Astral Media Inc. was a Canadian

media conglomerate A media conglomerate, media group, or media institution is a company that owns numerous companies involved in mass media enterprises, such as music, television, radio, publishing, motion pictures, theme parks, or the Internet. According to the ...

. It was Canada's largest radio broadcaster, with 84

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

s in eight provinces. Astral was also a major player in

premium Premium may refer to: Marketing * Premium (marketing), a promotional item that can be received for a small fee when redeeming proofs of purchase that come with or on retail products * Premium segment, high-price brands or services in marketing, ...

and specialty television in Canada, with 23 specialty channels and two conventional stations. In addition, Astral had a presence in

out-of-home advertising Out-of-home (OOH) advertising, also called outdoor advertising, outdoor media, and out-of-home media, is advertising experienced outside of the home. This includes billboards, wallscapes, and posters seen while "on the go". It also includes pla ...

. In March 2012,

Bell Media Bell Media Inc. ( French: ) is a Canadian company formed by the amalgamation of several companies. Establishment (2011–13) On December 9, 2011, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan announced the sale of its majority stake in Maple Leaf Sports ...

announced its intent to acquire Astral for $3.38 billion. Although an attempt to purchase the entirety of the company was blocked under

competition law Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...

, the

CRTC The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; french: Conseil de la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications canadiennes, links=) is a public organization in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasti ...

approved a revised offer on June 27, 2013, which saw various Astral specialty channels and radio stations divested to competitors. The sale was consummated on July 5, 2013. Astral was dissolved later the same year as a result of Bell Media completing its acquisition of the company. Bell Media assumed some of Astral's television functions and absorbed some of its premium television services.

History

Angreen Photo and Astral Photo

Astral Media's roots lie with Angreen Photo, a Canadian

company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...

founded in 1961. It was created when

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

's Greenberg brothers, led by Harold Greenberg, founded it to operate the

photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...

concession in

Miracle Mart Miracle Mart was a chain of discount department stores with locations in Ontario and Quebec, Canada based in Saint-Laurent, Quebec. The chain was renamed to simply M in the mid-1980s. History The company was founded in early 1961 as Miracle Mart ...

, a

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...

chain. Its acquisition in 1963 of Bellevue Pathé led to photography rights at the Montreal

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...

World's Fair, and it eventually grew into a 125-store chain, Astral Photo, the remnants of which are now owned by the Black's Photography chain. The company grew quickly into

motion picture A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

processing after acquiring the Pathé-Humphries motion picture lab in 1968 and Associated Screen News Industries of Montreal in 1969.

Astral Communications Limited

The company was constituted in 1973 under the name Astral Bellevue Pathé Limited. It eventually undertook

videocassette Videotape is magnetic tape used for storing video and usually sound in addition. Information stored can be in the form of either an analog or digital signal. Videotape is used in both video tape recorders (VTRs) and, more commonly, videocassette ...

duplication and video

wholesaling Wholesaling or distributing is the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers; to industrial, commercial, institutional or other professional business users; or to other wholesalers (wholesale businesses) and related subordinated services. In ...

. The company also produced or

executive produced Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...

over 100 feature

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, e ...

s and television

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...

. The films were released by American Cinema Releasing. The company had operated such subsidiaries as Astral Films, Astral Film Productions Ltd. and Astral Video, as well as in 1987, a development consortium that was led by Harold Greenberg with funding from the CBC called the Centre De Production De Montreal, which is set for open in 1989. In 1983, the Greenbergs acquired complete control of two

pay television Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to Subscription business model, subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichan ...

networks, First Choice (now known as The Movie Network) and Premier Choix TVEC (now Super Écran), at which point Astral ceased to be directly involved in

and program production. The company would later expand its television operations by launching new specialty networks. In addition, it became involved with the home video and feature film market, lasting from the mid-1980s until at least 1996. In 1987, Astral Film Enterprises had teamed up with Management Company Entertainment Group to produce three feature films by 1988, with the first film slated to be in the co-production pact was ''

Boris and Natasha ''The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends'' (commonly referred to as simply ''Rocky and Bullwinkle'') is an American animated television series that originally aired from November 19, 1959, to June 27, 1964, on the American Broadca ...

'', ''Boardwalk'', and ''Villa Golitsyn'', which were proposed in the three-picture pact, but the projects, aside from ''Boris and Natasha'' were never realized. In February 2000, Astral Communications changed its name to Astral Media, alongside Access Media. Astral then expanded into radio, beginning with the 2000 acquisition of Radiomutuel, and the 2002 purchase of most of the radio assets of

Telemedia Telemedia was a Canadian media company, which had holdings in radio, television and magazine publishing. The company was launched in 1968 by Philippe de Gaspé Beaubien, when he purchased CKAC in Montreal from Power Corporation of Canada. CKA ...

, although those companies' joint AM radio network Radiomedia was ultimately sold to

Corus Entertainment Corus Entertainment Inc. is a Canadian mass media company. Formed in 1999 as a spin-off from Shaw Communications, it has prominent holdings in the radio, publishing, and television industries. It is headquartered at Corus Quay in Toronto, Onta ...

for competitive reasons. Radiomutuel also owned a controlling share of

outdoor advertising Out-of-home (OOH) advertising, also called outdoor advertising, outdoor media, and out-of-home media, is advertising experienced outside of the home. This includes billboards, wallscapes, and posters seen while "on the go". It also includes pla ...

firm Omni Outdoor (which eventually became the fully owned Astral Out-of-Home division), as well as several French-language specialty channels such as

Canal Vie Canal Vie is a Canadian French language specialty channel owned by Bell Media. Canal Vie airs lifestyle and entertainment programs aimed at women in the form of talk shows, documentaries, reality TV series, and films. Programs focus on a variet ...

, Ztélé, Séries+,

VRAK.TV Vrak (stylized as VRΔK) is a Canadian French language specialty channel owned by Bell Media. The channel primarily broadcasts live-action programming aimed at youth audiences. History Background The youth channel TVJQ () went on the air in ...

, and 50% stakes in

MusiquePlus Elle Fictions (stylized ELLE Fictions) is a Canadian French language specialty channel owned by Remstar Media Group. The channel broadcasts general entertainment programming targeting young adult women. It was first established in 1986 as the mu ...

and

MusiMax Max is a Canadian French language specialty channel owned by Remstar Media Group, a division of Remstar. The channel primarily broadcasts entertainment programming, focusing on scripted television series and films. Established in 1997 as MusiMax ...

(then co-owned with

CHUM Limited CHUM Limited was a Canadian media company based in Toronto, Ontario in operation from 1945 to 2007. The company was founded in 1945 as York Broadcasters Limited when it launched CHUM-AM 1050 but was acquired by salesman Allan Waters in 1954. CHU ...

). On February 23, 2007, Astral Media announced that it had signed a letter of intent and had entered into exclusive negotiations regarding the acquisition of "substantially all of the assets" of

Standard Radio Slaight Communications is a Canadian radio broadcasting company. The company was formed as Slaight Broadcasting in 1971, when owner J. Allan Slaight acquired CFGM in Richmond Hill. Slaight later also acquired CFOX in Montreal and CHOK in Sar ...

. A formal agreement was later announced, with the proposed transaction being approved by the

on September 28, and completed on October 29 of the same year. The transaction gave Astral Media a significant foothold in English-language radio. AstralMediaVehicle

In 2010, Astral Media relocated its headquarters to 1800

McGill College Avenue McGill College Avenue (officially in french: avenue McGill College) is a street in downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Named for McGill University, the street was widened in the 1980s and transformed into a scenic avenue with McGill's Roddick Gat ...

, in a skyscraper rechristened

Maison Astral The Bell Media Tower (Tour Bell Média) is a skyscraper in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Located at 1800 McGill College Avenue, it was built for the Montreal Trust Company, and shared the name Place Montreal Trust with the adjoining mall. It stands ...

. In May 2010, the company unveiled a new logo featuring a multi-coloured "a" insignia (reflecting ideals of "collaboration" and "creativity"). At this time, the company began to trade as simply "Astral". In the fall of 2011,

Teletoon Teletoon (stylized as TELETOON) is a Canadian English-language specialty channel owned by Teletoon Canada, Inc., a subsidiary of Corus Entertainment. Its name is a portmanteau of "television" and " cartoon". The channel primarily broadcasts ...

(co-owned with

at the time) adopted a new logo to reflect Astral's 50th anniversary.

Acquisition by Bell Media

On March 16, 2012, Astral Media announced that it had agreed to be acquired by

Bell Canada Bell Canada (commonly referred to as Bell) is a Canadian telecommunications company headquartered at 1 Carrefour Alexander-Graham-Bell in the borough of Verdun in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is an ILEC (incumbent local exchange carrier) in t ...

through its

division for $3.38 billion. Astral Media shareholders approved the acquisition of all of its issued and outstanding shares by Bell Media on May 24, 2012; the acquisition of Astral Media's issued and outstanding shares by Bell received approval by the Quebec Superior Court during a hearing on May 25, 2012. The proposed sale faced opposition: a coalition of

Cogeco Cogeco Inc. is a Canadian telecommunications and media company. Its corporate offices are located at 1 Place Ville-Marie in Montreal, Quebec. The company is structured into three strategic business units (SBU); Cogeco Connexion, Breezeline ( ...

Vidéotron Vidéotron is a Canadian integrated telecommunications company active in cable television, interactive multimedia development, video on demand, cable telephony, wireless communication and Internet access services. Owned by Quebecor, it primarily s ...

, and Eastlink argued that Bell's market share following the merger would harm consumer choice, and that Bell would raise carriage fees for Astral's channels (impacting smaller providers). During a CRTC's hearing, the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

argued that Bell's proposal to use its mandatory tangible benefits to launch a French-language news channel (which would compete with its own

Réseau de l'information Ici RDI (stylized ICI RDI) is a Canadian French-language specialty news channel owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (known in French as Société Radio-Canada). The channel began broadcasting on January 1, 1995 as Réseau de l'inform ...

) was "self-serving and unprecedented." In September 2012, the

Competition Bureau The Competition Bureau (french: Bureau de la concurrence) is the competition regulator in Canada. It is an independent Canadian law enforcement agency that ensures that markets operate in a competitive, innovative manner. Headed by the Comm ...

stated that it was becoming "increasingly concerned" about the implications of the merger, and warned that it could oppose the deal even if it were to be approved by the CRTC. On October 18, 2012, the CRTC announced that it had rejected BCE's proposal to acquire Astral Media. The commission cited that their combined market power could "threaten the availability of diverse programming for Canadians and endanger the ability of distribution undertakings to deliver programming at affordable rates and on reasonable terms on multiple platforms", and also stated that allowing the merger would have required the implementation of "extensive and intrusive safeguards" across the entire broadcasting industry. The CRTC also felt that Bell did not adequately demonstrate how having most of Canada's French-language media owned by two vertically integrated companies would improve competition, and how being bigger would allow it to compete against foreign services.

Second attempt

Following the rejection of the deal by the CRTC, Bell Canada CEO

George A. Cope George A. Cope (born 28 July 1961) is a Canadian businessman, and the former CEO of Bell Canada. Early life and education Cope was born in Scarborough, Ontario and grew up in Port Perry. Cope's father played for a short time for the Toronto A ...

asserted that calling the merger dead was "premature", citing that the formal merger agreement between Bell and Astral did not expire until December 16, 2012, and either company could extend it to January 15, 2013. Bell attempted to ask the

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

to overturn the CRTC's decision, but was told that they did not have the ability to do so. Bell also reportedly considered going to the

Federal Court of Appeal The Federal Court of Appeal (french: Cour d'appel fédérale) is a Canadian appellate court that hears cases concerning federal matters. History Section 101 of the Constitution Act, 1867 empowers the Parliament of Canada to establish "addit ...

, or restructuring the deal to selectively sell Astral assets to competing companies.

Rogers Media Rogers Media Inc., operating as Rogers Sports & Media, is a Canadian subsidiary of Rogers Communications that owns the company's mass media and sports properties, such as the Citytv and Omni Television terrestrial television stations, Sportsnet, ...

expressed interest in acquiring some of Astral's channels if such a sale were to occur. On November 16, 2012, Astral confirmed that it was in talks with Bell to negotiate a new offer, which would involve the sale of the majority of its English-language television channels to third parties. On March 4, 2013, the

approved a new proposal by Bell to acquire Astral Media, which would involve the divestiture of certain television channels and radio stations owned by the combined company, and was subject to restrictions preventing Bell from imposing restrictive bundling requirements on any provider seeking to carry The Movie Network or Super Écran. The CRTC made the proposed takeover proposal public on March 6, 2013. Unlike the previous deal, which would have given Bell a 42% share of the English-language television market, the new deal gave Bell a total market share of 35.7%, and increased its French-language market share to 22% (in comparison to 8% before). On March 18, 2013, the Competition Bureau cleared a proposed deal to sell Astral's stakes in several channels to

in preparation for regulatory approval. In a speech to the

Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is a Canadian non-profit organization created in 1979 to recognize the achievements of the over 4,000 Canadian cinema of Canada, film industry and television in Canada, television industry professionals ...

prior to the hearings, Bell Media's president Kevin Crull detailed plans to invest in French-language productions and maintain a distinct operation in Montreal devoted to its French-language outlets. Crull also praised the role of

Québecor Média Quebecor Media Inc. is a Canadian media conglomerate that owns a wide array of media outlets, as well as an internet service provider. History In 1983 Quebecor purchased the Winnipeg Sun newspaper, which had been independently run. The newspa ...

(despite the company being opposed to the merger) in using its own

vertical integration In microeconomics, management and international political economy, vertical integration is a term that describes the arrangement in which the supply chain of a company is integrated and owned by that company. Usually each member of the suppl ...

strategy to help promote Francophone talent, and revealed his intention to try and emulate its "star system" in English Canada.

=Hearings and approval

= CRTC hearings on the new proposals began in May 2013. Asserting that it would have to sell or shut down the station without one, Bell organized a petition proposing an exception to the ownership cap that would allow it to maintain ownership of CKGM, under the condition that Bell maintain the TSN Radio format on the station and provide $245,000 in funding for local

amateur sports Amateur sports are sports in which participants engage largely or entirely without remuneration Remuneration is the pay or other financial compensation provided in exchange for an employee's ''services performed'' (not to be confused with givi ...

and

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...

s in sports journalism over a seven-year period. Commissioner Suzanne Lamarre commented that Bell could have sold another station instead, given most of the comments on Bell's petition only supported CKGM maintaining a

sports radio Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often- boisterous on-ai ...

format, and not Bell's purchase of Astral. In response, Bell's CEO

commented that the company did not want to sell off profitable radio stations, and Astral CEO Jacques Parisien remarked that breaking up its Montreal cluster would affect their operation. Rogers called on the CRTC to require that Bell divest The Movie Network, claiming that Bell would make it harder and more expensive for competing service providers to access The Movie Network's content (especially on its own Anyplace TV and on-demand services) if Bell were to own the service. Bell disputed Rogers' claims, stating that the company already had a long-term deal to distribute The Movie Network on its cablesystems, and noted that Rogers had expressed interest in purchasing the service if it were to be divested. Bell indicated that it would not go ahead with the deal if it were forced by the CRTC to sell additional media outlets. Rogers also showed interest in making a "reasonable offer" to purchase CKGM as a complement to its recently acquired TV station

CJNT-DT CJNT-DT (channel 62) is a television station in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, part of the Citytv network. Owned and operated by network parent Rogers Sports & Media, the station maintains studios inside the Rogers Building at the corner of McGill ...

. Under Rogers ownership, CKGM would have kept its sports talk format, but as a

Sportsnet Radio Sportsnet Radio is the branding used by three sports talk radio stations in Canada owned by Rogers Sports & Media, a division of Rogers Communications. Overview The Toronto and Calgary stations (which maintain their former The Fan moniker in thei ...

station instead of TSN Radio. On June 27, 2013, the CRTC approved Bell's acquisition of Astral Media, which closed on July 5, 2013. The deal was subject to conditions, including the requirement for Bell to provide fair treatment to its competitors, to not impose "restrictive bundling practices" on Astral's premium movie channels, invest $246.9 million over the next seven years on Canadian-produced programming, and to maintain the operation and local programming levels of all of its television stations through 2017. The CRTC also approved Bell's proposed exemptions for maintaining ownership of CKGM.

= Divestments

= Following the approval of the new proposal by the Competition Bureau,

reached a tentative deal to acquire 2 radio stations ( CJOT,

CKQB CKQB-FM (106.9 FM, ''Jump! 106.9'') is a radio station licensed to Ottawa, Ontario. Owned by Corus Entertainment, it broadcasts a Top 40/CHR format. CKQB's studios are located at 1504 Merivale Road in Nepean along with sister station CJOT-FM ...

), along with Astral's stakes in Historia, Séries+, and the

networks from Bell for just over $400 million. Corus acquired the stakes in Historia and Séries+ from

Shaw Media Shaw Media was the television broadcasting division of Shaw Communications. Shaw Media owned the Global Television Network, which broadcasts nationally via 13 television stations, as well as 19 specialty channels including Slice (TV channel), Sli ...

as well. On January 1, 2014, the acquisition was completed. In 2017, Corus attempted to sell Historia and Séries+ to Bell for $200 million, but the deal was blocked and rejected by the Competition Bureau for violations of conditions forbidding Bell from re-acquiring divested Astral properties for ten years. Bell Media also divested

Family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

, Disney Junior's

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and French services,

Disney XD Disney XD is an American pay television channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven years ...

, and 5 other radio stations in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

and

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

(

CHBM-FM CHBM-FM is a radio station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada broadcasting at 97.3 FM. The station currently broadcasts a classic hits format branded as '' Boom 97.3''. CHBM's studios are located at Yonge Street and St. Clair Avenue in Toronto's Deer ...

CFXJ-FM CFXJ-FM (93.5 FM, ''93.5 Today Radio'') is a Canadian radio station in Toronto, Ontario. Owned by Stingray Group, it broadcasts an adult hits format. CFXJ's studios are located at Yonge and St. Clair in Toronto's Deer Park neighbourhood, whil ...

CKZZ-FM CKZZ-FM (''Z95.3'') is a Canadian radio station in Vancouver, British Columbia. It broadcasts at 95.3 FM with an effective radiated power of 71,300 watts from a transmitter on Mount Seymour, and its studios are located in Richmond. The station h ...

, CHHR-FM and CISL) at auction. These divested stations and channels were temporarily held in a

blind trust A blind trust is a trust in which the trust beneficiaries have no knowledge of the holdings of the trust, and no right to intervene in their handling. In a blind trust, the trustees ( fiduciaries, or those who have been given power of attorney) ...

Pierre Boivin Pierre Boivin, OC (born October 28, 1953) is a French Canadian businessman and was president of the Montreal Canadiens from September 2, 1999, through June 30, 2011, succeeding Ronald Corey. Business At the age of 25, Boivin founded Norvinca ...

until the completion of their acquisitions. On May 16, 2013, the

Jim Pattison Group The Jim Pattison Group is a Canadian conglomerate based in Vancouver. In a recent survey by the Financial Post, the firm was ranked as Canada's 62nd largest company. Jim Pattison, a Vancouver-based entrepreneur, is the chairman, CEO, and sole ...

announced a deal to acquire three stations in Calgary and Winnipeg from Bell and Astral—

CKCE-FM CKCE-FM (101.5 FM, ''101.5 Today Radio'') is a radio station in Calgary. Owned by the Jim Pattison Group, it broadcasts a hot adult contemporary format. CKCE's studios are located on 58th Avenue Southwest in Calgary, while its transmitter is lo ...

CHIQ-FM CHNW-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting at 94.3 FM in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The station broadcasts a hot adult contemporary format, branded as ''94.3 Now! Radio''. The station's studios are located at 177 Lombard Avenue in Downtown Winnipe ...

, and

CFQX CFQX-FM (104.1 MHz) is a country radio station in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Owned by Jim Pattison Group, the station currently operates out of studios at 177 Lombard Avenue in downtown Winnipeg. CFQX's transmitter is located in the Rural Municipality ...

, for an undisclosed amount. The deal expanded the Jim Pattison Group's operations in Calgary (where it was planning to launch a new station,

CHPK-FM CKWD-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting at 95.3 FM broadcasting, FM in Calgary, Alberta owned by Jim Pattison Group. The station broadcasts a country music, country format branded as ''Wild 95.3''. CKWD's studios are located on 58th Aven ...

), and gave the company its first stations in Manitoba. On August 26, 2013,

Newcap Radio Stingray Radio (formerly Newcap Radio) is a Canadian radio broadcasting conglomerate owned by Stingray Group. It owns and operates 101 radio stations in Canada—making it the second-largest radio conglomerate in Canada behind Bell Media. It also ...

announced its intent to acquire the five aforementioned Toronto and Vancouver stations. Eventually, Newcap was in turn acquired by Stingray Digital Group in 2018. On November 28, 2013,

DHX Media WildBrain Ltd. (formerly known as DHX Media, Ltd.) is a Canadian media, animation studio, production, and brand licensing company, mostly associated as an entertainment company. The company is known for owning the largest library of children ...

announced that it had reached a deal to acquire Family Channel and its sister networks for $170 million, the deal was completed in late July 2014. On December 4, 2013,

Remstar Remcorp is a Canadian private investment firm founded by businessman Maxime Rémillard. Its head offices are located in Montreal, Quebec. History The company was founded in 1997. At first involved in the entertainment industry, Remcorp now ma ...

, owners of the French television system V, announced that it would acquire MusiquePlus and MusiMax for an undisclosed amount.

Corporate governance

Members of the

board of directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

of Astral prior to the close of the Bell-Astral transaction were: Austin Beutel, Paul Bronfman,

André Bureau André Bureau, (October 10, 1935 – April 12, 2019) was a Canadian lawyer and communications executive. Born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, he received an LL.B. from Université Laval in 1958 and a D.E.A. from the University of Paris I: Panthéon ...

(chairman), Jack Cockwell,

George Cohon George Alan Cohon, (born April 19, 1937) is an American-born Canadian businessman who is the founder and senior chairman of McDonald's Canada and McDonald's Russia. Early life and education George Alan Cohon was born to a Ukrainian-Jewish fathe ...

, Paul Godfrey, Stephen Greenberg,

Ian Greenberg Ian Greenberg (15 June 1942 – 10 January 2022) was a Canadian businessman and media pioneer. He was the co-founder of Astral Media Inc. and served as its president and chief executive officer from 1996 until 2013. Early life Greenberg was born ...

, Sidney Greenberg, Sidney Horn, Timothy Price, Phyllis Yaffe and

Monique Jérôme-Forget Monique Jérôme-Forget (born August 8, 1940) is a psychologist and a former Quebec politician. She was the National Assembly of Quebec, Member of National Assembly (MNA) for the riding of Marguerite-Bourgeoys (provincial electoral district), Mar ...

Former assets

Any listing with a cross (†) character at the end indicates an asset which was not acquired by Bell Canada.

Radio

Alberta

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

- CIBK, CJAY,

CKMX CKMX is a radio station broadcasting at 1060 AM in Calgary, Alberta, and owned by Bell Media. Its comedy format is branded on-air as ''Funny 1060''. CKMX's studios are located on Centre Street in Eau Claire, and its transmitter site is near So ...

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

- CFBR, CFRN, CFMG

British Columbia

Dawson Creek Dawson Creek is a city in northeastern British Columbia, Canada. The municipality of had a population of 12,978 in 2016. Dawson Creek derives its name from the creek of the same name that runs through the community. The creek was named after ...

CJDC CJDC may refer to: * CJDC (AM), a radio station (890 AM) licensed to Dawson Creek, British Columbia, Canada * CJDC-TV, a television station (channel 5) licensed to Dawson Creek, British Columbia, Canada * The Central Jakarta District Court ...

* Fort Nelson - CKRX * Fort St. John - CHRX, CKNL *

Golden Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall * Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershi ...

- CKGR *

Invermere Invermere is a community in eastern British Columbia, Canada, near the border of Alberta. It is the hub of the Columbia Valley between Golden to the north and Cranbrook to the south. Invermere sits on the northwest shore of Windermere Lake and ...

- CKIR *

Kelowna Kelowna ( ) is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the head office of the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The name Kelowna derives from the Okanagan word ''ki� ...

- CHSU,

CILK Cilk, Cilk++, Cilk Plus and OpenCilk are general-purpose programming languages designed for multithreaded parallel computing. They are based on the C and C++ programming languages, which they extend with constructs to express parallel loops ...

CKFR CKFR is a radio station in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. Broadcasting at 1150 AM, the station airs news/ talk and sports formats, and identifies on air as ''AM 1150 News, Talk, Sports''. It is owned by Bell Media. Current on-air talent inc ...

Kitimat Kitimat is a district municipality in the North Coast region of British Columbia, Canada. It is a member municipality of the Regional District of Kitimat–Stikine regional government. The Kitimat Valley is part of the most populous urban distr ...

- CKTK *

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

- CKKC *

Osoyoos Osoyoos (, ) is the southernmost town in the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia between Penticton and Omak. The town is north of the United States border with Washington state and is adjacent to the Osoyoos Indian reserve. The origin of the na ...

- CJOR *

Penticton Penticton ( ) is a city in the Okanagan Valley of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada, situated between Okanagan and Skaha lakes. In the 2016 Canadian Census, its population was 33,761, while its census agglomeration The ce ...

- CJMG, CKOR *

Prince Rupert Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 (O.S.) / 27 December (N.S.) – 29 November 1682 (O.S.)) was an English army officer, admiral, scientist and colonial governor. He first came to prominence as a Royalist cavalr ...

- CHTK *

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...

- CIOR * Revelstoke - CKCR *

Salmon Arm Salmon Arm is a city in the Columbia Shuswap Regional District of the Southern Interior of the Canadian province of British Columbia that has a population of 17,706 (2016). Salmon Arm was incorporated as a municipal district on May 15, 1905. The ...

- CKXR * Summerland - CHOR *

Terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk an ...

- CFTK, CJFW *

Trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. Th ...

- CJAT *

- CKZZ †, CHHR †, CISL † * Vernon - CICF

Manitoba

Brandon Brandon may refer to: Names and people *Brandon (given name), a male given name *Brandon (surname), a surname with several different origins Places Australia *Brandon, a farm and 19th century homestead in Seaham, New South Wales *Brandon, Q ...

- CKX, CKXA * Selkirk -

† *

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

†, CKMM

New Brunswick

* Bathurst -

CKBC-FM CKBC-FM ('' Bounce 104.9'') is a Canadian radio station broadcasting in Bathurst, New Brunswick at 104.9 MHz with an effective radiated power of 33,500 watts. The station has been broadcasting since April 18, 1955. The station is currently owne ...

Fredericton Fredericton (; ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River, which flows west to east as it bisects the city. The river is the do ...

CFXY-FM CFXY-FM is a Canadian radio station in Fredericton, New Brunswick, that broadcasts at 105.3 Hertz, MHz. The station uses the on-air brand ''Bounce 105.3'' with an adult hits format. The station is owned by Bell Media, which also owns sister stat ...

, CIBX-FM,

CKHJ CKHJ is a radio station in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, broadcasting at 1260 AM. The station broadcasts a country format under the '' Pure Country'' branding. The station is owned by Bell Media which also owns sister stations CFXY-FM an ...

* Grand Falls -

CIKX-FM CIKX-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting in Grand Falls, New Brunswick at 93.5 MHz and 5,300 watts. CIKX was originally a repeater of CJCJ in Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a ...

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. ...

CJCJ-FM CJCJ-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting from Woodstock, New Brunswick at 104.1 FM. The station is currently owned and operated by Bell Media. The station broadcasts a country format branded as ''Pure Country 104''. History CJCJ origin ...

Nova Scotia

Truro Truro (; kw, Truru) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its ...

CKTO-FM CKTO-FM is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 100.9 FM in Truro, Nova Scotia. The station airs an adult hits format and is branded as '' Bounce 100.9'', which has a wide coverage area over much of western and central Nova Scotia and Princ ...

CKTY-FM CKTY-FM (99.5 MHz) is a radio station in Truro, Nova Scotia. Owned by Bell Media, it broadcasts a country format branded as ''Pure Country 99.5''. History The station has been on the air since September 10, 1947. It originally broadcast at 14 ...

Ontario

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

CHAM Cham or CHAM may refer to: Ethnicities and languages *Chams, people in Vietnam and Cambodia **Cham language, the language of the Cham people ***Cham script *** Cham (Unicode block), a block of Unicode characters of the Cham script *Cham Albania ...

CKLH CKLH-FM is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 102.9 FM in Hamilton, Ontario. The station broadcasts an adult hits format branded as ''Bounce 102.9''. The station is owned by Bell Media. CKLH's studios are located on Upper Wentworth Street ...

CKOC CKOC (1150 AM) is a radio station in Hamilton, Ontario. Owned by Bell Media, it broadcasts a business news format. CKOC is a 50,000-watt, Class B station operating on a Regional (not clear-channel) broadcast frequency, with transmitters locate ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

- CIQM,

CJBK CJBK is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting in London, Ontario, Canada, on the assigned frequency of 1290 kHz. The station, owned by Bell Media, has an antenna system input power of 10,000 watts, as a Class B station. CJBK's studios are loca ...

, CJBX,

CKSL CKSL was a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 1410 AM in London, Ontario, Canada. The station aired a comedy radio format branded as ''Funny 1410''. The station broadcast with a power of 10,000 watts from its transmitter site located on Sco ...

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

- CJOT †,

† * Pembroke, Ontario, Pembroke - CHVR-FM, CHVR * St. Catharines - CHRE-FM, CHRE, CHTZ-FM, CHTZ, CKTB *

- CFRB, CHBM-FM, CHBM †, CKFM-FM, CKFM

Quebec

- CHOM-FM, CHOM, CJAD, CJFM-FM, CJFM

=NRJ network

= * CHIK-FM 98.9, Quebec City * CIGB-FM 102.3, Trois-Rivières / Mauricie * CIKI-FM 98.7, Rimouski * CIMO-FM 106.1, Magog, Quebec, Magog / Estrie * CJAB-FM 94.5, Saguenay, Quebec, Saguenay * CJDM-FM 92.1, Drummondville * CJMM-FM 99.1, Rouyn-Noranda * CJMV-FM 102.7, Val-d'Or * CKMF-FM 94.3,

* CKTF-FM 104.1, Gatineau / Outaouais

=Rouge FM network

= * CFIX-FM 96.9, Saguenay, Quebec, Saguenay * CFVM-FM 99.9, Amqui * CHEY-FM 94.7, Trois-Rivières / Mauricie * CHRD-FM 105.3, Drummondville * CIMF-FM 94.9, Gatineau / Outaouais * CITE-FM 107.3,

* CITE-FM-1 102.7, Sherbrooke / Estrie * CITF-FM 107.5, Quebec City * CJOI-FM 102.9, Rimouski

=Boom FM network

= * CFEI-FM 106.5, Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, Saint-Hyacinthe * CFZZ-FM 104.1, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu

Saskatchewan

* Regina, Saskatchewan, Regina - CHBD-FM, CHBD

Television

Over-the-air television stations

- CJDC-TV, CJDC (now owned by Bell Media, reverted from CBC Television affiliation to CTV 2 affiliation in 2016) *

- CFTK-TV, CFTK (now owned by Bell Media, reverted from CBC Television affiliation to CTV 2 affiliation in 2016)

Specialty & pay television (English)

* Family Channel (Canadian TV network), Family - 2 multiplex channels (now owned by WildBrain) ** Family Jr., Disney Junior (English) (renamed Family Jr. by owner DHX Media after DHX lost the rights to Disney Channel programming to Corus) *

(renamed Family Chrgd by owner DHX Media after DHX lost the rights to Disney Channel programming to Corus, but eventually rebranded to WilBrainTV on March 1, 2022, with no change in programming) *Crave (TV network), The Movie Network - 4 multiplex channels, including HBO Canada (now owned by

and renamed Crave as of November 1, 2018) * Starz (Canadian TV channel), TMN Encore - 2 multiplex channels (renamed Starz (Canada), Starz by new owner Bell Media in 2019) *

(now fully owned by Corus Entertainment as of January 1, 2014) **Teletoon Retro (shut down on September 1, 2015, license and carriage subsumed by Cartoon Network (Canadian TV channel), Cartoon Network) **Cartoon Network (Canadian TV channel), Cartoon Network (ceased operating as a separately-licensed service on September 1, 2015, moving under Teletoon Retro's license thereafter)

Specialty & pay television (French)

* Canal D (now owned by Bell Media) **Upcoming spin-off channel focusing on justice and forensic programming in the form of documentaries, magazine series, dramas and reality television series (launched by Bell Media as Investigation (TV channel), Canal D/Investigation on December 12, 2013, following the Astral Media acquisition before renaming itself to just Investigation (TV channel), Investigation) *

(now owned by Bell Media) * Cinépop (now owned by Bell Media) * Télémagino, Disney Junior (French) (renamed Télémagino by owner DHX Media after DHX lost the rights to Disney Channel programming to Corus) * Historia (now fully owned by Corus Entertainment as of January 1, 2014) *

(now owned by V Media Group, later became a general entertainment channel now known as Max (Canadian TV channel), Max) *

(now owned by V Media Group, and renamed Elle Fictions as of 2019) * Séries+ (now fully owned by Corus Entertainment as of January 1, 2014) * Super Écran - 4 multiplex channels (now owned by Bell Media) * Télétoon (now fully owned by Corus Entertainment as of January 1, 2014) **Télétoon Rétro (shut down on September 1, 2015, and replaced by Disney La Chaîne in its channel allotments under Corus ownership) * Vrak, Vrak.TV (now owned by Bell Media and known as Vrak) * Ztélé (now owned by Bell Media and known as Z (TV channel), Z) *Télétoon la nuit — An adult-oriented animated block and website. * Séries+ — A Canadian French language discretionary service and website. *Cinépop — A Canadian French language category B pay television channel and website.

Pay-per-view television

* Viewers Choice (50.1%, shut down on September 30, 2014, due to redundancy with Bell and Rogers PPV services, Vu! and Sportsnet PPV)

References

External links

Official website
(website defunct for Astral Media, now owned by

)
History of Astral Media Inc.
- Canadian Communications Foundation {{Authority control Astral Media, Mass media companies disestablished in 2013 2013 disestablishments in Quebec Companies based in Montreal Companies formerly listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange Defunct broadcasting companies of Canada Companies acquired by Bell Canada Enterprises 1961 establishments in Quebec Mass media companies established in 1961 Bell Media 2013 mergers and acquisitions Canadian companies established in 1956