Bell Media is cross-promoting the launch of its iHeartRadio app in Canada with a two-night four-hour television broadcast of the 2016 iHeartRadio Music Festival Oct. 6 and Oct. 7 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV Two. Filmed in Las Vegas in November, the special is hosted by Ryan Seacrest with performances by U2, Sia, Sting, Britney Spears, and Usher and all-star collaborations from Billy Idol and Miley Cyrus, Ariana Grande and Zedd, and Backstreet Boys and Florida Georgia Line.
CTV’s Canada In A Day project has already collected 11,500 submissions with a week to go before the deadline. On Sept. 10, Canadians were asked to film moments of their lives as part of a celebration of Canada’s 150th Anniversary of Confederation in 2017. The network says submissions have come from all provinces and territories and from 21 countries where Canadians are living or were visiting on filming day. Submissions can still be made at CanadaInADay.ca until Oct. 10.
The Canada Media Fund has released the second part of its content discoverability study. Key findings suggest 59 per cent of Canadian TV viewers aged 18+ discover new TV content through recommendations from friends. Generations X, Y and Z (18 to 49-year-olds) rely on their friends for discovery. Baby boomers rely more on TV and radio commercials. Word-of-mouth is still the main discoverability method, but this may change due to social media. The complete report can be found here.
Mark Milliere, senior vice-president of production for TSN, has been inducted into Ryerson University’s Radio & Television Arts (RTA) Wall of Fame. In a ceremony held during the university’s alumni weekend on Oct. 1, he was one of one of seven new inductees. Milliere joined the network during its infancy in 1984 while still a student at Ryerson. He rose through the ranks from editorial assistant to various production positions to vice-president in 2007 and senior vice-president in 2011.
A Video Relay Service (VRS) has launched that lets deaf and hard of hearing Canadians who use American Sign Language and Langue des Signes Québécoise make calls through video using a professional interpreter. Users need an Internet-connected device. When a call is placed, an interpreter appears on the screen. The caller can then sign to the interpreter, who speaks the message to the recipient. The service is from the Canadian Administrator of VRS (CAV), a non-profit created in 2014 with a mandate from the CRTC.
The intriguing site of CBC’s Radio-Canada International (RCI) shortwave broadcasting towers outside Sackville, NB is now the subject of a new documentary film. Spectres of Shortwave documents the 70 year history of the 13 120-metre towers that rose up from the town’s Tantramar Marsh and their relationship to the local residents. Stories include how the transmission site affected appliances and homes in the area. The towers went up during the World War II to send broadcasts worldwide.
