Reddit is establishing a Canadian presence, announcing it’s opened an office in downtown Toronto with dedicated Management, Sales, Community and Engineering teams and ambitious plans for growth. Home to Reddit’s third largest user base after the U.S. and U.K. — and growing by 40% year-over-year — the social news aggregation platform says Canada is the natural next place to establish an on-the-ground presence. “Canada is already home to a deeply engaged Reddit audience that is growing steadily by the day and it is a top priority for us and our internationalization strategy,” explained Reddit’s Chief Operating Officer, Jen Wong, in a release. The company says the Toronto team will be committed to helping Canadian brands find their home on Reddit.
OUTtv Media Group (OMG) has partnered with Producer Entertainment Group (PEG), the LGBTQ+ talent management, production company and record label, to launch OUTtv USA, an SVOD service dedicated to premium LGBTQ+ content. OUTtv, the first LGBTQ+ Apple TV channel, is now available direct to subscribers. OUTtv is expected to launch across other marquee SVOD platforms later this year. Jacob Slane will serve as senior domestic executive overseeing the venture from Producer Entertainment Group’s headquarters in Burbank.
Bell Media is expanding its digital offering on the Noovo.ca website and via the new Noovo app, showcasing its extensive catalogue of French-language programming. Over 5,000 hours of content are now available on Noovo.ca and via the app on iOS and Android mobile devices and smart or connected TVs. This includes content from the conventional Noovo channel as well as from Canal D, Canal Vie, Investigation, VRAK and Z. Noovo.ca will feature the majority of daily programming broadcast live on the Noovo channel, including all episodes of Noovo Le Fil news programming. The app will soon be available on Apple TV (Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD TV).
Torstar Corporation has entered into a long-term partnership with Cineplex to acquire publishing and exclusive theatre distribution rights for Cineplex Magazine. Torstar will continue both print and digital publication of the magazine under the brand Star Cineplex. Paul Rivett, chair and co-owner of Torstar, said the company plans to take “Torstar capabilities around content development, publishing, sales and operations to make Star Cineplex both a successful business and offer an entertaining reading experience to the audience.” As part of the transaction, SCENE members will receive advanced and exclusive content from Star Cineplex. According to a company release, Cineplex Magazine boasts over three million readers per issue.
Liquid Media Group has announced plans to create a first of its kind multi-token IP platform. Liquid is engaged in partnership discussions for platform engineering with CurrencyWorks. The Liquid Media Token Platform (LMPT) will support the evolving needs of film, entertainment and the gaming industry to capture opportunities to conceptualize and create content once, then monetize it in perpetuity. Built on four IP pillars: Creation, Use/Subscription, Financing and Licensing/Protection, the initiative would allow creative professionals to drive new revenue streams based on digital NFT exclusives and collectibles, gamify intellectual property, and guarantee recurrent licensing fees using smart contracts.
LISTEN: On the latest episode of Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast, we talk to Daniel Cruz, co-founder and CFO of Vancouver’s Liquid Media Group, about the convergence of all things digital entertainment and why he believes all facets of the industry need to embrace technology to avoid the Blockbuster Video effect. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here: