Style for hommes
Toronto-based Style Communications, publisher of fashion trade magazine Style is debuting a men’s fashion trade Jan. 21.
Called style Homme, president Rod Morris says the mag will target the men’s fashion industry in Canada but will also be distributed at shows in the U.S., Italy and Germany. In fact, 50% of the 10,000 distribution will be outside Canada. The book will appear twice per year — for the spring and fall seasons. A full-page ad costs $3,990.
Innovative docu-thriller to hit Newsworld
CBC Newsworld is set to air a permutation of the reality genre – the docu-thriller. Oscar-winning director Jean-Xavier de Lestrade set out to make a documentary investigating an alleged murder but the story’s twists and turns soon turned the project into a thriller in its own right.
Hosted by former MuchMusic personality George Stroumboulopoulos, The Staircase: Crime Scene or Accident will premier with a two-hour ep Sunday Jan. 16, followed by four one-hours on ensuing days and wrapping with a two-hour finale on Sunday Jan. 23. Newsworld is looking to thrill a general audience with this one.
The Hour delves into issues of the day
George Stroumboulopoulos will also host a new magazine show, CBC News: The Hour on Newsworld. He will bring his trademark cut-to-the-chase attitude to coverage of daily events ranging from Canadian politics, to international headlines and entertainment.
Newsworld hopes to lure some of Stroumboulopoulos’s fans from his stints on The New Music and at 102.1 The Edge and The Fan 590, adding younger viewers to the somewhat staid net’s normal mid-range demo, says publicist Ruth Ellen Soles. The Hour premiers Jan. 17 and runs Mondays to Thursdays at 8 p.m.
New show features Canada’s worst drivers
The Discovery Channel Canada is in the early production stages of its upcoming reality series, Canada’s Worst Driver. The show attempts to find the most appalling drivers this country has to offer and tries to rehabilitate them through various driver-training programs. Unlike other reality shows, CWD will eliminate its strongest competitors each week until only one horrendous driver is left standing and is officially crowned Canada’s worst driver.
CWD begins filming in February in Toronto and is scheduled to air in the fall. The format has already been produced in Britain, Australia, Switzerland and Denmark and a U.S. series is currently in the works.
W celebrates V-Day with Love, Lust & Libido
Women’s specialty net W will be rolling out a full week of themed programming beginning Monday, Feb. 7 in celebration of Valentine’s Day. The Love, Lust & Libido slate ranges from classic romantic movies like Casablanca (Saturday, Feb. 12 at 4 p.m.) to its new documentary series Between the Sheets (Wednesday, Feb. 9 at 11 p.m.), a six-part series that takes a light-hearted approach to uncovering Canadians’ sex lives (the full series launches in the fall), and love-themed episodes of regular W series.
The net is selling sponsorships to tie in with the event which includes movies like Amy’s Orgasm (Monday, Feb. 7 at 9 p.m.) and a special ep of The Shopping Bags, which examines top-selling relationship books, oysters, and lubricant. Playful documentaries include The Naughty Bits, a series that celebrates various body parts, including ‘The Bum’ – Tuesday, Feb. 8 at 10 p.m. W is Canada’s number-one specialty channel for women, watched by 10 million Canadians (V2+) in an average month. It’s owned by Toronto’s Corus Entertainment.
http://www.corusentertainment.com.
PMB Factoid
Percent of Montrealers who go cycling/mountain biking: 42. Toronto: 23
Tattooing most popular with Canadian young people
-1.2 million Canadians (4%) had a tattoo in the past year
– Tattooing is most popular among Canadians 18 to 24 (20%) and 25 to 34 (24%), and taken together these two age groups account for 44% of the total
– Canadians living in the Atlantic region are most likely to get a tattoo (5% in past year), and Quebecers are least likely (3%). Canadians in other regions get tattoos in line with the national average of 4%
– Females are slightly more likely to get a tattoo than are males – 55% of the total are females versus 45% male
– In terms of yesterday exposure, the top four media for reaching Canadians who had a tattoo in the past year are: TV (87%), radio (85%), Internet (60%) and daily papers (51%).
Source: BBM RTS Canada Fall ’03 / Spring ’04
The preceding information is from BBM RTS, a syndicated consumer-media survey of over 55,000 Canadians, conducted twice a year by BBM Canada. For more information contact Craig Dorning of BBM Canada: cdorning@bbm.ca.
Radio in the mix boosts ad effectiveness
Adding radio to the media mix magnifies the effectiveness of ad campaigns, according to the latest research from New York-based Radio Ad Effectiveness Lab (RAEL). The study, ‘The Benefits of Synergy: Moving Money Into Radio’ looked at five campaigns to compare the effects of using TV or newspaper alone with campaigns that combine radio ads with TV or newspaper.
40% of B.C.’s 18+ demo believe in Santa (and give generously)
Recent Ipsos-Reid polls out of British Columbia found that residents of that province are big believers in Santa Claus and in the spirit of giving.
Forty percent of adults 18+ in BC believe in Santa Claus, with 46% of women and 34% of men saying they believe in the big guy in red. Believers are more likely to live in the Lower Mainland (43%) or other areas of the province (43%) than in Vancouver, Burnaby or Westminster areas (31%). Those with household incomes over $100,000 (49%) and without a high education (45%) are high on Santa’s list.
The Movie Network’s theatrical & in-store spot work
The clone-crazed and formulaic nature of the gazillion-channel universe provided a trigger for the new Movie Network campaign ‘Not Regular Television.’ The result? Two commercials that stress the uncut and commercial-free nature of The Movie Network by satirizing the detritus of commercial television – one is a crime scene investigation spoof and the other is a mock spot starring a dipsomaniacal spokes-icon.
They also have a ‘not regular television’ buy. They’ll be on the big screen this month and next at GTA Famous Players, as well as on-screen at Ontario Future Shop locations where the spots will air on the programming wheel feeding the 200-odd in-store sets. Media Experts, Montreal, helmed the media plan and buy. The Future Shop deal is actually a repeat performance for the Movie Network, which previously aired season three of The Sopranos in-store. The thinking? Lots of people go to the Future Shop to pick up set-top boxes, so are an ideal audience for the service. The spots also have a six-week TV flight starting Jan. 17, and the buy includes the Super Bowl, The Academy Awards and the Grammies, as well as time on CSI, American Idol and The Amazing Race. Creative is by Taxi.
New ad medium tracks movement
On April 19, Freeset Interactive, of Montreal, will showcase a sophisticated new advertising medium in the Mobile Digital Commons Network, a project financed by Heritage Canada.
The Human Locator is an interactive tool that allows the advertiser to display or project video, sound and animation. It analyses a camera feed in real time, sending detailed information about people’s location, size, and movements. This data is then used as input to control projections, video, graphic animation, and sound. The device offers a complex analysis procedure and precise controls for accurate tracking in a variety of conditions. The Human Locator works with industry-standard Flash MX software, PC hardware and is compatible with a wide range of projectors, LCD screens and audio systems.
The global cost of a project using the Human Locator includes licensing, development, and hardware. Due to the range of possible uses, it can be anywhere from $5,000 to $500,000. Freeset Interactive includes technology, communications and multimedia professionals on its staff. Its CV features a Gold World Medal at the New York Festivals Awards 2004.
http://www.freeset.ca/locator/
Zoom throws curve ball
Montreal-based Zoom Media has introduced an additional option for its ad panel postings. Made of curved plexiglass, 13 X 17 feet, the new structure is integrated into the traditional panels already available from the company. The curvature makes it possible to present objects in relief.
http://www.zoommedia.com/
TTC’s digital advertising system set to kick off in new year
The Toronto Transit Commission is ready to debut its new private digital advertising network this January in conjunction with Citytv. OneSTOP Toronto, the operator of the advertising network has negotiated an exclusive content sponsorship agreement with CHUM Television to provide the news, sports and weather content on the digital signage, which will be accompanied by real-time transit information provided by the TTC.
When the network kicks off in January, the first stage of the project’s implementation will involve 40-inch LCD screens placed in high-traffic subway stations. These will be followed in mid-spring with on-train screens. The oneSTOP network, will reach over 800,000 commuters daily.
Readership growing for online newspapers
Since many consumers are interested in getting their news from the Internet, most daily newspapers in Canada have created online editions. According to NADbank research, readership differs by market, but is steadily growing in all markets, especially among younger readers. Although adults under 35 used to be the online readers, the demographics have now expanded to include 35-49s. However the 50+ crowd still like their print editions.
According to 2003 NADbank, with a base of adults 18+, Ottawa-Gatineau scored highest with 21% of those polled reading online newspapers. Toronto came in at 16%, Vancouver at 13% and Montreal, 11%. The lowest was Quebec City at 9%.
RDS, RIS go PPM
French-language specialty channel RDS (Le Réseau des Sports) and diginet RIS Info-Sports have joined BBM as portable people meter members.
Inaugurated in 1989, RDS has been a diary broadcast member since 1990. Its programming is available to all cable households in Quebec as well as some other selected markets – a potential audience of almost six million francophones. RIS hit the airwaves in October and focuses on French-language sports news. Both nets are owned by Bell Globemedia.
