Search Results for: shaw

Radio / Television News

News groups urge CRTC not to redirect pledged Google money into public participation fund

By Ahmad Hathout Organizations representing news media and their workers are warning the CRTC not to redirect any of the $100 million they were earmarked by Google toward public interest participation in CRTC proceedings related to news linking matters. The Broadcasting Participation Fund (BPF), which bankrolls public interest participation in CRTC proceedings, filed a Part 1 application this summer requesting that the commission expand its mandate to include matters pertaining to large technology platforms that must pay to link to Canadian news content under the Online News Act. Google has already agreed to put an annual inflation-indexed $100… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Global Edmonton celebrating 50 years on air

Corus Entertainment’s Global Edmonton TV station, which launched as independent ITV (CITV-TV) on Sept. 1, 1974, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this weekend with special programming. Starting Aug. 30 and all weekend long, Global Edmonton will feature on-air celebrations, reporters and anchors sharing their favourite stories, and photos from the archive. More than 90 alumni will be in the studio for a special cake cutting, says an emailed Corus announcement Tuesday. “Launched in 1974, this new television station signed on to deliver to Edmonton viewers a new look, a local focus, and programming that had never been seen before,” Corus’s announcement… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Corus lodges CRTC complaint alleging Rogers abusing ‘dominant position’

By Connie Thiessen Corus Entertainment has filed a complaint with the CRTC, alleging Rogers’ undue disadvantage in the wake of its merger last year with Shaw Communications, is leading it to engage “in predatory behaviour, enabled by dominant size and scale, to foreclose on potential competition.” The Part 1 application, published in redacted form on the CRTC website on Monday, focuses specifically on Rogers move to offer the ad-supported version of Disney+ to existing Ignite TV customers, which Corus says is part of an effort to lure subscribers away from its Disney-themed specialty channels. Furthermore, the complaint alleges that Rogers has “actively favoured Disney+ over Corus’ Disney-themed channels when subscribers attempt to search for content;… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Roku hires Spotify’s Ivan Pehar as ad sales director for Canada

Roku announced Wednesday it has recently hired Ivan Pehar as its new ad sales director for Canada. Pehar most recently served as the head of Canada ad sales at Spotify, a position he left earlier this summer. As country manager at Spotify Canada, Pehar “played a pivotal role in developing its go-to-market strategy for Canadian brands,” reads an emailed Roku announcement about his hiring at the streamer. Prior to joining Spotify in late 2019, Pehar was head of revenue and agency partnerships at Twitter’s Canadian office, where he advocated for the integration of social media into marketing strategies, according to Roku’s… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Corus leadership restructuring sees Greg McLelland’s CRO role eliminated

Corus Entertainment announced Wednesday it is eliminating the position of executive vice president and chief revenue officer currently held by Greg McLelland, who will step down from the role effective Aug. 31. The move will see Barb McKergow taking on the expanded role of senior vice president of advertising for Corus, reporting to co-CEO Troy Reeb and joining the media company’s senior leadership team. Her appointment is effective Sept. 1. In her expanded role, McKergow will oversee all advertising sales, revenue management, research, advanced advertising and data teams at Corus. Corus said in a press release the refining of… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

CRTC denies public interest group ask for expedited Rogers payment to Broadcasting Participation Fund

The CRTC in a decision last week denied an April 2023 application from a group of six public interest organizations asking the commission to accelerate the payment of tangible benefits allocated to the Broadcasting Participation Fund (BPF) as part of the CRTC’s March 2022 approval of Rogers’s acquisition of Shaw’s broadcasting assets. The group behind the application included the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, the Forum for Research and Policy in Communications, the Consumers’ Association of Canada (Manitoba), the Consumers Council of Canada, Option Consommateurs, and the Union des Consommateurs. In its  Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

All Freedom Mobile plans now include 5G, U.S., Mexico roaming

By Ahmad Hathout Videotron’s Freedom Mobile announced Thursday all monthly plans will now include access to its 5G network and roaming in the United States and Mexico – including new low-cost options starting at $5 per month after a digital discount is applied. With the $5 monthly digital discount applied across all plans, Freedom subscribers can now start at a mere $5 per month to get access to the next-generation network and roaming in the U.S. and Mexico with 100 MB of data, two hours of talk and unlimited texting. At $20, they can get 3 GB of data with two… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

CRTC asks whether it should broaden eligibility, prioritize funding for indie local news fund

Regulator said it believes Corus’s Global should receive ILNF funding By Ahmad Hathout The CRTC is asking the public whether it should modify the Independent Local News Fund (ILNF) to expand eligibility, ensure news quality, and whether it should favour recipients operating in remote and underserved communities. The commission launched Tuesday the consultation on revisiting the ILNF, which was spawned in 2016. It follows the regulator’s decision, as part of the Online Streaming Act, to force foreign and standalone online platforms to allocate five per cent of their prior year’s Canadian revenues toward content funds, including 1.5 per cent to the ILNF,… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

CACTUS says Rogers’s ‘zone’ proposal for community TV will subvert programming

A community television advocate is calling on the CRTC to reject a May application by Rogers to broaden certain broadcast regions to meet its local programming obligations, alleging the result will subvert community programming. Rogers wants to broaden into four large zones – Vancouver Island, British Columbia; Southern Interior, British Columbia; Central Saskatchewan and Southern Manitoba – the areas that it must serve with community and local programs for the purpose, it said, of avoiding having to use repeat programming to meet its community and local TV obligations. It said this must be done because of the… Continue Reading

Radio / Television News

Corus CEO Doug Murphy retires

Corus Entertainment announced Monday the early retirement of its president and CEO, Doug Murphy, effective immediately. The media company’s board has appointed Corus executives Troy Reeb and John Gossling as co-chief executive officers. “These appointments are effective immediately and reflect the strength of Corus’ leadership bench and a forward focus on managing through a challenging environment,” reads a Corus press release announcing the changes. Murphy had been with Corus for 21 years, first joining the company in 2003 as executive vice president of business development and holding successively more senior positions until 2015 when he was promoted to president and CEO. “During his… Continue Reading