The Weekly Briefing

RADIO/AUDIO/PODCAST:

CBS is merging its radio business with Entercom Communications Corp in a tax-free deal that will create the second-largest radio broadcaster in the U.S., based on revenue. The merged entity, to be known as Entercom, will own 244 stations, including CBS Radio’s 117 stations, with pro forma revenue of about $1.7 billion on a trailing 12-month basis. The merger will be done through a Reverse Morris Trust transaction, a tax-free deal in which one company merges with a spun-off unit. CBS Radio shareholders will own 72 per cent of the combined company, while Entercom shareholders will own the rest. The combined company will be headquartered in Philadelphia.

Bell Media is partnering with Scott Borchetta, founder and CEO of Nashville-based Big Machine Label Group (BMLG). The multifaceted deal between Bell Media and BMLG aims to discover and cultivate musical talent through new television, radio, recording, and live concert projects. The centerpiece of the alliance is a unique television format that will leverage Bell Media’s massive reach to showcase musicians on the national and international stage. Bell Media and BMLG plan to advance the format beyond Canada to ultimately become a conduit for discovering new musical voices worldwide. Borchetta guided contestants on the final two seasons of American Idol. Big Machine Records is also the musical home to CMT’s hit series Nashville.

Country 105 (CKRY-FM) Calgary has been nominated for the Academy of Country Music’s Station of the Year Award (medium market). The 52nd Academy of Country Music Awards happen in Las Vegas on April 2.

There are calls to clean up talk radio in Quebec City, following the recent attack on a suburban mosque. Critics say anti-immigration and anti-Muslim sentiments are regularly given a sympathetic ear on radio poubelle, the French term for “trash radio.” A competitive talk radio market with five stations offering some form of talk programming, Quebec City Mayor Régis Labeaume is among those calling on station managers, owners and shareholders to stop what he calls “profiting from hate.”

The Children’s Hospital Radiothon in Saskatoon has raised $431,409.60. This year’s total was announced after three days of broadcasts from CJWW-AM, 92.9 The Bull (CKBL-FM) and 98 COOL (CJMK-FM). Since it began in 2003, the radiothon has raised over $5.1-million for both urgent pediatric equipment and the province’s new maternal and children’s hospital.

The 13th annual Bringing Hope to Life Radiothon benefitting Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre Foundation, raised a record $166,742. The Radiothon was broadcast live on 680 CJOB from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Power 97 (CJKR-FM) from noon to 6 p.m. on Feb. 3.

VOCM’s Heart and Stroke radiothon on Feb. 7 raised $30,000. Broadcast from the Avalon Mall in St. John’s, NL, it was the first VOCM Cares Radiothon devoted to the organization.

SIGN-OFFS:

Keith Maskell, Jan. 18, after an unexpected illness. Hailing from Saskatchewan, Keith was a university lecturer in French language and literature before joining CBC Edmonton, primarily as a reporter for French-language television. Maskell worked with the public broadcaster from 1992 to 1999, before becoming a staff rep for the Canadian Media Guild. He was with the CMG for more than 16 years, remembered as a dedicated and supportive voice for those working in the Canadian media sector.

Ritchie Yorke, 73, Feb. 6, of complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The colourful Australian music journalist was the chief music writer for the Sunday Mail for two decades, but also well-known in Canada as a former Canadian editor of Rolling Stone and Billboard and a contributor to the Globe & Mail. Yorke lived in Canada from the late 1960s through the mid-1980s, becoming a vocal advocate for Canadian music. He was one of the proponents involved in the introduction of Canadian Content regulations in 1971 and also helped organize the ambitious Maple Music Junket in June 1972, that saw 130 international journalists flown to Canada to spend a week listening to and writing about the top Canadian acts of the day. He made many friends along the way, including John Lennon. His book Christ You Know It Ain’t Easy: John and Yoko’s Battle For Peace came out last year with Yoko Ono writing the foreword. Yorke also wrote Led Zeppelin: The Definitive Biography, with Robert Plant calling him “one of us.”

TV/FILM/VIDEO:

Bell Media’s Super Bowl ratings for Sunday’s big game were down 39 per cent over 2015. The National Football League game, broadcast on CTV, CTV Two and TSN drew an average audience of 4.47 million viewers, down from 7.32 million on CTV in 2016. Bell is blaming the CRTC ruling banning simultaneous substitution of big-budget U.S. ads. Many Canadian viewers apparently opted to watch Fox instead.

Rogers has unveiled its plan for multi-platform coverage of The 59th Annual GRAMMY Awards. Hosted by late-night host James Corden, the awards will air live on Feb. 12 on City and online at Citytv.com/GRAMMYs. City will also host a GRAMMYs preshow on Facebook Live, in addition to offering a live stream of City Live at the GRAMMYs. On Rogers Radio, KiSS Radio (CKKS-FM) Vancouver’s Ara Andonian and Adele from CHYM-FM 96.7 Kitchener will host a one-hour GRAMMYs Radio special on Feb. 9 looking back at this year’s nominees. It airs at 7 p.m. on all Rogers Adult Contemporary stations, and again at 8 p.m. on all the company’s Contemporary Hit Radio stations. On Feb. 12, the one-hour GRAMMYs Radio special will air across all its Adult Contemporary stations, with live social media updates from each respective station. Rogers Media properties HELLO! Canada, FLARE and Chatelaine will also be live-tweeting the evening, in addition to other coverage.

A Tribe Called Red, Alessia Cara, Ruth B, and The Strumbellas are the latest acts confirmed to perform at the 2017 JUNO Awards. They join previously announced performer Shawn Mendes, who is nominated for five JUNO awards this year. The show airs live from the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa on CTV and CTV GO on Sunday, April 2. Additional performer and presenter announcements are expected in the coming weeks.

Kew Media Group has acquired six entertainment companies and their combined libraries for $104 million, which will see the Toronto-based investment group create content hubs in Los Angeles, London, Toronto and New York. Kew will take 100 per cent ownership of Content Media Corporation, along with Architect Films, Bristow Global Media, Frantic Films Corporation, Media Headquarters Film & Television and Our House Media. Kew also takes over Content-controlled companies Aito Media Oy, Campfire Film & Television, Collins Avenue Productions, Jigsaw Productions and Spirit Digital Media Limited. Content’s management team will stay in place under CEO John Schmidt, who will join the Kew board, while Steven Silver continues as Kew CEO. The acquisition is expected to close in March.

Some cord-cutters in Ottawa are upset that TVO has decided to cancel its over-the-air broadcast outside of Greater Toronto. The public broadcaster announced last week it’s ending transmission in Ottawa, Belleville, Chatham, Cloyne, Kitchener, London, Thunder Bay and Windsor to save $1 million annually. An Ottawa man has started a petition asking TVO to continue over-the-air broadcasts in the region. Bob LeDrew, who uses a digital antenna to access basic channels like TVO, plans to deliver the petition to Premier Kathleen Wynne and Minister Of Education Mitzie Hunter when it reaches 1000 signatures. TVO remains available for those paying for cable television. Most programming can also be accessed online.

TVO TeachOntario has received the 2016 Ontario School Library Association OSLA Award for Special Achievement. The online community for teachers is designed to support sharing, collaboration and knowledge exchange amongst Ontario educators with almost 7,000 registered users. TVO’s suite of digital learning resources includes TVO mPower, a creative online game that teaches fundamental K-6 math skills; TVO Homework Help, free online math tutoring by teachers; and TVO ILC, Ontario’s largest public high school and the province’s designated provider of distance education.

Mediatube Corp. and Northvu Inc. are appealing the dismissal of a $350-million IPTV patent infringement suit against Bell. The appeal, filed Friday, asks the Federal Court of Appeal to overturn the January ruling that dismissed its claim Bell Canada infringed its patent to create Fibe TV, after working with the company under a confidentiality agreement. In its grounds for appeal, Mediatube claims the trial judge made both legal and factual errors regarding the patent and its alleged use by Bell. It also says certain testimony and evidence should have been excluded from the trial.

Nine NFB films are set to air on Cuban state television. The National Film Board of Canada says the films include Spanish versions of documentaries and animated shorts, as well as one drama. The deal marks NFB’s first television licence with a Cuban broadcaster. It coincides with Canada’s participation in the Havana International Book Fair this month, where the same films will be screened on site.

Telefilm Canada is increasing feature film production and marketing financing for Indigenous talent to $4 million annually. The move follows Telefilm’s November announcement it would be instituting gender parity measures for feature film financing going forward. Executive Director Carolle Brabant says there is growing interest in Indigenous content, nationally and internationally. Telefilm will also create a jury process with Indigenous representation and has committed to hiring staff from Indigenous communities.

ONLINE CHANNELS:

Kickstarter has acquired Vancouver-based video streaming startup Huzza and will be opening a Vancouver office. The purchase follows their collaboration that led to the launch of Kickstarter Live in November. Huzza founders Justin Womersley and Nick Smit will help run Live and open Kickstarter’s first international office. Kickstarter will be hiring local engineers and designers, among other positions, to build a Vancouver team.

Snapchat is debuting a companion series to the BBC doc Planet Earth II on Feb. 17, one day before the program is televised in the U.S. and Canada. This is the first time Snapchat is debuting a companion show before the TV event. Snapchat will use the debut to test drive new features for its Snapcodes, including unlocking preview content. The Snapchat series will include six episodes, narrated by London actress Sophie Okonedo.

Corus has announced it has partnered with Sharethrough, the industry’s leading native supply side platform, to launch a new native advertising offering across all of its online properties. Through this new partnership, Corus will be able to offer dynamic video and display formats that match the visual style of natural content and remain consistent with the native user experience, resulting in a less disruptive audience experience than traditional display ads.

Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) has relaunched dibaajimo.com, a free digital learning platform that trains indigenous Canadians in journalism and helps them begin their careers. Dibaajimo, derived from the Ojibwe and Cree word “dibaajimowin” – meaning a story or a narrative – offers a 22-module course that provides the journalism basics. The platform is part of JHR’s Indigenous Reporters Program, which strives to increase the quality and quantity of indigenous stories and voices in Canadian media. In the last two years, the program has placed 19 interns with mainstream media outlets, 10 have since been hired full-time.

GENERAL:

CBC/Radio-Canada has shared its Accountability Plan for the federal government’s reinvestment in the public broadcaster. President & CEO Hubert T. Lacroix says as part of its priority to create more compelling, distinctive Canadian content, CBC is already developing additional Indigenous content; creating new evening content on ICI Radio-Canada Première; creating a new CBC digital service in London, ON; hiring new digital creators; and expanding international coverage with a new bureau in Istanbul, Turkey. The plan also includes new performance indicators. Read it here.

Employees at Corus television in Toronto, including Global TV and Corus Entertainment specialty channels, have voted to join the Canadian Media Guild. The Canada Industrial Relations Board has recognized that employees in Master Control, Broadcast Technology and INR in television at Corus Quay have voted to join the union. CMG is now working to schedule dates to meet with the company, so that negotiations can start on a collective agreement.

Stingray is reporting an improved third quarter for 2017. The Montreal-based, multi-platform music and in-store media solutions provider generated revenues of $25.9 million in the third quarter, an increase of 12.3 per cent compared with revenues of $23.1 million a year ago. Music broadcasting revenues increased 13.4 per cent to $19.3 million, mainly due to the acquisitions of iConcerts, DMD and Much Channels, and the new MVOD contract signed in the U.S. Commercial music revenues rose 9.1 per cent to $6.6 million, mainly as a result of organic growth in music and digital signage recurring revenues and the acquisition of Nümédia in Canada. Adjusted EBITDA increased to $8.7 million or 33.6 per cent of revenues, compared to $8.0 million a year earlier. For the third quarter, the corporation reported a net income of $2.7 million, or $0.05 per share (diluted), compared to $3.2 million, or $0.06 per share for the same period last year. Adjusted Net income remained the same at $6.2 million, or $0.12 per share (diluted).

Stingray Digital Group has signed distribution agreements with eight pay-TV providers that will boost the company’s potential reach by more than one million subscribers. Stingray has struck multi-year agreements with Vodafone Portugal, Orange Polska, Vodafone España, UPC Hungary, T-Mobile Netherlands, United Group Balkans, Sat-Trakt Doo and PT Telecom Hungary for its various products.

Groupe Média TFO has released a strategic plan on the role the public media company can play in strengthening French nationally while continuing to enhance its role as a digital leader, both in Canada and abroad. Initially created as a television station serving Franco-Ontarians, the company has transformed itself into a leading digital content producer and aggregator, operating the number one French YouTube channel in Canada. Its vision includes expanding bilingualism across the country with a call to use its educational content and resources in schools nationwide.

The CRTC has opened an online discussion forum until Feb. 14 to allow public discussions relating to this week’s public hearing on the Wireless Code and whether it should be updated to reflect the current market. Consumers groups have called for greater parental control over household cell phone data charges and clearer rules governing service cancellation fees and data overage caps. The Public Interest Advocacy Centre told this week’s hearing that wireless users need greater controls put in place to avoid suffering bill shock.

BCE Inc. is attributing an improved fourth quarter and fiscal year to strong wireless subscriber growth and a 41 per cent bump in data usage. BCE beat analyst expectations, adding 315,311 net wireless subscribers during the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, up 19 per cent over 2015. In its fourth quarter, BCE added 112,393 wireless customers, up 23 per cent year-over-year. Bell’s video-streaming service, CraveTV, also experienced one of its best months in December, as Rogers and Shaw pulled the plug on competitor Shomi at the end of November. BCE raised its quarterly dividend on the news to 71.75 cents per common share, up from 68.25 cents per quarter. The company reported profit of $657 million in the fourth quarter or 75 cents per share, up about 30 per cent from the fourth quarter of 2015. BCE’s adjusted earnings totalled $667 million or 76 cents per share in its latest quarter. For the year, BCE earned $2.89 billion or $3.33 per share, up from $2.53 billion or $2.98 per share in 2015.

The federal government has extended the deadline to submit funding applications for its new Connect to Innovate rural broadband program. The five-week extension, to April 20, now gives applicants a total of 18 weeks to prepare. Announced in December, the program will invest $500 million by 2021 to bring high-speed Internet access to 300 rural and remote communities across Canada.

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund, which supports initiatives improving accessibility to broadcasting content for Canadians with disabilities, has issued its third Call for Letters of Intent, the initial step in its application process. The Fund recently announced the completion of its second round of applications, committing $667,000 to six different projects. Total funding commitments over two full rounds of applications is $1.4M. The deadline for submissions is March 23.

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE), together with a coalition of media and labour organizations, held a rally in support of VICE News reporter Ben Makuch Monday as he appeared in a Toronto courtroom. Makuch was challenging an RCMP production order for chat logs between himself and a suspected ISIS fighter. Last year, an Ontario court ruled in favour of the RCMP, and Makuch filed an appeal. Monday was the final court date in the process. The decision will set a precedent in Canadian law for press freedom and protection of confidential sources. CJFE is calling on the Canadian government to support Private Member’s Bill S-231, which would create a federal press shield law and strengthen protection for advocates, whistleblowers and journalists.