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In today’s edition of Todbits:
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| Production Gear, Sirius Satellite, The Media Landscape, Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 1:46 pm (23 Jan 2007) |
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CanWest, Goldman join forces to bid for Alliance Atlantis
One of the biggest players in private equity, Goldman Sachs & Co., has teamed up with CanWest Global to make an offer for Alliance Atlantis. according to media and investment banking sources. Together, the pair could offer up to $2.1-billion for Alliance, which was formally put up for sale in December. ‘Cause, you know, we really don’t have enough media conglomeration in this country yet
Mixed signals for Canada’s Fledgling Satellite Radio
Talk of a possible merger between two competing U.S. satellite radio services refuses to die, a scenario that would create a messy situation for Canada’s two fledgling services that rely on XM and Sirius in the United States for programming. It would be tough for XM Canada and Sirius Canada — the two Canadian satellite radio services that just passed their first birthday — to continue as separate companies with distinct programming if their U.S. partners were to merge. “I don’t see any way that that’s possible,” said an equity analyst. “You wouldn’t merge the two [U.S.] companies together unless you planned to have one [programming] signal.”
Canada b’casters tested on VOD
This year promises to be a crucial one for video-on-demand in Canada as industry players scramble to forge a business model that will resonate with footloose digital TV viewers. Initially licensed for the Canadian market by the country’s TV regulator in 1997, VOD has been slow to develop here. Broadcasters early on offered on-demand movies to reel in viewers and reduce subscriber churn. Now Corus and rival Canadian broadcasters are beginning to secure on-demand rights for high-profile U.S. network and cable series as well as homegrown dramas — albeit slowly.
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| Sirius Satellite, The Media Landscape, Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 10:07 am (08 Jan 2007) |
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CANADIAN PRIVATE RADIO DOING VERY WELL, THANKYOUVERYMUCH
Private radio stations in Canada have made the highest-ever total revenue quarter ever, according to Canadian Broadcast Sales. Sales rose by 8.2% compared to the same period last year. Ontario radio stations were up a whopping 26.2%. And who’s buying the ads: The top growth categories for Q1 were: Internet/Technology up 298%; Insurance 98.3%; Restaurant/Fast Food 73.2%; Computers & Software 66%; and Movies/Media/Entertainment 33.4%.
SATELLITE RADIO NOT HURTING TERRESTRIAL RADIO
Canadian AM and FM radio stations are showing surprising resilience in the face of competition from satellite radio’s giant new entries, Sirius and XM. [full article] An analysis of Bureau of Broadcast Measurement radio ratings from the last 12 months, which measure how many Canadians tune to the AM and FM dial, shows that conventional radio stations in every major Canadian market have held virtually all their audience.
LAST YEAR DEADLY FOR JOURNALISTS
This past year was the deadliest for journalists in more than a decade, according to media watchdog Reporters without Borders. The Paris-based group said in its annual report released Sunday that at least 81 reporters were killed while on duty in more than 20 countries in 2006. That compares with 63 who died on the job the previous year. Another 32 people working alongside journalists, including translators, drivers and technicians, were killed, compared with five in 2005.
ACTORS’ STRIKE ON HOLD
The union representing Canadian film and TV actors will return to the bargaining table with North American producers on Wednesday in a last-ditch attempt to avert a strike. The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) had voted to walk off the job on Monday if a labour deal was not reached. The union’s agreement with the Canadian Film and Television Production Association ended on Dec. 31.
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| Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 10:07 am (03 Jan 2007) |
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BBC to Sell TV Shows via BitTorrent
The popular BitTorrent client, Azureus has just struck a deal with the BBC to offer TV shows on its recently launched content store/website, Zudeo. ZudeoZudeo is Azureus’ new video sharing website and content store. It implements many ‘Web 2.0′ features like the ability to rate content, leave comments, share torrents and links to submit content to popular social bookmarking sites like digg.
Torstar cutting jobs in newspaper division
Torstar Corp. said Wednesday it is cutting 85 jobs at its newspaper division as the company tries to grapple with a tough market. Prior to the opening of stock market trading, the company said the reduction will come through voluntary and involuntary cuts. The company’s newspaper holdings include the flagship daily Toronto Star, the Record covering Kitchener-Waterloo and Cambridge, the Hamilton Spectator, plus dozens of other smaller and community papers.
Alliance Atlantis signals it is for sale
Alliance Atlantis Communications Inc., whose holdings include half of the CSI franchise, said Wednesday it’s for sale. The Toronto-based entertainment firm and its controlling shareholder, Southhill Strategy Inc., said they recently sought expressions of interest from selected potential buyers. But Southhill may decide not to sell its interest, which would make a full takeover unlikely.
CBC TV shows top two of Canadian television: CP
CP entertainment reporter Lee-Anne Goodman has ranked The Rick Mercer Report and Intelligence as among the best in Canadian television. “Week after week, Mercer continues to delight with his alternately giddy and cutting political humour. His legendary rants are usually scathingly bang on,” she writes.
Negotiations between ACTRA and producers have broken down after producers tabled an outrageous pay offer and demanded free internet rights. No new negotiations are scheduled. ACTRA is in a strike position in most of Canada starting in January 2007.
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| Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 12:41 pm (22 Dec 2006) |
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BBC begins to sell its TV shows online
The popular BitTorrent client, Azureus has just struck a deal with the BBC to offer TV shows on its recently launched content store/website, Zudeo. ZudeoZudeo is Azureus’ new video sharing website and content store. It implements many ‘Web 2.0′ features like the ability to rate content, leave comments, share torrents and links to submit content to popular social bookmarking sites like digg. The BBC will sell the following shows on Zudeo: Red Dwarf, Strange, Invasion Earth, Little Britain, Doctor Who, Fawlty Towers, Coupling, Keeping Up Appearances, League of Gentlemen and Ideal. Ironically, British customers will not be able to purchase any of the shows as they will only be available to U.S. customers. The rest of the world is going to have to wait for now. One of the BBC’s most popular shows, The Office is missing from the list.
Torstar slashes news jobs
Torstar Corp. said Wednesday it is cutting 85 jobs at its newspaper division as the company tries to grapple with a tough market. It says the reduction will come through voluntary and involuntary cuts. Torstar expects to take an $11 million restructuring charge in the fourth quarter. The company expects the cuts will help it save about $5.5 million annually. An executive office shakeup at the Toronto Star and a tough conditions in the newspaper market had raised fears among employees that job cuts were looming at the company.
Alliance Atlantis For Sale?
Alliance Atlantis Communications Inc., whose holdings include half of the CSI franchise, said Wednesday it’s for sale. The Toronto-based entertainment firm and its controlling shareholder, Southhill Strategy Inc., said they recently sought expressions of interest from selected potential buyers. But Southhill may decide not to sell its interest, which would make a full takeover unlikely.
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| Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 4:41 pm (20 Dec 2006) |
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Sirius to come standard in nearly all Fords
Ford of Canada has announced that within one year, Sirius satellite receivers will be a factory-standard feature in nearly its vehicles sold in Canada.
Newspapers embracing citizen journalists
Ryerson Review of Journalism has a great article about how newspapers are turning to citizen journalists to cover local news. As always, RRJ is doing some excellent work. It’s well worth it to subscribe to the dead-tree edition. $20 for three years!
Private radio still wants regulatory changes
The Canadian Association of Broadcasters says while it welcomes decisions the CRTC made on its Commercial Radio Policy, is says “it remains to be seen whether the new policy will provide the regulatory flexibility necessary to compete with the new waves of competitors from the unregulated parallel system of audio providers.” Ah yes. All that competition from new media. I guess they missed this story.
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| Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 3:11 pm (18 Dec 2006) |
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Telus launches Pay Per View
The telco formerly known as, well, a telco, is increasingly becoming a broadcast carrier. Telus today announced its Pay Per View service which gives its digital TV customers access to sports and other special events. Telus TV carries more than 200 channels, bundled into “theme packs.” Its Channel 1 is an interactive TV and Internet portal which lets clients view one channel while providing access to weather, news, sports and other information.
Private broadcasters no longer have to pay CRTC “tax”
The Federal Court has ruled that private broadcasters and distributors no longer have to pay the CRTC’s “Part II Licence Fees.” These fees are paid over and above payments that defray the cost of the regulation and supervision of the industry. Part II Licence Fees, which now exceed $100 million dollars annually, are levied by the CRTC, but go directly to the Government’s Consolidated Revenue Fund. While the Judge agreed that the fees are illegal, he did not order repayment. The Canadian Association of Broadcasters is considering going to court to get back past payments.
Free HDTV network desired
The company that runs XM Canada has started a firm which has applied to the CRTC to start a national over-the-air HDTV service, based out of Vancouver. The service will be offered free to Canadians. Currently, with few exceptions, Canadians must pay premiums to cable or satellite distributors to receive high definition programming on a network basis. In addition to original programming, HDTV Networks would broadcast a mix of Canadian and foreign content.
Bell Glo… er, CTVglobemedia.
Bell Globemedia Inc. today announced the company’s name will change to CTVglobemedia Inc., effective January 1, 2007.
TSN launches all-sports broadband channel
TSN has launched Canada’s first fully programmed all-sports broadband channel. Now playing at www.TSN.ca, TSN Broadband features both short-form and full-length TSN programming on-demand, at broadband speeds with enhanced resolution. The ad-supported channel is now live and can be accessed from the TSN website, located at www.TSN.ca.
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| Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 1:31 pm (15 Dec 2006) |
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Degrassi teen drama sold into U.S. syndication
CTV’s teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation has been sold into syndication to the United States, including in five of the top U.S. markets and 18 of the top 25. Vancouver-based Thunderbird Films and its American distribution partner, Program Partners, said yesterday the Degrassi syndication strip has been sold to Tribune Broadcasting group, as well as a consortium of others that includes stations under the Clear Channel banner. The 25-year-old franchise of shows is produced in Toronto by Epitome Pictures and is the brainchild of veteran producer Linda Schuyler.
CBC lobby seizes on idea of ‘pilot city’
There could be a silver lining to the loss of CBC-TV analog service in Kamloops. Local lobbyists have labelled it Pilot City. Save Our CBC Kamloops, which has been leading the charge to have over-the-air CBC restored in the area, believes the idea has merit. Pitched last week to a CRTC hearing on the future of broadcasting in Canada, the idea envisions Kamloops as a pilot city for the delivery of digital/high-definition TV.
WiFi radio stations to join battle for air supremacy
Over the past year or so, however, there has been talk about a new take on another technology — Internet radio — that has the potential to disrupt both the world of satellite radio and good old terrestrial radio. It’s called WiFi radio, or wireless Internet radio, and some say its time could be coming soon, thanks to cheaper radio chips and the increasing penetration of public wireless networks.
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| Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 3:28 pm (14 Dec 2006) |
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Documentaries pulled because of re-licencing costs: NFB
Boing Boing reports that the National Film Board has had to pull many documentaries off the shelf because of the “prohibitive cost of re-licensing the copyrights for the materials they incidentally feature…. Thanks to spiralling copyright licensing costs, payable to whoever holds the copyright (unions, archives, creators, corporations) — and thanks, too, to the rising cost of insurance to protect against copyright claims — more and more public film footage is no longer available to the Canadian public, nor for use by Canadian creators.”
Satellite radio in Canada a hit
With 320,000 subscribers in just over a year of operation, Canada’s two satellite radio networks seem to be hitting the right notes with music fans. In addition to the cost of satellite-compatible radios, both Canadian services charge a monthly fee of $15 for full access to their commercial-free networks of music, comedy, sports, news and talk shows.
Sirius (co-owned by New York’s Sirius Radio, CBC and Toronto’s Standard Radio) offers a roster of 110 channels, including about 65 niche-specific music stations that cover everything from classic country and Broadway musicals to heavy rock. CBC provides the Sirius network with national news, weather and international talk shows, as well as a venue for emerging Canadian musicians.
XM Canada (co-owned by Washington-based XM Radio and Toronto food magnate John Bitove) is also ahead of expectations. [more]
HDTV subscriptions growing: Rogers
Rogers Cable says its High Definition Television service has seen tremendous growth in the last year with the most HD subscribers in Canada. Since November 2005, Rogers HDTV customers have more than doubled with over 200,000 HDTV households now subscribing to the service. [more]
This American Life ready for its TV closeup
NPR’s Lynn Neary reports on the This American Life TV show as it prepares for its debut next year. “I don’t see any positive aspect of being on camera,” says host Ira Glass. “I am 47 years old, I don’t like looking at myself. After a certain point, no one likes looking at themselves on television. There’s just no upside.”
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| Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 8:47 am (13 Dec 2006) |
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Oda rejects media concentration report: Heritage Minister Bev Oda has rejected a Senate committee’s report on media concentration, which found that “the concentration of ownership has reached levels that few other countries would consider acceptable.” Among its recommendations, the report said that the CBC should get “stable and long-term funding” in order to become ad-free, and that media organizations should regularly publish their ownership structure. Antonia Zerbaisis reports that Oda “brushed most recommendations aside.”
Yahoo turns its users into photo stringers: Reuters is asking members around the public to be (unpaid) photojournalists, in a new online project with Yahoo. You Witness News, a venue for citizen journalism where people can upload photos and videos for possible publication, launched this morning. The President of Reuters told the New York Times: “This is looking out and saying, ‘What if everybody in the world were my stringers?’. Yikes.
The rise in online video viewing is coming at the expense of television time. At least in Britain. Of 2,070 people the BBC polled found 43 per cent of Britons who watch video on the internet or mobile devices at least once a week watch less television as a result. Only three per cent said they watched more television. Online and mobile video is most popular among young people, with 28 per cent of respondents between the ages of 16 and 24 saying they watch at least once a week. Online video stealing viewers from TV
Good thing we updated our security cards: Pity the folks at Fox News. Some weirdo, whose unassuming presence got him past security guards, got into the studio, sat down next to anchor Rudi Bakhtiar and began acting weird enough to prompt another nearby Fox correspondent to say “something is going on” and request that security escort the man out. mediabistro.com: FishbowlDC
CanWest has announced its lineup of original programming in production for 2007. “The sophomore return of drama Falcon Beach, and the premiere of The Best Years, plus 124 hours of original content across CanWest’s specialty networks. CanWest MediaWorks Announces ‘In Production’
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| Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 10:20 am (05 Dec 2006) |
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I thought I’d start doing these little snippets of news that keep CBCers updated about the overall media landscape — items that are too small for their own full story. Let me know if you like this.
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| Todbits: Notes from the Outside | Posted at 10:55 am (04 Dec 2006) |
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