Search Results for: rogers

Cable / Telecom News

Shaw catching up with more HD

CALGARY – Shaw Cablesystems today said it has added Rogers Sportsnet HD and Fox HD to its channel lineup. The two channels are included at no charge to customers subscribing to Shaw Digital. While Fox HD carries much popular TV programming, including NFL Football, NASCAR racing, American Idol, 24, House, Stacked, The O.C., and Malcolm in the Middle, Sportsnet is the HD leader in Canada with hundreds of hours of HD content, including every home game of the Toronto Blue Jays in HD. Sportsnet has broadcast about 150 live events since the Toronto Blue Jays opened their HD schedule… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Final court approval received on Call-Net buy

TORONTO – After the shareholders and the Competition Bureau approved, all that was left was today’s Ontario Court ruling on Rogers Communications’ purchase of Call-Net Enterprises. Call-Net received the final order from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice this morning relating to the plan of arrangement through which RCI will acquire all of the outstanding common shares and class B non-voting shares of Call-Net on the basis of one RCI class B non-voting share for every 4.25 Call-Net shares. When the deal was announced last month, it was valued at $330 million. The acquisition of Call-Net by RCI is… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Ted says he’ll step aside in 2008

TORONTO – When retirement beckons Ted Rogers in 2008, don’t look for him to put his feet up and rest, but to roll up his sleeves and keep working. When asked today about Rogers Communications Inc.’s succession plans, Rogers said: “I feel great. My program is that June 30th, 2008, my contract as CEO comes up for termination or renewal – I don’t intend to renew it.” There have been many executive shuffles through the years at RCI, with several rising stars cited as the one who would ultimately succeed Ted (most recently, former cable head John Tory, who… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

OMNI BC promotes Terry Mahoney to g.m.

TORONTO – Rogers Media announced today the promotion of Terry Mahoney to general manager of OMNI TV, British Columbia effective July 1st, 2005. "We are pleased to add Terry Mahoney (right) to the OMNI team. He will be a great asset in the leadership of the station and will play a key role in the revitalization of spiritual television," said Rogers Media Television CEO Leslie Sole. "Terry has extensive experience and skill not only in television but more specifically in religious broadcasting. This, along with Terry’s long history in B.C. and… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

New immigrants will spur telephony growth

TORONTO – Owning media and telecom assets makes sense to Ted Rogers. He believes that targeting new immigrants for voice products and services is a growth opportunity for his company, which is now offering wired and wireless telephony across the country. “What’s unique in our city, in our area here… is that the real market for long distance is the foreign markets, particularly the Asian markets where you’ve got a lot of new Canadians who are just interested in a package to their one country and I think you’ll find that a competitive battleground as we go forward,” he… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Inter-carrier MM messaging coming Friday

OTTAWA – Canada’s wireless service providers will introduce inter-carrier multimedia message services (MMS) to wireless phone customers across the country on July 1. This is the broadest initiative of its kind in North America, says the the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA). The move will enable customers with MMS-capable mobile phones, regardless of the customer’s wireless service provider, to instantly send and receive messages with rich content to and from the MMS-capable phones of friends, family and colleagues. MMS, commonly referred to as picture messaging or video messaging, extends text messaging to include photos, video clips, graphics, audio clips… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Sportsnet takes Promax/BDA gold and silver

TORONTO – Rogers Sportsnet took home two gold and two silver medals at the 2005 Promax/BDA Awards handed out in New York City last night. “I am so proud of the team that came together to work, support and win these awards for Rogers Sportsnet,” said Theresa Warburton, creative director, Rogers Sportsnet. The four winning Rogers Sportsnet entries came in three different categories: * Promotional Animation (Promax) Gold Medal – Soccera Graphic Designer: Mike Lapalme Promo Producer: Bryan Bolan Silver Medal – Metropolis – MLB on Rogers Sportsnet Graphic Designer: Mike Lapalme Promo Producer: Bryan Bolan * Sports In-house… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

UPDATE: CHEZ’s Brown “removed” for Stompin’ the airwaves

OTTAWA – CHEZ 106 FM drive time guy and program director Jeff Brown was taken off the air yesterday by the Rogers Media-owned station. He spent Wednesday afternoon playing nothing but Stompin’ Tom Connors for three hours, in an attempt to get the organizers of the Live 8 concert in Barrie to add the Canadian singing legend to the Barrie concert which will include the likes of other Canadian icons: Bryan Adams, Celine Dion and the Tragically Hip. It’s probably a safe bet that this is a nifty little publicity stunt by the Ottawa radio station, given the fact… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

RTNDA Canada announces 2005-’06 board

TORONTO – Radio Television News Directors Association Canada president Terry Scott announced today the 2005-06 board of directors in the RTNDA Update. The board members, other than president Terry, are: Vice-President, Radio, Clint Thomas, Rogers Radio North Bay Vice-President, TV, Bob McLaughlin, CKVR-TV Barrie Past President, Eldon Duchscher, CJWW Saskatoon Secretary/Treasurer, Renato Zane, OMNI Television Toronto International Rep, Hudson Mack, CIVI-TV Victoria Atlantic Radio Director, Sheldon MacLeod, CKBW Bridgewater Atlantic TV Director, Michael Fulmes, Global Halifax/Dartmouth Central Radio Director, Jason Moore, CKLW Windsor Central TV Director, Cal Johnstone, CFPL-TV London Prairie Radio Director, Greg Bohnert, CKRM Regina Prairie TV… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

TUESDAY INTERVIEW: Talking personal TV with VOD leader Yvette Gordon-Kanouff

BACK IN 1998, WHEN everyone in cable was talking about video on demand and no one was doing anything about it yet, Yvette Gordon-Kanouff was it’s champion. She knew it would work. She wrote the seminal paper on the subject that year for her employer, SeaChange, which laid out an attractive VOD business case for any operator looking to launch the service. That paper was cited often (sometimes even by SeaChange competitors) for a number of years. Now, VOD is almost pervasive. Most North Americans with a big-city cable provider can get some type of video on demand in… Continue Reading