Torstar Corporation has announced its intention to launch an online casino betting brand in 2021 in the regulated $500 million a year Ontario online gaming market. The launch is pending approval from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario. Paul Rivett, Chair and co-owner of Torstar said in the company’s announcement that “doing this as part of Torstar will help support the growth and expansion of quality community-based journalism.”
Vancouver’s Liquid Media Group has signed a distribution agreement with Atari that will see SlipStream, Liquid’s video-on-demand distribution platform, made available for download on the new Atari VCS PC/console hybrid. Liquid’s deal with Atari is the first to be revealed in support of the vertically integrated studio’s evolution as a solutions-driven business, under new CEO Ronald W. Thomson. The only Canadian entertainment company listed on Nasdaq, Liquid is moving toward branding itself as a business solutions company “empowering independent IP creators to package, finance, deliver and monetize their professional video IP globally.” Read more here.
Kin Community Canada, the Corus Entertainment-owned creator network, is continuing to expand its roster of content creators. Spanning topics from fashion and health & wellness to travel, entrepreneurship, and food, new additions to Kin include entertainer Deborah Cox; entrepreneur Lyn Allure; Vancouver foodie Emma Choo; and parenting blogger Andrew Taylor, among others. Corus says Kin has delivered incredible growth and increased demand over the past year, in part due to the ability of creators to continue shooting in their home studios during the pandemic. Creator marketing continues to be a key driver for brand engagement, with the industry expected to grow to $15 billion dollars by 2022, according to Business Insider.
Twitter Canada and Corus social digital agency, so.da, have launched Twitter Shops Fueled by so.da, a new online shopping experience that allows Twitter users to discover and shop for products via virtual pop-ups designed to drive traffic directly to the brand’s site. Building on the success of its previous partnership, Twitter Originals Fueled by so.da, the virtual pop-up stores will integrate brands into so.da-produced content that allows users to “Watch and Shop” in the same window.
QYOU Media Inc. has announced that The Q India, the company’s Hindi language youth- oriented channel, has secured its largest single television distribution agreement by adding DD Free Dish, an open access Direct-to-home platform reaching 38 million households, owned by India state broadcaster, Doordarshan. The agreement nearly doubles television reach for The Q India to over 88 million television households [bringing the total reach in April 2021 to approximately 700 Million homes and devices]. Free Dish contributes up to 25% of total viewership in the Hindi Speaking Market (HSM), the target market for The Q India. Curt Marvis, CEO and co-founder of QYOU Media, says the distribution partnership pushes the service closer to its goal of reaching 100 million TV households in 2021.
