406 replies to this topic

[VicHockeyFan]

Glacier Media (TC's parent):

 

The Company’s community media operations experienced a soft quarter. Ongoing print advertising challenges in the community media industry, combined with economic challenges in certain areas, continue to weigh on the results of the operations. Adjusted revenues for the community media operations declined by 9.8% to $32.4 million while adjusted EBITDA declined by 27.4% to $3.6 million.

 

http://www.glacierme...ses-and-reports

 

Revenue down nearly 10% from same quarter last year, after-tax earnings down over 25%.

Edited by VicHockeyFan, 23 November 2017 - 09:58 AM.

[johnk]

"...print advertising challenges" aka cratering ad sales.
I ♥euphemisms.

[VicHockeyFan]

Well, one thing about the shrinking print media landscape, it sure promotes harmonious cooperation among rivals!

 No cash changed hands during the deal, as the papers "have approximately similar fair values," Postmedia said, but the fate of almost all papers is the same — they're destined to be closed either immediately or soon.

Postmedia took over:

• Belleville News.
• Brant News.
• Central Hastings News.
• Exeter Times-Advocate.
• The Exeter Weekender.
• Frontenac Gazette.
• Kanata Kourier-Standard.
• Kingston Heritage.
• Meaford Express.
• Nepean/Barrhaven News.
• Norfolk News.
• Orleans News.
• Ottawa East News.
• Ottawa South News.
• Ottawa West News.
• Our London.
• Quinte West News.
• St. Lawrence News.
• St. Marys Journal-Argus.
• The St. Marys Weekender.
• St. Thomas/Elgin Weekly News.
• Stittsville News.

In addition, Postmedia will acquire the free commuter newspapers, Metro Ottawa and Metro Winnipeg. Postmedia already owns other newspapers in both of those cities, and plans to shut down Metro in each of them.

The only papers in the deal that Postmedia plans to keep running are the Exeter Times-Advocate and the Exeter Weekender. In total, the closures of all the others will result in the loss of approximately 244 jobs.

"The continuing costs of producing dozens of small community newspapers in these regions in the face of significantly declining advertising revenues means that most of these operations no longer have viable business models," Postmedia chair Paul Godfrey said.

For their part, Torstar got these newspapers:

• Barrie Examiner.
• Bradford Times.
• Collingwood Enterprise Bulletin.
• Fort Erie Times.
• Innisfil Examiner.
• Inport News (Port Colborne).
• Niagara Advance.
• Niagara Falls Review.
• Northumberland Today.
• Orillia Packet and Times.
• Pelham News.
• Peterborough Examiner.
• St. Catharines Standard.
• Thorold Niagara News.
• Welland Tribune.
• Stratford City Gazette.
• West Carleton Review.

In addition to the smaller community papers, Torstar also got two new free commuter newspapers in major cities, 24 Hours Toronto and 24 Hours Vancouver. 

As is the case with Postmedia, most of Torstar's new properties are to be shut down, including those two.

Only four papers — St. Catharines Standard, Niagara Falls Review, Welland Tribune and Peterborough Examiner — will continue to operate.

 

http://www.cbc.ca/ne...rstar-1.4420955

[Mike K.]

This seems like positioning in order to scare the federal government into allocating hundreds of millions of dollars to these organizations which will spend it on bolstering their online presence.

In my opinion, private, corporate media should not be viewed in any other way than any other business. None of them are a utility or “too big to fail.” Are we seriously that naive to believe that without Esquimalt’s Esquimalt News the township and its residents have suffered or have been negatively affected?

[lanforod]

Little of value is being lost here. If there is appetite for this type of news, something will replace it.

[johnk]

I can't make sense of why two corps. would exchange assets of approx equal value in order to dispose of the assets. Why did the original owners not do this?
The only thing that comes to my mind is possible tax advantages.

[johnk]

This seems like positioning in order to scare the federal government into allocating hundreds of millions of dollars to these organizations which will spend it on bolstering their online presence.
In my opinion, private, corporate media should not be viewed in any other way than any other business. None of them are a utility or “too big to fail.” Are we seriously that naive to believe that without Esquimalt’s Esquimalt News the township and its residents have suffered or have been negatively affected?

Same thing with pro sports teams. Why should taxpayers foot the bill for stadiums etc? Taxpayers dont share in their profits.

[jonny]

I can't make sense of why two corps. would exchange assets of approx equal value in order to dispose of the assets. Why did the original owners not do this?
The only thing that comes to my mind is possible tax advantages.

 

They effectively gain a larger market share or even a monopoly in those areas. The idea being that Postmedia shuts down the Torstar paper it just acquired. Postmedia will sell more of their own papers in that area because it no longer has to compete with the Torstar newspaper it just effectively put out of business. And visa versa. 

[VicHockeyFan]

They effectively gain a larger market share or even a monopoly in those areas. The idea being that Postmedia shuts down the Torstar paper it just acquired. Postmedia will sell more of their own papers in that area because it no longer has to compete with the Torstar newspaper it just effectively put out of business. And visa versa. 

 

We know the business case of shutting down.  But why not just shut, why sell and shut? 

 

Same thing with pro sports teams. Why should taxpayers foot the bill for stadiums etc? Taxpayers dont share in their profits.

 

Could it be that the one that is sold in each case, is the weaker in that two-paper town?

 

So Torstar owns the Smallville News.

Postmedia owns the Smallville Sun.

 

Torstar owns the Biggerville News.

Postmedia owns Biggerville Sun.

 

In each case above, the bold one is the stronger paper (larger circulation, more ad revenue).

 

So if Postmedia just closed the Smallville Sun, only on the condition that Torstar closes the Biggerville News, maybe that's some type of illegal collusion.  But if they sell/swap, both Torstar and Postmedia get all the bad papers, so they close more or less automatically.

[Jackerbie]

So if Postmedia just closed the Smallville Sun, only on the condition that Torstar closes the Biggerville News, maybe that's some type of illegal collusion.  But if they sell/swap, both Torstar and Postmedia get all the bad papers, so they close more or less automatically.

 

Competition Bureau is reviewing the transaction, probably for that exact reason.

[VicHockeyFan]

Well, they have already closed most of them, they stopped all production at the end of the weekend.

[jonny]

We know the business case of shutting down.  But why not just shut, why sell and shut? 

 

Oh, my assumption is that the acquiring newspapers were keeping some of the staff from the shuttered newspapers and this saved on some severance. Plus, there are some assets they still want to use. For example, Postmedia acquires all of the printing presses, vehicles, leases and office equipment from the local Torstar paper they just acquired and can use those assets in their continued operation of the local Postmedia paper. 

Edited by jonny, 28 November 2017 - 09:35 AM.

[VicHockeyFan]

Oh ya that makes sense.

[Bingo]

Well, they have already closed most of them, they stopped all production at the end of the weekend.

 

The TC is thin today now that the silly black Friday thing is over.

[johnk]

The TC is thin today now that the silly black Friday thing is over.

TC has been on a diet for years now and seems to be approaching anorexic status.

[VicHockeyFan]

http://nationalpost....axes-for-others

 

 

Andrew Coyne: CBC's idea of a ‘level playing field’ — subsidies for us, taxes for others

Now that people who want to watch Cancon can pay for it, it’s not clear why they shouldn’t, still less why those who don’t should have to pay in their place

 

Edited by VicHockeyFan, 10 December 2017 - 08:12 AM.

[Rob Randall]

I guess this should be in the TC thread but it's locked again for reasons that escape me.

 

Regarding the media coverage of the new Bay Centre tenant, it's interesting to observe how the news bubbled up from on online forum to the paper of record.

 

The TC reported the imminent arrival of Winners thusly:

 

Social media postings show blueprints indicating the new tenant will be Winners, a clothing and home accessories chain, but Hollstein is not discussing the name.

 

 

"Social media" in this instance meant Citified/Victoria Buzz/IheartVictoria (I'm not sure exactly) who picked up the news from this forum, based on an anonymous post featuring a blueprint screenshot (presumably genuine).

 

As the story trickled up the social media food chain it progressively gathered increasing veneers of respectability but at its core it's thinly-sourced. It looks genuine to me but without a second source it's hard to prove it's a done deal or merely some corporate spit-balling. 

 

In this case, the TC should have been more forthcoming with the story's sourcing because the forum post is the story. It's fine to print rumour but it should be surrounded by more context.

 

The TC hates publicizing names of rivals and this is a habit that dates back many decades to when the Times and Colonist were friendly but fierce rivals and with multiple editions a day, the competition was intense and not an inch of ground was willfully given.

 

The good thing the TC did was an on-the-record denial from Bay Centre management.

 

Crediting rivals in cases where the competition's story is key is standard procedure at the big US outlets like the Washington Post, NYTimes, Axios ect.

The TC reported the imminent arrival of Winners thusly:

[Mike K.]

This is how it went down:

Tjv mentions the store is Winners, matter of factly
I contact tjv and we exchange several messages
Tjv posts the blueprints to VV
Citified publishes an article

Victoria News mentions neither VV or Citified, but claims the information is via “media reports.” It was a single instance of a report at that time. Plural is already a little truth bendy.

Then Victoria Buzz more or less re-wrote the Citified piece, not crediting Citified or VV, but taking tjv’s blueprints and posting them on their site, crediting VV and tjv in the credit line. That’s not kosher, but hey, it’s Victoria Buzz. Oh, and they refer to “media reports” as well.

TC eventually publishes a piece crediting “social media.”

If you come across information that is tied to a single source, and you do not have any other information other than that’s one single source, the respectful and responsible thing to do is to credit that source by name, and to be explicit.

Only CHEK did everything by the book, to my knowledge. I don’t know if CTV even covered the story but I suspect they did.

Victoria Buzz I can see being indifferent to what is and what isn’t kosher in this regard, but for professional media to do as they did does raise the issue of ethics and mutual respect.

I have no ill feelings or whatever, but at the very least these print publications should have acknowledged the post on VibrantVictoria, and Victoria Buzz should have linked to the VV post. Brishti Basu should know better.

So the lawsuit against Victoria BC Today courtesy of Black Press has literally been thrown out the window. They re-wrote a piece of news that was published, and did not credit anything beyond “media” reports. That’s not unlike the sort of activity they claim impacts them financially when competitors use their content on their own platform. At least there the information is credited multiple times AND linked to.

The established industry should know better. Victoria Buzz should aspire to do better.

[Nparker]

...at the very least these print publications should have acknowledged the post on VibrantVictoria...

I have always got the impression most of the traditional local media outlets don't consider VV to be a legitimate source of information, even when our facts are checked and verified.

[VicHockeyFan]

Tjv mentions the store is Winners, matter of factly
I contact tjv and we exchange several messages
Tjv posts the blueprints to VV
Citified publishes an article 

 

 

The above is important.  

 

And as per formal agreement between Mike and I, the Citified article, posted in the way agreed, also went out on my social media channels.