one editor has said in my presence over the years: “Readers already know it’s what you think, your name’s at the top of the piece. Be more creative in how you write.” So, with apologies to all of my former bosses, I must say: I have a headache. I’ve grown just a little weary of thinking about the so-called crisis in conventional television. And judging… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Moody’s upgrades Rogers in response to increase in share buyback program

TORONTO – Rogers Communications will increase its current normal course issuer bid for its Class B non-voting shares to repurchase additional shares. Between February 20, 2009 and February 19, 2010, the company may purchase up to 48 million Class B shares, which represents approximately 10% of the public float, for an aggregate purchase price of $1.5 billion. As at May 15, 2009 there were approximately 519.554 million Class B shares issued and outstanding. Rogers also announced that it has set a target leverage range for its capital structure of net debt to adjusted operating profit of 2.0 to 2.5 times. The… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Rogers says it wants a revolution

TORONTO – Rogers Wireless has kicked off a promotional campaign in support of ‘the Android Market’, an on-line application store accessible only through the two Google smart phones that the company is launching on June 2.  The HTC Dream and HTC Magic smart phones, the first cell phones powered by Google Inc.’s Android platform, will allow for access to a range of Google mobile services, including Google Search, Google Maps, and Gmail. "Innovation is part of our DNA at Rogers Wireless," said John Boynton, senior vice president and CMO, in the press release. "The leading-edge Android-powered HTC Dream and… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Rogers radio-thon raises $500K for women’s shelters

TORONTO – Rogers’ radio-thon in support of shelters for abused women raised almost $500,000 earlier this month. This was the fifth consecutive year that Rogers was the media partner for ‘Shelter from the Storm’, Canada’s largest national campaign to end violence against women. Rogers’ support of the initiative included donations of print, television, online and radio advertising, plus a live radio-thon on Rogers radio stations across Canada on May 7. "We are overwhelmed by the support and donations received from our listeners and advertisers," said Shannon Valliant, vice president of financial operations for Roger Media, in a statement. "Our radio… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Rogers launches TSN2 Tuesday

TORONTO – TSN2 has finally found a home on the Rogers cable lineup. The companies reached an agreement over the weekend after months of negotiation. TSN2 will be available to Rogers’ subscribers on a free preview basis on its digital channel 1, beginning Tuesday. At the end of the month, TSN2 will move to its permanent channel location on channel 98, where it will be available to Rogers Digital VIP cable subscribers. As part of the agreement, customers must subscribe to TSN and have the HDTV Specialty Theme Pak to receive TSN2 HD. The cable giant is also launching… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Commission issues year-long licenses, dumps 1:1 for now

GATINEAU – Canadian convention broadcasters have had their licenses renewed for a year, won’t face a one-to-one foreign-Canadian programming spend requirement – and will have a LOT of regulatory work to do in the next 12 months, As first reported by Cartt.ca this week, the CRTC announced its preliminary decisions on a few matters from the public hearing to renew the licences of most of Canada’s private conventional television broadcasters. “We are making our initial determinations public to provide a measure of guidance to conventional broadcasters as they prepare for the upcoming broadcast year and embark on program purchases,”… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Court approves sale of Look’s spectrum, mobile license to Inukshuk

TORONTO and MONTREAL – The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has approved the sale of Look Communications’ spectrum and broadcast licence to Bell Canada and Rogers Communications, through their joint venture Inukshuk Wireless Partnership.  Under the agreement, Inukshuk will pay Look $80 million in cash for its 92 MHz of spectrum, which is equivalent to coverage of approximately 1.8 billion MHz/Pops, and its mobile broadcast license which has been renewed by the CRTC through August 2011. As part of the agreement, Look and Bell Canada have also resolved all outstanding litigation, and Look’s parent company Unique Broadband Systems settled its… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Rogers launches Toronto-area news app for Blackberry users

TORONTO – Rogers has launched the first Canadian all news radio Blackberry application offering headline news, weather, and live traffic updates for the Greater Toronto Area provided by its radio station 680News. The 680News Blackberry application can be downloaded for free at http://www.680news.com/mobile or directly from the mobile browser at www.680news.mobi.  On-demand business and traffic audio reports are also featured on the Blackberry Bold, and Blackberry Curve 8890. "680News on Blackberry is a natural extension for Toronto’s only all news radio station," said Claude Galipeau, senior vice president of digital media for Rogers Media, in… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Canadians should be able to watch Olympics in both official languages, says chair

OTTAWA – CRTC chairman Konrad von Finckenstein is pushing CTVglobemedia and the CBC to reach an agreement allowing the CBC to broadcast the 2010 Olympics on its French-language television service. During an address to the Standing Committee on Official Languages in Ottawa on Tuesday, von Finckenstein said that while the CTV/Rogers Olympic broadcast media consortium intends to make French broadcasters TQS, RDS and RIS available free of charge to cable companies offering digital TV in markets with an English-speaking majority, this will still leave some francophones who rely on over-the-air television signals, or who subscribe to analog cable, without… Continue Reading