U.S. Dramas via Canadian Broadband from CTV

U.S. Dramas via Canadian Broadband from CTV

Thursday, November 23, 2006

CTV has acquired Canadian broadband rights for top U.S. network TV
shows, in a major deal announced with Warner Bros. International
Television.

As a result, ad-supported full-length episodes of Studio 60 on the
Sunset Strip and The O.C. will stream on-demand at The CTV Broadband
Network (at CTV.ca) immediately following their broadcast premieres on
CTV.

The network says broadband scheduling details for the abbreviated
seven-episode season of Smith will be announced soon. Streams will be
geo-gated and available coast to coast to those who have broadband
access through a Canadian-based Internet service provider.

CTV also announced that all previously-aired episodes of Studio 60 on
the Sunset Strip and The O.C. (Season 4) are available on The CTV
Broadband Network.

Finally "Catch-Up TV" is here and on-demand. "[This] announcement
contributes to CTV's strategy of delivering hit programming across
multiple platforms, energizing existing fan bases and reaching out to
new audiences," said Susanne Boyce, CTV President of
Programming and Chair of the CTV Media Group. "We're honoured to
partner with Warner Bros. on this ground-breaking initiative."

"The pilot run of the first two episodes of The O.C. was a huge success
The CTV Broadband Network," said Kris Faibish, CTV Vice President of
Digital Media. "The addition of Smith, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip
and The O.C. to our roster of top Canadian shows will go a long way in
reaching out to our viewers across the country, allowing them to watch
these terrific shows on their own terms."

"It is clearly advantageous to explore digital opportunities with our
broadcast partners for our series," said Jeffrey R. Schlesinger,
President, Warner Bros. International Television. "Maximizing exposure
for our shows brings more consumer awareness, builds audiences and
strengthens core fan bases."

CTV has previously announced a deal with Warner Bros that saw CTV
deliver the Season 4 premiere of The O.C. on broadband, followed by
Episode 2. It was the first U.S. Network drama ever streamed in Canada
and the first time a U.S. Network series premiered on broadband in
advance of its television premiere. In less than 10 days, more than
120,000 streams of the episodes were ordered up by Canadians from coast
to coast.

Building on the pre-release broadband strategy for selected CTV
original programming that began with Instant Star in the summer, the
premiere episode of Season 6 of Degrassi: The Next Generation began
previewing on The CTV Broadband Network in advance of its television
debut next Tuesday, Nov. 28.

CTV launched The CTV Broadband Network June 5, 2006, utilizing an
advertiser-supported revenue model. The Network features a free,
premium broadband video player to deliver full length programming at
broadband speeds and enhanced resolution.

Warner Bros. International Television licenses some 50,000 hours of
programming (including more than 6,000 features and more than 60
current series), dubbed or subtitled in more than 40 languages, to
telecasters and cablecasters in more than 175 countries.

CTV is owned by Bell Globemedia.