Bell Media and Warner Bros. Discovery have settled their Canadian content rights dispute regarding Bell Media’s suite of Discovery-branded channels.
In June, Bell filed an application in Ontario Superior Court seeking an injunction to block Rogers from distributing Discovery channels. According to Bell’s claim, Warner Bros. Discovery allegedly failed to disclose to Rogers that it had a two-year non-compete agreement with Bell, prior to signing a multi-year deal for those rights in June. In a release Tuesday morning, Rogers said Bell acknowledged all claims “were unfounded and abandoned its legal efforts.”
As of Jan. 1, 2025, Rogers becomes the home of Warner Bros. Discovery’s suite of English-language U.S. lifestyle and factual brands. Rogers will be the exclusive English-language content rights holder, distributor, and advertising representative for the Discovery brands in Canada, with plans to launch TV channels for Discovery ID and Discovery, in addition to making content from Cooking, OWN, MotorTrend, Animal Planet, and Discovery Science available on demand and via Citytv+ on Amazon Prime Video Channels.
Bell Media said details of changes to its Discovery channels will be made available in the coming weeks.
Bell Media also announced today the expansion of its partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery, extending Crave’s run for multiple years as the exclusive home of HBO and Max content in Canada. The new agreement also includes a co-production commitment for original Canadian content “with global appeal,” licensing of Bell Media original content for use on Warner Bros. Discovery platforms outside of Canada, and extended access to French-language content for use on Bell Media platforms.
“We are strengthening and deepening our relationship with Warner Bros. Discovery, marking a significant milestone as we move forward together,” said Stewart Johnston, SVP Content and Sales, Bell Media, in a release. “With our commitment to develop co-productions, and the extended pipeline of extremely valuable content for subscribers, we’ve ensured Crave is well-positioned for continued growth and success.”
Bell Media’s expanded content pact with Warner Bros. Discovery encompasses HBO and Max Originals, HBO library series like The Sopranos and Game of Thrones, the DC Universe, film and television series, the Harry Potter franchise, including the upcoming HBO Original “Harry Potter” series, and Warner Bros. library series and films like Friends, The Big Bang Theory and Dune.
