660 replies to this topic

[VicHockeyFan]

Canwest rejects CHEK TV employee bid to buy, and save, local station

By Darron Kloster, Times Colonist
August 28, 2009

CHEK TV will fade to black on Monday night after Canwest Global Communications announced an employee-owned initiative did not meet its guidelines to keep the station operating.

A Canwest spokesman said today the media company was not prepared to fund the operation beyond Monday and will close the station.

“Canwest cannot assume the risk for costs that may be incurred” under the proposed employee-owned model, John Douglas, vice-president of public affairs, said in a phone interview from Winnipeg. “That includes operating losses, replacement services and other costs” associated with the station.

Earlier today, employees at CHEK TV submitted a formal bid to buy the television station and were hopeful the parent company would accept the offer.

Employee spokesman Richard Konwick said employees and private investors raised $2.5 million, which he said would cover some of the initial operating expenses as the employee-owned station got off the ground.

However, the station had no advertising or programming in place beyond Monday, which would have lead to huge startup costs.

Douglas said with no programming or advertising inventory in place “the losses would be significant ... in the millions” and the parent company was not prepared to absorb debt. He added potential losses to the company were not in the initial proposal and that was the basis for not accepting the employee offer. He said the Canadian Radio and Telecomunications Commission would take “several months” to transfer the lisence, a period that Canwest would be on the hook for debt incurred.

The employees submitted their latest offer Aug. 22 and fell short of the conditions set out in February when Canwest first announced the closure of CHEK TV and other affiliates in Kelowna and Red Deer, Alta. The company said the stations have been losing money since acquired in 2000.

It was the second time a group approached Canwest to buy the station, said Douglas. He confirmed the first group was also an employee owned model.

CHEK TV is set to switch off after the evening newscast Monday. Douglas did not provide details about what will happen to the CHEK property and did not say if there were other 11th hour offers. The company wants to consolidate its broadcast operations in Vancouver under the Global BC banner.

CHEK’s 40 employees raised about $500,000 while $2 million came from various business leaders and other sources. Konwick did not reveal individual investors, but said the outpouring of financial, political and public support buoyed hopes the station would continue.

Konwick said the employee ownership group had a three-year operating plan in place.

The station was to focus on local news and fill its 24-hour schedule with “plenty of available programming,” said Konwick, including a mix of movies, syndicated series and paid programming.

Douglas said the offer came too late. “It’s regrettable because there was an extraordinary effort,” he said.
© Copyright © The Victoria Times Colonist

http://www.vancouver...9927/story.html

[G-Man]

THat is very unfortunate.

[Holden West]

Chek employees will try again, according to Dana Hutchings.



Pic from Mediamixer at pugetsoundradio.com

[AllseeingEye]

VHF has it right above; this is absolutely no surprise nor should it be if you remove the emotion out of the equation. There was no way Canwest would consider accepting this offer. Heck I practically grew up on the old CHEK studios and have fond memories of that time and place, but if I were Canwest I'd have rejected this initiative too.....

[UrbanRail]

Its another example of the island being screwed by the mainland. Its too bad that Chek is closing. Lets hope A News sticks around, because it will suck to have no tv news station around on the island.

[Bernard]

Its another example of the island being screwed by the mainland. Its too bad that Chek is closing. Lets hope A News sticks around, because it will suck to have no tv news station around on the island.

Why would it suck to not have TV news on the island? They have done very little to investigate the news stories in Victoria. I have rarely seen them do anything in depth. There seems to be no coverage of local government.

I am not sure what they fill up their news broadcasts with.

If there is no local commercial TV station, we still have all the news crews working out of the legislature and they are the ones that seem to cover 90% of the news anyway.

[concorde]

I wonder if we will be getting a discount from Shaw since they will be offering less channels? (laughs)

[rjag]

I dont know if I really care. I havent watched chek in years, talking with some friends and family and they havent watched it either. I guess therefore its my fault.

[UrbanRail]

I use to watch Chek for many years until The New VI (now A News) came in 2001. VI had quite a lot of local content, better than Chek. Then in 2004, management gutted VI and eliminated most of the local programming.

I would rather have a tv station based on the island than one based in Vancouver. Besides Vancouver won't give a crap of what happens here anyway.

[victorian fan]

Maybe CHEK TV won’t go to black September 1

It seems reports of the eminent demise of Victoria's CHEK TV are a bit premature. Despite Canwest Global rejecting the offer of $2.5 million from employees and private investors to buy the station, union head Richard Konwick says high level negotiations continue. "We are talking about how to resolve issues that may have caused Canwest concern, and we are working to eliminate those issues."

Konwick says ideally the situation would be resolved before Tuesday, September 1, but he points out CHEK TV is still licensed by the CRTC until next summer. Canwest Global plans to pull the plug on the longstanding Victoria TV station in the face of massive debt.

http://www.news1130....829_200637_5584

[North Shore]

'Ts funny - when you read about this story in the Times-Colonist online, they have comments disabled...I wonder why?

[victorian fan]

Even more today:

CHEK staff say fight's not over

Canwest preparing to shut down the 53-year-old station Monday

CHEK TV employees aren't giving up on their bid to buy Vancouver Island's oldest television station, even after parent company Canwest Global Communications says the decision has been made and negotiations are over.

John Douglas, Canwest's vice-president of public affairs, said yesterday the company is shifting its focus to an orderly shutdown of the station.

CHEK is scheduled to go off the air Monday, after the company rejected an employee-ownership scheme Friday, saying the plan didn't meet Canwest's guidelines to keep the 53-year-old station operating.

While Douglas said yesterday that Canwest is not negotiating with the employee group, a spokesman for the 40 CHEK employees insisted talks are still underway.

"There are people we are talking to," said Richard Konwick. "I can't say who it is or how those negotiations are being conducted."

Employees have scraped together $2.5 million -- including corporate and private donations and about $500,000 of their own money -- to cover operating expenses as the station gets off the ground.

Konwick said the $2.5 million would be more than enough to run the station during the 90 days it would take to transfer the broadcast licence. But Canwest said Friday that with no programming or advertising inventory in place, losses would be significant and the company would be on the hook for any debt.

Canwest was offering to sell the station for $2, but it wanted a $5-million assurance to operate while the license was being transferred. The employee group had a three-year operating plan, Konwick said. The station was to focus on local news and fill its 24-hour schedule with "plenty of available programming," he said, including movies, syndicated series and paid programming.

Saanich-Gulf Islands MP Gary Lunn, who has been in talks with senior Canwest officials for several weeks, called the decision to close the 52-year-old station "a tragedy." He suggested employees and the parent company enter into discussions with the CRTC that would allow Canwest to be absolved of any liability until the licence is approved. Douglas dismissed the suggestion, saying the CRTC has no authority over financial matters.

Canwest announced in February that it was putting CHEK TV and other affiliates in Red Deer, Alta., Hamilton, Ont., and Montreal on the block. The company said the stations have been losing money since they were acquired in 2000.

The Red Deer station is also slated to close Monday, but on Friday, the CRTC approved the sale of stations in Hamilton and Montreal to Toronto-based Channel Zero.

Konwick said the mood at CHEK is "incredibly positive." A party to thank Vancouver Islanders for their support is planned for Monday from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the CHEK TV station on Kings Road. "Win or lose, we've certainly given it our best try," Konwick said.


http://www.timescolo...4470/story.html

[victorian fan]

[Bernard]

Do the people in Nanaimo suffer because they do not have a local TV station? Hardly. A community that does not have a typical badly done local newscast is no worse off than one that does have one.

Victoria is big enough that even if we had no local TV stations important events here will get reported on.

[AllseeingEye]

Getting a real charge out of all the "anti Vancouver" and anti- Global TV comments here and especially in the letters to the T-C. What does Vancouver have to do anything? Sounds to me like Victoria has a bad case of penis envy. Get over yourselves Victoria. This has nothing to do with "Vancouver".

I particularly loved the comments in the T-C about how the mainland "doesn't care" about events in Victoria, and how the CHEK staff was 'nicer' than Global Staff. LOL. I know several of the Global personalities personally and rest assured they are "nice" people who is most cases perform bucket loads of community service to improve lower mainland community living. Everything from telethons to marches for AIDS or Cancer.

How many people in Saanich or Sidney lose sleep over what happens in Delta or Ladner or Maple Ridge? Exactly. Then why should the reverse be true?

We are a small market of barely 350,000 people: all of greater Victoria combined has a smaller population than Surrey for heaven sakes. Greater Vancouver has 3 major TV stations yet has seven times our population. What makes all the Vancouver-haters think we can even support 2 TV stations (actually 3 here as well if you include Shaw, as you should), given limited viewership and a (very) limited corporate base to provide advertising revenues? Victoria like to claim it is 'world class'. Uh-huh. Seems more like it has a bad case of Little Man syndrome to me.

[VicHockeyFan]

Party @ CHEK today, 4:30pm.

[VicHockeyFan]

So far it's just one more day. The station manager led the 5 pm news with the announcement that CHEK will be on-air on Tuesday, with a 5 pm News, a 6 pm news, and a new 10 pm News.
The CRTC is involved in the continuing saga, reference was made to Canwest .. and the situation is obviously fluid.
But if they're starting a new 10 pm News tomorrow ...... Isn't that a pretty solid indication of a continuing future?

This whole thing wouldn't be an elaborate publicity hoax would it?

http://www.pugetsoun...51763873/s-new/

[G-Man]

So are they on tomorrow?

[Savannah]

Chek news was on tonight at 10, yep.

[martini]

Dodd shifts from CHEK


By Darron Kloster, Times ColonistSeptember 3, 2009



Gordie Dodd, the furniture store owner known for his cheesy television pitches depicting himself as Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk and other characters, confirmed yesterday he has shifted production of the commercials over to A British Columbia.

Dodd, who has had CHEK TV produce the spots for 30 years, said he will continue to advertise on both stations, provided an employee-driven bid to buy CHEK station from Canwest Global Communications Corp. is successful.

Meanwhile, negotiations between the 40 employees and owners of CHEK TV continued yesterday as the station remained on the air.

John Douglas, vice-president of corporate affairs at Canwest, said yesterday the station will continue to operate at least until midnight Friday, while the two sides discuss a transfer of the broadcasting licence with the CRTC and hammer out terms of the sale.

Meanwhile, programming will continue with local newscasts at 5, 6 and 10 p.m. through Friday. The rest of the 24-hour schedule likely won't match TV guides and will be a mix of movies, syndicated shows and paid programming.

British Columbia's first private television station was slated to close on Monday, putting 40 employees out of work.

Canwest announced the closing late last month, saying that it tried hard to improve CHEK's profitability or find a buyer for the station. The company rejected a bid from employees last week to take over the operation -- citing exposure to debt during the licence transfer period -- but on Monday said talks were continuing.

The employees' group raised about $2.5 million over the past month, including corporate and private funds. They also pooled about $500,000 of their own money to cover operating expenses as the station gets off the ground.

CHEK TV, which originally went on the air in December 1956, was not commenting yesterday on where the financial backing is coming from or how its three-year operating plan is moving forward.

Jim Blundell, general manager of A British Columbia, said although there have been some new advertisers coming over from CHEK, it hasn't been a flood. "We're waiting to see what happens like everyone else," he said.

Blundell said the station has not hired any former CHEK staffers and has no active job postings, but would consider new hires "if jobs become available."

Dodd said a new commercial is being produced at A Channel depicting himself as a belly dancer, which will likely be ready by mid-September.
© Copyright © The Victoria Times Colonist