The CBC is overhauling its schedule to give the network a brand new look for the mid-season and so far at least KIA has liked what it found when it kicked the sked’s tires.

Last night, CBC premiered The Tournament to strong praise from critics. With upcoming episodes directed by Bruce McDonald, the show looks to be a hit with audiences searching for both a comedy and a hockey fix. KIA Canada, The Tournament‘s main sponsor, is using the show to air its new ads which call for an end to the NHL lockout. The KIA deal was made before the show’s script was finalized which allowed for the brand to be integrated into the plot in both the storyline (the two main characters work at a KIA dealership) and in signage (rinkboard ads, and dealership ads). The Tournament‘s Web site also features KIA branded content including Web links to KIA sites and fictitious ads for the KIA dealership on the show.

Casino and Gaming Television, the first 24/7 gambling network, is launching in Canada via Bell ExpressVu in May and will act as a test for the Los Angeles-based specialty prior to its U.S. introduction later this year.

Toronto 1 has joined with sponsors Dreamfields Pasta and ITRAVEL 2000 to promote its Prime Ticket Movie with a chance for viewers to win a trip to Mexico. Viewers send in headshots and watch for them to appear during the Prime Ticket Movie, Double Bill, Mondays through Fridays Jan. 3 to 23 at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. If their face appears, they win a Sony flatscreen TV compliments of HomeShow Canada. If they call in within 30 minutes, they are eligible to win one of three ITRAVEL 2000 Mexican vacation grand prizes, including luggage compliments of Heys International. The grand prize winners will be announced on The A-List on Jan. 10, 24 and 31. At press time the number of entries was unknown.
The contest is being supported with a radio campaign on Toronto stations JACK-FM, CHFI, the Mix and EZ Rock. It is among some of the recent programming promotions created specifically to meet the needs of advertisers and promotional partners. Others have included ‘Killer Shirts for Killer Movies,’ a week of blockbuster films sponsored by Arrow Shirts, and ‘Guys Night In,’ a presentation of Sony PlayStation.

Ethnic specialty TLN Telelatino and Pizza Nova are offering a chance to win a trip to Costa Rica with their Everybody Loves Pizza Contest. From Jan. 3 to 30, people viewing Everybody Loves Raymond weeknights at 10:30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m., and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. in Spanish, must spot the secret pizza ingredient of the day which will appear throughout the back-to-back episodes. They can then log on to TLNTV.com and click on the ingredient of the day for their chance to be entered into the weekly draw to win pizza for a year courtesy of Pizza Nova. In addition, one person will win the grand prize of a trip for two to Costa Rica.
TLN Television is majority owned by Corus Entertainment and offers a variety of domestic and international programming in Italian, Spanish and English to 3.7 million Canadian households.
http://www.tlntv.com/

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.

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.

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.

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.