Radio & Podcast News – CBC Listen rolls public broadcaster’s radio, podcast and music offerings into single app

CBC has launched CBC Listen, a single streaming app that encompasses the content offerings of CBC Podcasts, CBC Radio and CBC Music. CBC Listen provides access to more than 200 curated CBC Music playlists, the public broadcaster’s full podcast catalogue, and the ability to listen to CBC Radio One and CBC Music radio shows live. Select shows are also available on-demand. Included in the app’s features are the ability to bookmark content for future listening and go back to recently played tracks; continuous play (the ability to pick up where a listener left off); ability to cast audio to any AirPlay or Chromecast enabled device; and a sleep timer that can be customized to the user’s listening schedule. 

Stingray’s music app (4.8 in the Apple App Store and 4.7 in Google Play) is now available in Canada and the U.S. Previously available exclusively to pay-TV subscribers, the Stingray Music app, can be downloaded free or with a Premium tier upgrade for $3.99/month and at a discounted price of $0.99 for students. Recently redesigned, the app features over 200 “human-curated” channels and over 100 Canadian radio stations. The app already boasts nearly five million Canadian downloads.

Stingray has rebranded two of its small market Alberta stations HOT 93.7 (CKWY-FM) Wainwright (formerly WAYNE FM) & HOT 101.3 (CJEG-FM) Bonnyville (formerly KOOL 101.3). Both stations, which previously ran Katie & Ed out of AMP Radio (CKMP-FM) Calgary in their morning show time slots, are now airing The Morning Hot Tub with Mauler, Rush & Jenni, which originates from Hot 89.9 (CIHT-FM) Ottawa. The Morning Hot Tub is also carried on Hot 105.5 (CKQK-FM) Charlottetown and 95.9 Sun FM (CHHI-FM) Miramachi, NB.

99.9 SUN FM (CHSU-FM) Kelowna has been rebranded to 99.9 Virgin Radio. The iHeartRadio station had carried the SUN FM brand for the last 22 years.

Curiouscast, the Corus Entertainment podcast network, has renewed true crime podcast Crime Beat for a second season. Hosted by veteran Global Calgary crime reporter Nancy Hixt, Season 2 of Crime Beat launched Oct. 8 with two new episodes about the 2015 triple-murder of Blairmore, Alberta toddler Hailey Dunbar-Blanchette, her father Terry, 27, and 69-year-old Hanne Meketech. New episodes of Crime Beat will be released every two weeks.

CFUN Vancouver staff including Chuck McCoy, Red Robinson, Tom Jeffries, Terry David Mulligan, Ed Karl, John Tanner, Doc Harris, and CKLG-FM contemporary Roy Hennessey, were part of a panel discussion ruminating on the station’s history at the bi-annual RPM Lunch. Tuesday’s gathering was dedicated to the memory of Kerry Marshall, who passed away at age 70 after a short battle with brain cancer in August. Former colleague Larry Hennessey paid tribute to Marshall. The event was followed with the former CFUN personalities taking a photo on the steps of station’s original building at 4th & Cypress in Kitsilano, which is slated for demolition in the New Year.

Stingray has commissioned a Leger study on Background Music in Canadian Small Businesses that found 82% of small business owners’ lack awareness of the legal framework governing the use of music in public spaces and only 11% pay rights to music creators. 63% of those surveyed were unaware of any regulation preventing them from using a private streaming account to broadcast music publicly in their business. The study also revealed that 48% of business owners consider it important to broadcast Canadian music but only 18% said they were willing to pay tariffs to right holders. The survey was conducted among 510 small businesses (1 to 9 employees) across Canada with a physical space open to customers. Read more here.

LISTEN: On the latest episode of Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast, Ryan Fuss, SVP, Global Advertising Solutions, at Stingray and Dean Rutherford, VP, National Radio Sales, Bell Media, on the new AUDIO360 multi-platform audio sales solution and the future of radio and audio sales. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here.

FEATURE: In this week’s blog, Benztown CEO Andy Sannemann interviews Toronto freelance imaging producer Jordana Klein on finding inspiration, “unlearning” as a mindset, and the career advice she’d give her younger self, among other great insights. Read more here.

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