THUNDER BAY – Due to popular demand, Shaw Cable said as of January 31, customers in the Thunder Bay area will begin receiving standard- and high-definition U.S. feeds for ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX and PBS from Minneapolis.
In July, to comply with regulatory requirements, the feeds for these American channels were switched to markets in the same time zone as Thunder Bay (to Detroit stations). Due to local response to the changes, Shaw applied for and was granted an amendment from the CRTC to allow customers in the Thunder Bay area to receive U.S. channels from Minneapolis, as they had…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – The CRTC has given Bell Media the green light to add a pair of new transmitters to its CTV Two station in Barrie, a move that was opposed by two of its own commissioners in addition to a host of competing broadcasters.
Bell Media asked to add two new digital transmitters to CKVR-DT Barrie to serve the areas of Burlington, Fonthill, Fort Erie, Hamilton, Niagara Falls, St. Catharines, Oakville and Welland, Ontario. Opposing interveners, which included Channel Zero, Rogers Broadcasting, CBC, and Shaw Communications, argued that approval of the applications would have a negative impact on other Canadian…
Continue Reading
KONRAD VON FINCKENSTEIN made a lot of work for a lot of us.
As he has noted since he first took the job of CRTC chair in January of 2007, he wanted to make the CRTC more open, predictable, fair, and timely. While by our judgment he succeeded, with that openness came more public processes and a quick count of the number of public proceedings under his watch comes to 103. His predecessor, the late Charles Dalfen, called just 78.
Mr. Dalfen, however, never had to deal with the likes of YouTube, Facebook or Twitter.
Coinciding with von Finckenstein’s tenure at the…
Continue Reading
CALGARY – Shaw Cable has added the HD versions of Sportsnet, Sportsnet One and TSN to its basic HD offering as part of some recent packaging changes.
The move comes amid cable subscriber losses at the Calgary-based company, many to its Western-based rival Telus’ Optik TV service.
"As a Canadian company, Shaw understands the importance of national and regional sports across our country and in the communities we serve," said president Peter Bissonnette, in the announcement. "We are excited to expand access to these popular sports channels to our cable customers through their availability in our basic High-Definition TV…
Continue Reading
CALGARY – Shaw Communications has entered into a five-year $1 billion bank credit facility with a syndicate of ten financial institutions.
With a maturity date in January 2017, this facility replaces the prior credit facility which was scheduled to mature in May 2012.
The company said that the new facility will be used for general corporate purposes.
www.shaw.ca
Continue Reading
TORONTO – Canadian Women in Communications (CWC) has unveiled their annual award winners for 2012.
Karen Sheriff, president and CEO at Bell Aliant, has been named the CWC Woman Of The Year. This award recognizes an outstanding woman who has made a significant contribution to the communications industry throughout her career, and who has contributed materially to the advancement of women within the industry.
In the category of CWC Employer Excellence Awards, IBM Canada Ltd. was named employer of the year, while Industry Canada has been recognized for sustainability in gender diversity.
The CWC Leadership Excellence Awards celebrate women of achievement who…
Continue Reading
CALGARY – Shaw Direct has launched Food Network Canada in mouth-watering high definition.
Customers with HD-capable equipment can tune in as part of a free preview on channels 268/338 (Classic/Advanced) until April 6, 2012. Following the free preview, the Shaw Media-owned channel will be available as part of the ‘HD Extra’ and ‘HD Extra Lite’ programming packages.
"The launch of Food Network HD adds yet another option for high-definition programming on Shaw Direct," said president Peter Bissonnette, in the announcement. "We are excited to bring Shaw Direct customers the programming and content they love, especially with channels like Food Network Canada."
Continue Reading
VANCOUVER – Global News has named broadcast veteran Carol Wang and journalist Frank Qi to the on-air team of its new Mandarin-language newscast.
Global National Mandarin will debut Monday (Chinese New Year) on Shaw Multicultural Channel 116 in Vancouver, and on Shaw Multicultural Channel 89 in Calgary. Going forward, the 30-minute newscast will air Monday through Friday at 7pm and 11:30pm PT in Vancouver and at 10pm in Calgary.
With over 12 years of television anchoring and reporting experience, Wang moved to Vancouver in 2001 where she was a reporter and anchor for Fairchild Media’s Talentvision before hosting OMNI News: Mandarin Edition…
Continue Reading
MONTREAL – Bell TV is facing a class action lawsuit over its late fees.
According to a statement by Montreal-based law firm Paquette Gadler Inc., the suit is open to all persons who have paid late fees since June 1, 2010 as part of a contract for television services with Bell ExpressVu.
The statement claims that Bell ExpressVu levied an annual interest rate of 42.58% on late payments, a 58% increase compared to the annual interest rate of 26.82% charged to customers prior to June 1, 2010.
Describing the new late fee interest rate as “abusive”, the statement continues that this suit…
Continue Reading
CALGARY – Revenue and profits at Shaw Communications are on the rise for the first quarter of 2012.
Consolidated revenue for the three month period ended November 30, 2011 was up 19% to $1.28 billion, while total operating income before amortization was $566 million, an 18% increase over the same period last year.
Net income was $202 million for the quarter compared to $16 million for the same period last year, though the company did record a $139 million charge related to its acquisition of Shaw Media, plus restructuring expenses of $58 million. Excluding the non-operating items, net income for the…
Continue Reading
