LISTEN: On the latest episode of Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast, Village Media CEO Jeff Elgie takes us inside the company’s business model and its recent push into Queen’s Park, in addition to touching on some hot button issues including why he’s NOT a fan of Bill C-18, the Online News Act, and how Village Media is very carefully and intentionally testing the integration of generative AI. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here:
YouTube is reaching over three times as many Canadians, 18+, as Netflix, according to Vividata’s Digital Consumer Update for Winter 2023. Vividata says 85% of Canadians (including 75% of those under age 35) are using YouTube monthly, compared to the 27% streaming video on Netflix. Amazon Prime ranked third in usage with 16% monthly penetration, followed by Disney+ (9%), Twitch (5%), Crave (5%) and Roku (4%). When it comes to audio streaming, Spotify is the most popular platform in Canada, reaching one in four Canadians, 18+, and one in three under 35. A leading 25% of Canadians, 18+, use Spotify monthly, followed by Apple Music (11%), iHeartRadio (8%), YouTube Music (5%), Microsoft’s Groove Music (formerly Xbox Music) (4%), Amazon Music (4%), Bandcamp (3%) and Soundcloud (3%). Facebook remains the top social media platform for Canadians, reaching 86% of those 18+ monthly, according to the report. Read more here.
Wattpad, the Toronto-headquartered online writing platform, has laid off 42 employees. With 267 staff prior to the staff reduction, interim president KB Nam cites the “global economic reality” as the driver behind the changes that will see the company “shift towards a more focused approach to nurturing writers and their careers.” The layoffs don’t affect the company’s WEBTOON Studios business, bolstered earlier this year with the signing of UTA (United Talent Agency).
