Shame On Bell In A Booming Economy | GTAMotorcycle.com

Shame On Bell In A Booming Economy

The irony of not reading articles you post and shaming bell for cutting staff to save costs at the same time.

"He also said that the company’s news operations are losing roughly $40 million a year and ad revenues had fallen by $140 million in 2023, compared with a year earlier. "

Young people don't care about traditional news style. Goldfish attention spans crave Youtube Shorts, TikTok vids and Insta Reels.

It's finally catching up to the legacy news media. 10 years ago it caught up to the newspaper industry.. in 10 years it'll catch up to Facebook but at least Zack is smart enough to keep the biz relevant in other ways (insta, hardware etc.)
 
Dresden said:
The irony of not reading articles you post and shaming bell for cutting staff to save costs at the same time.

"He also said that the company’s news operations are losing roughly $40 million a year and ad revenues had fallen by $140 million in 2023, compared with a year earlier. "

Young people don't care about traditional news style. Goldfish attention spans crave Youtube Shorts, TikTok vids and Insta Reels.

It's finally catching up to the legacy news media. 10 years ago it caught up to the newspaper industry.. in 10 years it'll catch up to Facebook but at least Zack is smart enough to keep the biz relevant in other ways (insta, hardware etc.)
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I did read the article if you're referring to me. And yes shame on bell for letting go 4800 employees. Wonder when we are going to hear about the massive bonus they are handing out to the top executives. CBC did the same crap

Bell Media's CEO among the highest paid executives in Canada​

Just last month, weeks before Bell's seismic layoffs, Bibic was named Canada's 38th highest paid CEO in a list published by Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
In 2022, Bibic made over $13.5 million in total compensation, up from the $11 million he made the year before. He climbed fourteen spots to from 2021 to join the ranks of Canada's top 50 highest paid executives.
With files from Josh Rubin and The Canadian Press.
 
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Dresden said:
The irony of not reading articles you post and shaming bell for cutting staff to save costs at the same time.

"He also said that the company’s news operations are losing roughly $40 million a year and ad revenues had fallen by $140 million in 2023, compared with a year earlier. "

Young people don't care about traditional news style. Goldfish attention spans crave Youtube Shorts, TikTok vids and Insta Reels.

It's finally catching up to the legacy news media. 10 years ago it caught up to the newspaper industry.. in 10 years it'll catch up to Facebook but at least Zack is smart enough to keep the biz relevant in other ways (insta, hardware etc.)
Click to expand...

Yes and no. Bellmedia could also be accused of homogenising their content to the point of absurd blandness instead of letting people make interesting things. Look at the absolute debacle they made of taking over CityTV, turning it from an interesting and very local outlet offering something nobody else could, into the beigest of beige corporate pablum that nobody could bear watching.

There's lots of evidence that the death of so-called 'linear' programming is very overstated. Radio is a good example, where studies show people are still very happy to have something they can just turn on and listen, without having to futz around to download a podcast or pick an artist to stream. This is especially true if you can offer local content that's actually relevant to people, instead of some cost-cut and AI programmed 'feed' with interchangeable so-called DJ's simply filling a few seconds between algorithmically selected songs. There's lots of evidence that people like linear TV, too, and the streamers are all moving to offer shows with set release times etc. The fact that there are buyers for all these radio stations that supposedly can't be profitable says a lot.

The problem is more that Bellmedia are run by a bunch of MBA idiots who treat the entertainment business exactly the same as running a widget factory, and then blame external factors when they fail spectacularly. They happily took millions in government subsidies (for which the idiot feds deserve equal blame for handing over a blank cheque with what appears to be zero conditions), rake in billions in profit over our excessive internet and mobile plans, but refuse to offer anything of benefit to the general public. All the Canadian telecom and media conglomerates are disgusting, but Bell is especially so. Everything they touch on the media side has been made worse, never better.
 
Dresden said:
The irony of not reading articles you post and shaming bell for cutting staff to save costs at the same time.

"He also said that the company’s news operations are losing roughly $40 million a year and ad revenues had fallen by $140 million in 2023, compared with a year earlier. "

Young people don't care about traditional news style. Goldfish attention spans crave Youtube Shorts, TikTok vids and Insta Reels.

It's finally catching up to the legacy news media. 10 years ago it caught up to the newspaper industry.. in 10 years it'll catch up to Facebook but at least Zack is smart enough to keep the biz relevant in other ways (insta, hardware etc.)
Click to expand...
Yeah being in traditional media sucks right now. Also it's a coming off a high of the pandemic where people were probably tuned in all the time, and they hired a bunch of people to work from home, which they don't need anymore, as people arn't tuned it.

Should be interesting times.
 
Priller said:
Yes and no. Bellmedia could also be accused of homogenising their content to the point of absurd blandness instead of letting people make interesting things. Look at the absolute debacle they made of taking over CityTV, turning it from an interesting and very local outlet offering something nobody else could, into the beigest of beige corporate pablum that nobody could bear watching.

There's lots of evidence that the death of so-called 'linear' programming is very overstated. Radio is a good example, where studies show people are still very happy to have something they can just turn on and listen, without having to futz around to download a podcast or pick an artist to stream. This is especially true if you can offer local content that's actually relevant to people, instead of some cost-cut and AI programmed 'feed' with interchangeable so-called DJ's simply filling a few seconds between algorithmically selected songs. There's lots of evidence that people like linear TV, too, and the streamers are all moving to offer shows with set release times etc. The fact that there are buyers for all these radio stations that supposedly can't be profitable says a lot.

The problem is more that Bellmedia are run by a bunch of MBA idiots who treat the entertainment business exactly the same as running a widget factory, and then blame external factors when they fail spectacularly. They happily took millions in government subsidies (for which the idiot feds deserve equal blame for handing over a blank cheque with what appears to be zero conditions), rake in billions in profit over our excessive internet and mobile plans, but refuse to offer anything of benefit to the general public. All the Canadian telecom and media conglomerates are disgusting, but Bell is especially so. Everything they touch on the media side has been made worse, never better.
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Rogers runs a close second - if not first.
 
In the 90s, Bell took a "business of the year" award away from my company by announcing just a month before the award event that they were opening a call center in Kingston, with 400 new jobs. They never opened it. I later learned that they did the same thing with other companies in the telco/Internet industry in Ontario as well.

You'd think that a company the size of Bell wouldn't be that petty and over-competitive, but you'd be wrong. Mirko Bibic is chewing the paint off the walls trying to figure out how to stifle competition in Canada. I mean, when he's not having beers with key government heads.
 
Shaman said:
Mirko Bibic is chewing the paint off the walls trying to figure out how to stifle competition in Canada. I mean, when he's not having beers with key government heads.
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We're not discussing business....................while Scott has his business notes and contracts out on the table.

screen-shot-2022-02-21-at-5.13.06-pm.png
 
If we are in a booming economy, then wouldn't that be the best time for a company to layoff/restructure? A time when those laid off have an opportunity to find new jobs with relative ease. Waiting until things are dire and potentially losing way more people during an economic downturn might be better optically, but it's stupid.
 
Part of the reasons for the staff reductions

Great Insight from an expert

www.michaelgeist.ca

The House of Cards Crumbles: Why the Bell Media Layoffs and Government’s Failed Media Policy are Connected - Michael Geist

Bell’s announcement this week that it is laying off thousands of workers - including nearly 500 Bell Media employees - has sparked political outrage with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau characterizing it as a “garbage decision.” The job losses are obviously brutal for those directly affected and...
www.michaelgeist.ca www.michaelgeist.ca



ca.finance.yahoo.com

Bell denied stay of CRTC decision allowing access to its fibre network

The Federal Court of Appeal has rejected BCE Inc.'s request for a stay of a regulatory decision that will allow independent companies to sell internet services to their customers through Bell's fibre network in Ontario and Quebec. The court's decision was delivered Friday, a day after Bell...
ca.finance.yahoo.com ca.finance.yahoo.com
 
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You know, thinking about the CRTC fibre thing...

It was interesting when I switched from Bell fibre to Cogeco fibre, because Cogeco had to have 100% completely seperate equipment. Like they buried their own fibre in the lawn (they did that before we even switched or made any kind of commitment), put their own optical demarc on the outside of the house, and put their own short run of fibre inside the basement. I get that they don't have the right to use it but it just seemed a waste of everyone's time and money. Meanwhile I still have Bell's ONT and battery backup lying around - they didn't want it back, they just wanted the "Home Hub 2000" which is functionally now e-waste.
 
I'm more amazed that anyone is surprised about this.

Bell, especially under Bibic, is about the most evil company you can imagine. You should hear the stories about how hard they try to nickle-and-dime their technical staff, and how they'll try to buy you out about every 6 months once you hit a certain seniority.
Everything with them is about market force, domination and profit. They are not, and never have been, a solid limb of the Canadian public.
 
ToSlow said:
Bell to cut jobs in Hugh numbers

www.thestar.com

CTV cancelling most noon and weekend newscasts as Bell cuts 4,800 jobs. Here’s what shows are coming to an end

The layoffs of a historic magnitude come just after a report that Bell Media’s CEO landed in the top 50 best paid executives in Canada in 2022.
www.thestar.com www.thestar.com
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I don’t begrudge companies for restructuring, they are businesses and their goal is profit. If their small media stations are burning cash, the best thing to do is sell them to operators who can make them work.

In Bell’ case there are other things that may need to be considered as they are beneficiaries of a jumble of protectionist regulations that pad their pockets. Not sure how to evaluate that.

At the end of the day, no public or private company should be responsible for carrying on a business that is not profitable.
 
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