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All-day news, movies as CHCH returns to air
August 31, 2009
Steve Arnold
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/Business/article/626198
New owners have taken control of Hamilton's venerable CHCH TV - and they're bringing the movies back.
Effective this morning, ownership of the station has been transferred to an affiliate of Toronto-based specialty TV company Channel Zero.
The new format, which kicked off at 5 a.m., features local news shows through the day until 7 p.m., when movies will dominate the screen.
"We've been preparing for this for the last two months now," said Cal Millar, Channel Zero's president. "The programming is already laid in and the news crew is ready to take it."
Until 11:59 p.m. last night, CH was owned by Winnipeg-based Canwest Global and had been failing fast. Ratings for its E! slate of entertainment gossip shows and U.S. programs were tanking, and advertisers were fleeing. In one regulatory filing, Canwest projected the station would lose $29 million in a single year.
Channel Zero purchased the Hamilton station for a nominal amount with a plan for programming built around local news and movies. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission approved the transfer of broadcasting licences last week.
"Our folks have been working like crazy," Millar said. "We've done a transition in six weeks that would take most companies six months."
The E! sign on the station's Jackson Street broadcast centre is already gone, Millar said.
"That sign isn't part of anything that we want to be part of," he said.
The new owner's plan will keep the existing 5:30 to 9 a.m. show hosted by Annette Hamm and Bob Cowan on the air. At 9 a.m. they'll slide right into a new local news show called News Now, alternating in the anchor chair until noon. The midday news show will be expanded to one hour.
For the first week the afternoon slots will be filled by movies until another news show is ready. That will run to 5:30 p.m. when an existing dinner-hour news program takes over. At 7 p.m., it's movies again until the 11 p.m. news, followed by a repeat of the Live at 5:30 p.m. show.
"We're keeping the existing news shows because they are doing quite well. Our programming will be very much like CP 24, but it's going to be focused on Hamilton, Halton, Niagara and Peel," Millar said.
To staff the new format Millar said 15 new jobs have been created, some of them going to former CH staff laid off in the relentless rounds of job cuts ordered by Canwest.
"There's nothing like being able to earn some brownie points with your people," he said.
Millar said they "decided to go back to what worked before" -- a strong mix of local shows and big name movies -- the kind of pictures Millar grew up watching on CHCH. There are few such options for viewers who don't have pay TV, digital TV or satellite, he said.
Channel Zero was formed in 2000. Operations include several digital specialty networks such as Movieola -- The Short Film Channel and Silver Screen Classics. In 2006, Channel Zero created Ouat Media Inc., a film and new media content distribution company.
The Hamilton station will be owned by a Channel Zero affiliate called 2185220 Ontario Limited. It is owned equally by Christopher J. Fuoco and Kimberly S. Train, and by three minority shareholders including Romen Podzyhun, Anthony D'Andrea and C.J. (Cal) Millar (respectively holding 23.4 per cent and 23.3 per cent of voting shares).
August 31, 2009
Steve Arnold
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/Business/article/626198
New owners have taken control of Hamilton's venerable CHCH TV - and they're bringing the movies back.
Effective this morning, ownership of the station has been transferred to an affiliate of Toronto-based specialty TV company Channel Zero.
The new format, which kicked off at 5 a.m., features local news shows through the day until 7 p.m., when movies will dominate the screen.
"We've been preparing for this for the last two months now," said Cal Millar, Channel Zero's president. "The programming is already laid in and the news crew is ready to take it."
Until 11:59 p.m. last night, CH was owned by Winnipeg-based Canwest Global and had been failing fast. Ratings for its E! slate of entertainment gossip shows and U.S. programs were tanking, and advertisers were fleeing. In one regulatory filing, Canwest projected the station would lose $29 million in a single year.
Channel Zero purchased the Hamilton station for a nominal amount with a plan for programming built around local news and movies. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission approved the transfer of broadcasting licences last week.
"Our folks have been working like crazy," Millar said. "We've done a transition in six weeks that would take most companies six months."
The E! sign on the station's Jackson Street broadcast centre is already gone, Millar said.
"That sign isn't part of anything that we want to be part of," he said.
The new owner's plan will keep the existing 5:30 to 9 a.m. show hosted by Annette Hamm and Bob Cowan on the air. At 9 a.m. they'll slide right into a new local news show called News Now, alternating in the anchor chair until noon. The midday news show will be expanded to one hour.
For the first week the afternoon slots will be filled by movies until another news show is ready. That will run to 5:30 p.m. when an existing dinner-hour news program takes over. At 7 p.m., it's movies again until the 11 p.m. news, followed by a repeat of the Live at 5:30 p.m. show.
"We're keeping the existing news shows because they are doing quite well. Our programming will be very much like CP 24, but it's going to be focused on Hamilton, Halton, Niagara and Peel," Millar said.
To staff the new format Millar said 15 new jobs have been created, some of them going to former CH staff laid off in the relentless rounds of job cuts ordered by Canwest.
"There's nothing like being able to earn some brownie points with your people," he said.
Millar said they "decided to go back to what worked before" -- a strong mix of local shows and big name movies -- the kind of pictures Millar grew up watching on CHCH. There are few such options for viewers who don't have pay TV, digital TV or satellite, he said.
Channel Zero was formed in 2000. Operations include several digital specialty networks such as Movieola -- The Short Film Channel and Silver Screen Classics. In 2006, Channel Zero created Ouat Media Inc., a film and new media content distribution company.
The Hamilton station will be owned by a Channel Zero affiliate called 2185220 Ontario Limited. It is owned equally by Christopher J. Fuoco and Kimberly S. Train, and by three minority shareholders including Romen Podzyhun, Anthony D'Andrea and C.J. (Cal) Millar (respectively holding 23.4 per cent and 23.3 per cent of voting shares).
