Third station to become Global TV network affiliate as advertising revenue falls
Jamie Sturgeon
Sun
Canwest Global Communications Corp. said Wednesday it will close two of its over-the-air television stations, including CHEK-TV in Victoria, as it moves to cut costs to cope with falling advertising revenue in the recession.
A third station, CHBC-TV of Kelowna, will be rebranded as an affiliate of the main Global TV network.
Saying it had no other “viable options,” the Winnipeg-based media company said it will close CHEK — cable Channel 6 in Metro Vancouver — and CHCA-TV in Red Deer, Alta., by the end of August.
Peter Viner, president of Canwest Broadcasting, said the decision followed an exhaustive review of the five stations that comprise the company’s secondary network, begun in February. Last month, Canwest agreed to sell two stations in Montreal and Hamilton for an undisclosed sum to specialty TV operator Channel Zero Inc.
“I’m pleased to say … we have been able to find creative solutions for three of the five stations, which will sustain more than three-quarters of the jobs impacted by the review,” Viner said in a statement.
The recession has exacerbated a longer-run trend for conventional TV broadcasters that has seen advertising revenue flow away to specialty channels, cable and satellite operators as well as online sources.
In a landmark decision last month, Canadian regulators said digital TV operators such as Rogers Communications that carry the signals of broadcasters like Global and CTV must begin preparations on compensation proposals as part of Ottawa’s plan to protect locally produced over-the-air content made by smaller-market TV stations.
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun