By David Farrell
QUB takes Internet radio mainstream in Quebec
What do you do if you’re a Quebec media company that already owns TV stations and newspapers, but is barred from launching radio stations due to Canadian broadcast law?
Answer: You bypass the broadcast regulator’s restrictive rules by launching an internet radio/podcasting service out of its legal reach, and promote the daylights out of it on your TV/newspaper properties.
This is precisely what Quebecor has done since October, when it launched QUB radio. – James Careless, Radio World
Quebecor names CFO Jean-Francois Pruneau as CEO of Vidéotron
The Montreal-based telecommunications company has appointed CFO Jean-François Pruneau to president and CEO of Videotron, filling a vacancy left by outgoing CEO Manon Brouillette. – The Canadian Press
EU directive offers a vision for Euro radio digitization
The new European Electronic Communications Code ensures that millions of car drivers across the European Union will have access to the various benefits presented by digital terrestrial radio — including an increased number of radio stations to choose from, more consistent audio quality and enhanced data services. In Europe, the most common form of digital terrestrial radio is DAB/DAB+. – Patrick Hannon, Radio World
Students aim to reinvent TV News
Teams of students from 18 colleges and universities across the US and one in New Zealand will attempt to develop unique ideas for reinventing local broadcast news to attract new viewers — particularly younger ones.
They will participate in TVNewsCheck’s and the Broadcast Education Association’s “Disrupt the News” challenge, with the winners showcased at BEA’s 2019 annual convention in Las Vegas (April 6-9), which overlaps with the NAB Show (April 8-11). Winning entries will be featured on TVNewsCheck.com and possibly also at the NAB Show. – TV News Check
RIP
Michael Maclear, a veteran CBC reporter and documentarian who covered the Cuban revolution, the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, the Cultural Revolution in China, died Dec. 25 at age 89. – Peter Mansbridge, CBC News
