TV, eh? | What's up in Canadian television | Page 1274
TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television
Featured, Industry News

You Can’t Always Get What You Want

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I’m talking OTT and SVOD in Canada here so I’m not going to finish the quote.  I played around with Shomi during the free 30 day trial that I was entitled to as a Rogers subscriber. Then Bell Media was nice enough to give me a 30 day guest pass to the mobile version of CraveTV (since I’m not a Bell subscriber that’s all I could get). So I’ve played around a little, to the extent possible.

Here’s my problem. What I would really like to have is impossible either because of outdated business models, Canadian broadcast regulation or a lack of Canadian OTT regulation. I’m stuck.

I would like to have a service that flows seamlessly between my television and my iPad (my kid would also like it to work on her shiny new Nexus phone) so that I could switch platforms in mid-episode or at least keep track of which episode I’m on in mid-binge. This is possible with Netflix but not possible with Shomi and CraveTV because their OTT platforms (the tablet, web and phone platforms) and SVOD (Subscription VOD on your TV) are licensed separately (OTT being exempt from regulation and SVOD being fully regulated).

I would like a Canadian service that supports Canadian programming on all of its platforms. Shomi and CraveTV have to make a contribution to Canadian programming and provide a quota on their SVOD platforms according to VOD regulation, but have no such obligation for their OTT platforms. Netflix has no requirement at all.

I would like to watch the Golden Globes and know that I have access to the cool new shows like “Transparent” (Shomi quickly announced during the awards that they will be carrying it, it is on OTT service Amazon Studios in the U.S.) and “House of Cards” (on Netflix) without having to pay separate OTT subscriptions for each one. Exclusivity is a model that only frustrates the consumer in the Internet world.

I would like to be able to be a Rogers cable, internet and wireless subscriber (well, maybe not but I am anyway) and subscribe to CraveTV. CraveTV is only available to Bell, Telus and a few smaller BDUs and is unlikely to be available to subscribers of their competition. While Shomi and CraveTV are very similar in how they work, and both have lovely interfaces on the mobile platforms (though both were buggy on their web platforms), I would like to have the option to subscribe to CraveTV if I want to and not be locked in to Shomi because of my cable provider.

So, as a Canadian and a lover of television, CRTC regulation and the BDU business models are not working for me right now.

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Link: Airshow shows the courage of people who make a living off the ground

From Bill Harris of QMI:

‘Airshow’ shows the courage of people who make a living off the ground
There’s no business like Airshow business. That’s what I’m led to believe from watching Airshow, a Canadian original reality series that debuts Monday, Jan. 26 on Discovery. On the one hand, I understand that the pilots and performers who make their livings on the airshow circuit are a unique breed. More airshow personnel are killed every year than in any other job in entertainment. Continue reading.

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Featured, Package Deal, Seed, Sunnyside, Young Drunk Punk

City: Bland name, brand comedy

It was a dark day in Canadian TV when Citytv cancelled Murdoch Mysteries back in 2011. Five seasons is a long run for any show but with ratings and creative juices still fresh, the decision seemed like part of that eternal mystery: why are Canadian series so expendable?

Rogers executives grumbling about the cost of producing original series pointed to one possible answer. Their then-recent purchase of the FX brand seemed like another. Canadian broadcasters like to spread their original programming across all their channels to cheaply fulfill CanCon requirements, but Murdoch and FX went together like peanut butter and purple. Luckily, CBC stepped in to the rescue and Murdoch continues on its merry ratings-grabbing way there.

Fast forward four years and City — as they’re now simply known, in a branding move I have to assume was to make themselves entirely un-Googleable — has a small new slate of original programs with a definable tone.

They define that tone as “intensely-local, urban-oriented, culturally-diverse television programming.” Um, sure. [P.S. -ly adverbs don’t take hyphens after them. Signed, Intensely Grammatically Nerdy.]

Forget about the odd OLN series such as The Liquidator that pop up on the mothership network — for their first-run series, City seems to be carving out a niche in comedy.

Now I’m not saying all their comedies are winners, or that their scheduling and marketing were stellar, but the two seasons each of Seed and Package Deal were valiant attempts to fulfill the urban-oriented part of that brand verbiage, anyway. Before they claim “intensely local” and “culturally diverse” for their scripted series, instead of their programming as a whole, they should probably be more blatant about setting and have cast photos that aren’t exclusively or predominantly white but … quibble.

This season, City seems reborn with the delightfully off-centre Sunnyside and Young Drunk Punk out of the gate, and a partnership with CBC that will have them airing Mr. D after it’s been on the public broadcaster. They don’t seem to be ponying up more money for original programming, but a focus on half-hour shows and partnerships gives them more to spread around, at least, while remaining focused on their brand.

So with my rose-coloured, intensely urban glasses on, City seems determined to prove that Canadian comedy isn’t dead – despite what some people say. Now all they need is for one of their brand-name shows to be the kind of hit they had with Murdoch Mysteries.

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Tonight: Marketplace, Fifth Estate

Marketplace, CBC – “Dispensing Danger”
We depend on pharmacists to help us stay healthy. But what happens when pharmacists make mistakes? After hearing from Canadians who have experienced pharmacy errors, we set out on the largest investigation of its kind: visiting 50 pharmacies in nine cities across Canada with hidden cameras. We reveal how pharmacists aren’t always following their own rules when dispensing behind-the-counter drugs. We investigate how that may be compromising patient safety. And we ask serious questions about who is keeping tabs on pharmacy errors – to keep you safe.

The Fifth Estate, CBC – “The Mob and Michael DeGroote”
One of Canada’s wealthiest businessmen gets involved in a gambling venture in the Caribbean that leads to a nightmare of death threats, revenge plots and the involvement of organized crime figures.

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Industry News

Cineflix Rights acquires Yap Films’ Battle Factory

media_cineflix_logo

From a media release:

Cineflix Rights, one of the UK’s leading independent television distributors, has acquired new content from Canadian producer Yap Films and South African producer Hive Content, as it heads to the Realscreen Summit 2015 looking to make more acquisition deals with producers.

Cineflix Rights has added to its growing “Factory” franchise with Battle Factory (14×30’, Yap Films). The series takes viewers into the hidden world of military and frontline gear factories all over the world and reveals how they are manufactured.

Battle Factory will sit alongside the highly successful brands Food Factory , Food Factory USA , and latest title Home Factory in the Cineflix Rights’ catalogue.

Food, Booze & Tattoos (13×30’, Hive Content) follows Brett Rogers as he travels across South Africa to track down the most mouth-watering food establishments, the coolest microbreweries, and the edgiest tattoo parlours; as well as showcasing South Africa’s unique and diverse contemporary cultures.

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