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Media Beat: November 15, 2021

By David Farrell

Future of Rogers senior executives still unclear after court ruling

A B.C. Supreme Court ruling has resolved uncertainty over who sits on the board of Rogers Communications Inc., but the future of the telecom and media giant’s senior leadership team remains unclear.


More than a month after company chair Edward Rogers attempted to oust the chief executive officer and other senior executives, triggering a spectacular boardroom showdown that split the Rogers family, Joe Natale remains at the helm of Canada’s largest wireless carrier.

Analysts said on Monday that Mr. Rogers may preserve the management team at least until after the proposed $26-billion takeover of Shaw Communications Inc. is complete. – Alexandra Posadzki, The Globe and Mail

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Is Natale out as CEO of Rogers?

Experts surveyed by the Star predict he is — it’s just a matter of timing

Most executives have not spoken publicly about their plans at the company. But in an affidavit filed last week, Rogers’ wireless business president David Fuller implied he would not want to be part of a new management team designed by Edward.

“The reason I joined Rogers was because of the opportunity to work with Joe Natale,” Fuller wrote. “My strong preference would be to continue to do so.” – Jacob Lorinc, The Star

Edward Rogers won the war — but that victory may still cost his company dearly

The decision by Rogers Communications Inc. to not appeal a court decision last week handed company chair Edward Rogers a decisive victory in his battle for control of the telecom company that bears his family name.

Long-simmering tensions at the family-run company spilled out into the open last month, giving ordinary Canadians an unprecedented glimpse into the behind-the-scenes details at play with the powerful family.

While the ruling handed the keys of the castle to Edward Rogers for the foreseeable future, the costs associated with his win may make for a pyrrhic victory — making it even harder for him to fix the mismanagement and stock underperformance that he says has plagued the company for years.

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The legal costs of the fight alone are not insignificant. – Pete Evans, CBC News

Leaked Facebook document shows how often the company restores posts

An internal memo titled “Appeal Rate per country” includes a chart of the top 38 countries by the number of posts taken down by Facebook in a single month in 2019. The U.S. tops the chart with almost 2.6 million “takedowns” during that period; Canada is 38th, with a little more than 123,000.

The chart shows a large discrepancy between the percentage of removed posts that are restored in Europe and North America (where it ranges from 2.8 percent to 5 percent) and countries in Asia, South America and the Middle East (where it ranges from 0.8 percent to 1.8 percent). – Marco Chown Oved, The Star

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New & Upcoming Canadian Albums: Punjabi-Canadian Producer GMINXR Drops 'Hit List' EP on 91 North Records

Also this week, Neil Young puts out the new documentary soundtrack, Coastal, and Tami Neilson has announced the new album, Neon Cowgirl. Check out the full release calendar here.

It's a holiday weekend, but Good Friday hasn't stopped the slew of releases on New Music Friday,.

Heading up notable new releases this week is GMINXR. Fresh from a Juno Awards performance, the internationally renowned Punjabi-Canadian producer now has his own release, Hit List, featuring Tegi Pannu and Zehr Vibe. It's out on 91 North Records, the label collaboration between Warner Music India and Warner Music Canada. The five-song EP is inspired by both golden era hip-hop and Punjabi folk music, and infused with GMINXR's trademark trap beats.

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