TORONTO – Revenues and profits were up across nearly all segments for Corus Entertainment in the first quarter of fiscal 2007, ended November 30th, 2006.
“The positive momentum of last year has continued in our first quarter results in terms of both ratings for and revenues,” said John Cassaday, president and CEO, in the press release. “Strong advertising and subscription growth from specialty television and solid national advertising sales in radio were the major contributors to our positive results.”
Of course, what was on everyone’s mind Wednesday morning was Alliance Atlantis and its impending sale. "We are and continue…
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FINAL SUBMISSIONS TO THE CRTC on its conventional television policy review were due in yesterday.
Cartt.ca managed to get our hands on eight submissions (unfortunately, none of the companies serving the Francophone market responded to our e-mails), which were filed by parties Wednesday in response to what they were asked – or what others were asked – during the seven-day oral presentations that began on November 27th.
(Ed note: Thank goodness broadcasting vice-chair Michel Arpin – who looks as though he’ll be the Commission’s Interim Chair for the time being as the PMO explores more candidates to replace departing…
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TORONTO – Rogers Cable will add Turner Classic Movies to its analog channel lineup on February 1st.
Turner Broadcasting and Canada’s largest cable company made the announcement today. In addition, TCM will be made available to all subscribers via a free preview on December 23 and 24, 2006.
“We continue to strengthen both our analog and digital offerings” said David Purdy, vice-president and general manager, television, in a release.
Rogers is the sixth Canadian BDU to add the commercial-free, classic movie channel, joining Shaw Communications’ Star Choice and Shaw Cable, as well as MDU supplier Novus Communications, SaskTel’s Max…
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REGINA – For the first time, a telco TV provider is getting as local as the local cable community channel.
SaskTel Wednesday announced the launch of Max Local On Demand, a unique new service featuring original local community programming, all on demand, something no other Canadian service provider currently offers.
SaskTel, as is its condition of license, has created an Independent Programming Committee (IPC) with representatives from each of the nine districts in which Max serves (Estevan, Moose Jaw, North Battleford, Prince Albert, Regina, Saskatoon, Swift Current, Weyburn and Yorkton) to advise programmers of the new service.
“SaskTel Max…
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TORONTO – World Fishing Network is giving every Canadian a live tank of fish on Christmas morning. But there’s no need to feed these fish or to clean the tank.
The famous Christmas Day Yule Log, familiar to millions of television viewers in the United States and Canada (Shaw Cable has often run a burning fire as its community TV programming over Christmas), is burning up – because now, there’s some competition, WFN said today.
The network will air six uninterrupted hours of a colorful “Festive Fish Tank”, complete with Christmas carols, starting a new tradition on Christmas morning…
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SOME THOUGHTS ON the TV Policy Review hearings that one day, could grow up to be full-sized columns. ********** ONE OF THE MOST interesting questions at the hearing came late in the day on Monday, December 4th, when Media Awareness Network faced the five-person panel.
MNet, as it calls itself, is a non-profit organization with the laudable goal of boosting media literacy among children. The group promotes media and Internet education through its online programs and resources, working with a number of organizations in Canada and elsewhere. Its sponsors include Bell, Shaw, CTV, CHUM, Rogers, Telus and CanWest Global….
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TORONTO – The provincial government named 29 new people to the Order of Ontario today.
Among them from the media and telecom scene are Research In Motion co-founder Mike Lazaridis, Citytv co-founder Moses Znaimer and TV producer Mark Starowicz.
A black tie investiture ceremony will be held on Wednesday, December 20th at Queen’s Park in their honour.
The others are:
* Naomi Alboim of Toronto * Ron Barbaro of Toronto * Beatrice Levis of Toronto * Harold Brathwaite of Mississauga* Nancy Lockhart of Toronto * Boris Brott of Hamilton * Ernest McCulloch of Toronto * Donald Carr of Toronto…
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GATINEAU – Organizations representing many persistent voices opposed to Canada’s 1999 over-the-air television policy – along with a rare cameo by the Ontario Culture Minister – took the stage Monday for Day 6 of the CRTC’s review of this policy.
The unions and guilds appearing for English and French writers and actors, and for English directors and crew, almost all requested a mix of re-regulation and new rules for conventional broadcasters – a distinct contrast to many broadcasters, who last week called for fewer rules and greater access to revenues.
In what was described as the “first appearance in…
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COMPETITION HAS COME to Saskatchewan. The little-big (population-area) province has had competition on the terrestrial video side since 2002 but only recently has a serious voice option come available.
It was quite a lag between the cable companies in the province losing 50,000 video customers and their recent launch of voice over IP. With the largest MSOs in the province: Shaw (Saskatoon, Prince Albert) and Access (Regina and area) now – or about to be – adding VOIP, competition is officially hot.
So how is the provincially-owned telco faring, with still 98% of the local phone lines? President…
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GATINEAU – As the so-called softer side of the industry comes to the fore over the next few, final days of the CRTC TV Policy Review hearing, groups like producers, actors, documentary makers and unions are just hoping the Commission pays more attention to them than the consumer media.
Reporters had elbows up in a crowd most of the week as the likes of CTV, Rogers, Shaw, Bell and Global Television faced the Commission – and then the microphones and notebooks right after.
No such problem Thursday afternoon and Friday.
At one point Friday morning we counted 13 people…
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