From a media release:

White Pine Pictures and STV Productions are pleased to announce they are collaborating on the development of the limited series Wire Men in association with Power.

Wire Men reveals early tech wars as we’ve never seen, against the backdrop of America’s race to become the industrial and technological leader of the world. Alexander Graham Bell is at the centre of a cutthroat race to invent the telephone and entangled in a bitter rivalry with the unscrupulous Thomas Edison. They were the Zuckerberg, Jobs, and Gates of their day – brilliant young men at the top of their game.

The new drama is based in part on the book Reluctant Genius: Alexander Graham Bell and the Passion for Invention by noted historian and best-selling author Charlotte Gray. Her book Gold Diggers:Striking It Rich in the Klondike, was adapted for the Ridley Scott ratings hit Klondike; the first scripted series commissioned by Discovery.

The collaboration marks the first time these two Award-winning production houses are working together on a project.

The partnership between Executive Producers Peter Raymont (White Pine Pictures), Alan Clements and Sarah Brown (STV Productions), and Susan Waddell, CEO of Power, was initiated at MIPCOM last year and the agreement was signed at this year’s MIPTV 2015.

The series will be produced as a UK-Canada treaty co-production and Power will act as the series’ international co-producer and distributor and will be discussing the project with broadcasters at MIPTV.

From a media release:

The Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) has filed an application for leave to appeal asking the Federal Court of Appeal to set aside a CRTC decision to no longer enforce critical safeguards for independent producers in their dealings with Canada’s largest private broadcasters (Bell, Rogers, Shaw and Corus). These safeguards, known as terms of trade, were put in place in 2011 by the CRTC in the form of regulatory conditions designed to redress the imbalance of bargaining power between independent producers and broadcasters.

“We had no choice but to seek to appeal this aspect of the Let’s Talk TV decision” said Michael Hennessy, CMPA President and CEO. “Regulatory enforcement of producer safeguards is the only way to ensure producers are able to negotiate fair deals with the media giants. They are critical for the health of the independent production sector and the thousands of creators and skilled workers it employs.”

In its leave to appeal application, the CMPA argues that the CRTC failed to provide the CMPA with notice or the opportunity to make proper submissions with respect to this critically important issue for independent producers. The appeal is not related to the CRTC’s recent policies to provide more choice and affordability to Canadian TV viewers.

“We are disturbed that the CRTC has decided to no longer enforce safeguards for independent producers without any notice or asking us a single question on the subject at the Let’s Talk TV hearings,” says Hennessy. “Without the current regulatory conditions to ensure fair bargaining, and in the absence of any other Codes or safeguards, thousands of jobs and hundreds of businesses are in jeopardy. Even more troubling to us is that at the same time the enforcement for producer safeguards were withdrawn, the CRTC enhanced protections afforded to much larger industry players like independent broadcasters and cable providers such as Cogeco and TELUS.”

Notes:
Total film and television production volume in Canada in 2013/14 was $5.86B and accounted for over 125,000 full time equivalent (FTE) jobs including 49,300 direct jobs on productions. That accounts for $7.5B GDP to the economy. Canadian independent television production accounted for $2.3B in volume, generating 49,000 FTEs including 19,300 direct jobs, and $2.9B in GDP.

From Michael MacDonald of The Canadian Press:

Canadian Film, TV Tax Credits Drying Up As Provinces Seek To Balance Budgets
Camera operator Andrew Stretch remembers the day in 2013 when a campaigning politician looked into his camera lens and promised to help create jobs that would allow more young people to stay and work in Nova Scotia.

The politician was Stephen McNeil, now the province’s premier.

Stretch says McNeil broke his word last week when he tabled a budget measure that effectively kills a tax credit that most other provinces are still offering the film and TV industry. Continue reading.

From a media release:

BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE) today announced that Kevin Crull will depart from the position of President of Bell Media effective today.

“Kevin Crull departs Bell with our thanks for his contributions to our customers and shareholders,” said George Cope, President and CEO of Bell Canada and BCE Inc. “Kevin has been a significant part of Bell’s strategic transformation as he expanded Bell Media’s leadership with major new investments in Canadian content, the successful integration of Astral and competitive innovations like CraveTV.”

“However, the independence of Bell Media’s news operations is of paramount importance to our company and to all Canadians. There can be no doubt that Bell will always uphold the journalistic standards that have made CTV the most trusted brand in Canadian news,” said Mr. Cope.

Kevin Crull joined Bell in 2005 as President of Consumer Solutions and was appointed President of Bell Media following Bell’s acquisition of CTVglobemedia in 2011. He serves as a director of SickKids Foundation and is a leading supporter of the Walk for Kids Help Phone, the national youth counselling service funded by the Bell Let’s Talk mental health initiative.