The Canoe Network launched a redesigned home page yesterday with a new video section, simplified navigation and a single address – Canoe.ca – for access to both English and French versions of the content.
The new video section gives users access to content from Sun Media newspapers, along with content from CP-AP, WatchMojo, Jokeroo.com, Source Media, Just for Laughs, Moment Factory, IBC (Reuters, BBC, FOX News), Travel Shop TV, SUN TV and WheelsTV. Labatt Blue was an inaugural advertiser on the video page with a static box ad.
Pre-roll ads are live on the French portal, and they’ll soon be available on the English site. Canoe.ca VP portal & emerging products Stephen Evans says pre-roll ads (7, 10, 15 and 30 seconds) will be available, along with other ad opps, including big box ads, channel sponsorships, contextual links and video advertorials. Evans says the portal has also added high-profile ads such as a top-centre text ad and improved text ads integrated into the page. The leaderboard ad was eliminated after extensive market research, but rich media opps include peel backs, vokens and pre-rolls on home page videos. Evans says the site is now the first media portal in Canada to offer catfish ads that stay on the bottom of the page as the users scroll, adding effect to the big box in a way that creates a home page takeover.
The Canoe.ca portal incorporates the network’s retail and classified ads from micasa.ca, autonet.ca, jobboom.com and the new classifiedextra.ca, which launched this month with a reach of about 20 million potential purchasers through Sun Media properties and Sympatico.MSN.ca. A dating section, dating.canoe.ca, is powered by a partnership with Lavalife. The NFL is also a partner.
The comScore Media Metrix survey for March 2007 reported that the Canoe Network attracts more than 7.8 million unique visitors per month in Canada, including more than 4.1 million in Quebec. The Canoe Network includes: Canoe.ca, Cnews, Slam!, Jam! and Lifewise, the Sun Media newspaper sites, jobboom.com, micasa.ca, autonet.ca, reseaucontact.com, espacecanoe.ca and classified ads classifiedextra.ca and canoeklix.ca.
