Rogers-NHL Deal

Rogers is moving to control more Canadian media and with the announcement that they’re essentially taking over hockey rights across Canada is huge for the broadcast industry.

Losing hockey is a big deal for the CBC. They’ll keep Hockey Night in Canada for four years on a sub-contract from Rogers, but they don’t own the content anymore.

They will not even get the advertising revenue from the broadcasts, according to a statement from management to CBC staff.

According to a report from Friends of Canadian Broadcasting, Hockey Night in Canada is worth about half of the English television network’s advertising revenue and hockey accounts for up to a third of its television audience.

CBC is also losing revenue from selling the broadcast rights.

Back during the NHL lockout, Friends of Canadian Broadcasting spokesperson Ian Morisson said the loss of hockey at the CBC would be a “game changer.”

“All told, the loss of hockey would be much worse than the most recent round of cuts from the federal budget. It would be a game changer for our national public broadcaster.”

Rogers basically owns HNIC. Subbing out to CBC for the next four years.

CBC President and CEO Hubert Lacroix acknowledged that the next season of Hockey Night in Canada will be very different.

“Starting next year, Rogers will assume all editorial control (all editorial decisions with respect to the content, on-air talent and the creative direction of HNIC – we have the right to be consulted and there is a commitment to excellence) under the new agreement,” he wrote to CBC staff in an internal memo.

Under new deal, CBC can only show two games Sat. night, one early one late. No more multiple games for different regions. Rogers has them.

“While this deal will result in job losses, the staffing impact would have been much greater had we lost hockey entirely, as CBC is still producing hockey. Preserving HNIC also allows CBC to maintain a capacity to execute a sports strategy and fulfillits existing contractual obligations (i.e. Olympics, Pan-Am, FIFA),” he continued.

Lacroix was unclear on which jobs, and how many, would be cut as a result of this deal.

Later, in a press conference with Rogers, Lacroix tried to remain positive but had little to add.

“Rogers takes on all of the revenues from all of the properties. We have no costs that come with that. We don’t pay any broadcasting rights,” he said. “Our friends at Rogers pick up all of the revenue.”

Asked what CBC gains from the deal, he said the CBC has maintained the right “to promote some of our programs through the iconic Hockey Night in Canada.”

That was it. Rogers refused to comment on Don Cherry’s future beyond vague possibilities.

Could Don Cherry appear on seven different networks? Absolutely, says Rogers Media boss.

But the CBC is lucky, for now. They’re not losing all their hockey programming. That would have been an incredible dagger, as the CBC would have had to produce or buy 320 more hours of programming a year.

The Stanley Cup Finals will remain with the CBC. But Bell Media and Rogers Media will also be broadcasting playoff games.

reprint from the Province