TORONTO – Rogers Communications announced today Robert Dépatie (above) will be the president and chief operating officer of the company’s new home and business division as of Dec. 6.
Dépatie has “nearly 20 years of executive leadership in telecom and media experience, including four years as a member of the RCI Board of Directors,” a press release says. He was previously president and CEO of Quebecor and Quebecor Media as well as spending 10 years as president and CEO of Vidéotron Itée.
“I am thrilled to welcome Robert to our leadership team,” said Tony Staffieri, interim president and CEO of Rogers,…
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TORONTO – Veteran sports broadcaster Brian Williams (above) announced today he is retiring following a 50-year career in broadcasting.
Bell Media’s TSN will celebrate his career Sunday, Dec. 12 ahead of the 108th Grey Cup broadcast.
Williams, who started at CTV and TSN in June 2006 after working at CBC, has been heavily involved in CFL on TSN broadcasts and “was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame Football Reporters Wing in honour of his contributions to the CFL over the years,” a press release says. He was also recognized at the 100th Grey Cup “with the Commissioner’s Award for more…
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TPIA providers say they’ve had to make tough financial decisions to stem the bleeding
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Canada’s large telecommunications companies are claiming third party internet service providers have never had it better with the interim bulk internet purchase rates the CRTC made permanent in May.
The telecoms were responding to petitions to the federal government to overturn the May decision filed by large independent internet service provider TekSavvy, ISP National Capital FreeNet, and the Competitive Network Operators of Canada (CNOC), an organization representing smaller telecoms who lease network space from the larger carriers. In the decision, the regulator said it…
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Launches new tagline “At Your Side”
TORONTO — Rogers Communications announced today its discount brand Fido is marking its 25th anniversary by launching a new brand campaign and tagline, “At Your Side”.
“From the beginning, Fido has been on a mission to put customers and communities first while being the ‘ultimate sidekick’ — with plans, deals and a great network. No matter what a customer takes on, wherever and whenever, Fido will be there every step of the way,” reads a Rogers press release.
“I’d like to extend an enormous thank you to all of our customers who have trusted Fido to…
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Duo left Bell Media’s CP24 Breakfast in August
TORONTO — Two faces familiar to Toronto-area viewers of Bell Media’s CP24 Breakfast were announced today as the new morning show hosts at Rogers Sports and Media’s radio station 98.1 CHFI.
Former CP24 Breakfast co-host Pooja Handa (above, left) and news anchor Gurdeep Ahluwalia (above, right), who both left Bell Media this past August, will host the new show CHFI Mornings with Pooja & Gurdeep weekdays from 5-9 a.m. ET, starting Jan. 4, says a Rogers Sports and Media press release.
“Covering some of Toronto’s most glamourous red carpets to the biggest cultural events,…
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GATINEAU – The CRTC hearing into Rogers Communications’s proposed acquisition of Shaw Communications wrapped up Friday with a reply from Rogers during which the company argued the deal is good for Canadians and for the broadcasting system despite what interveners have said over the past week.
“As our panel highlighted on Monday, there is no question that this transaction is in the public interest,” said Ted Woodhead, senior vice-president of regulatory at Rogers.
“It embraces the transformational moment we face, positioning Canada’s broadcasting system for a strong and sustainable future. With Shaw and Rogers joining forces, Canadian consumers will enjoy more…
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Bell says there are no safeguards that will fix the problems with the proposal
By Amanda OYE
GATINEAU – Intervenors delved deeper into concerns about the impact of Rogers Communications’s proposed acquisition of Shaw Communications on local news and competition Thursday, during day four of the CRTC hearing on the matter.
At the hearing Unifor, a union that represents 5,000 workers in the broadcasting and film industries, presented the Commission with a perspective on what the approval of the transaction could mean for employment and labour in local journalism.
The “broadcast sector in Canada is facing an employment crisis,” said Katha…
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TORONTO – Rogers Sports and Media’s OMNI Television and Longhope Media Inc. announced today production has started on Abroad, a new satirical sketch comedy series in English and Tagalog.
The series, which features 12, 30-minute episodes, was co-created by and stars Isabel Kanaan (above; Second Jen, Air Farce NYE, This Hour Has 22 Minutes), a Filipina comedian. It is based on her “experience as an immigrant with her comedic perspective,” a press release says.
“Isabel moved to Canada from the Philippines when she was 16 and spent her teenage years learning how to navigate culture shock, language barriers, and – brrrr! – Canadian…
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LUDLOW, NB – Rogers Communications announced today it is expanding its fibre network to connect 366 homes and businesses in Ludlow, New Brunswick.
This is a $1.3 million investment to expand Rogers’s fibre network by 60 kilometres, which “will bring Rogers leading services to the community, including Rogers Ignite Internet with up to 1.5 gigabit speed and Ignite TV, Rogers revolutionary TV service,” a press release reads.
“Today’s announcement builds on our commitment to expand our fibre in communities throughout the Miramichi region and offer local residents and business owners reliable, high-speed internet,” said Matt MacLellan, president of the Atlantic region…
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GATINEAU – More concerns about Rogers Communications’s proposed acquisition of Shaw Communications were shared with the CRTC during day three of the hearing, Wednesday.
While the day’s presentations showed the deal definitely has its supporters, it also highlighted the many concerns there are about the consequences of the deal in its current form on the Canadian broadcasting system generally, and on independent broadcasters and consumers specifically.
TLN Media Group Inc. and Ethnic Channels Group Limited, who presented together to highlight issues specific to Canadian ethnic independents, told the Commission that despite their opposition to the deal in their written submission, they…
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