CTV’s Olympic dream: Brilliant, audacious and expensive
February 10, 2010 · 24 Comments
If you were to pick a word to describe television coverage in Canada of the Vancouver Olympics you could choose big, daring, ambitious or bold. Or you could opt for overreaching, excessive, risky or profligate.
Whichever way you want to go, let’s say this about CTV boss Ivan Fecan’s Olympic dream: It isn’t dull, and it isn’t typically Canadian in style or scope, which is to say it is neither modest nor boring. It is in-your-face audacious.
Nothing in Canadian television has approached the enormity of the CTV-Rogers Olympic undertaking. The size and scale are breathtaking – 2,250 hours of television coverage on 12 networks (more than twice the television time that NBC will devote to the Games) and another 2,350 hours online.
The size and scale of the money spent by CTV-Rogers is also breathtaking, which makes you wonder: Does Fecan lay awake at night asking himself, “What if I’d bid $130-million for the rights to Vancouver and London instead of $153-million? We might have made a buck.” Or lost less.
Still, who was to know the CBC would come in low at the IOC auction in Lausanne in 2005, and that CTV-Rogers would end up overpaying? Who was to know the economy would crater in 2008 and advertising revenue would disappear?
It’s estimated CTV-Rogers, which paid $90-million U.S. for Vancouver media rights, will lose $20- to 30-million on its coverage, a lot for a Canadian broadcaster, but a drop in the bucket compared with the red ink that NBC will spill. NBC, which paid a rights fee of $820-million for Vancouver, is projecting a loss of $200-million.
Despite the losses, the coverage of these, the first all-HD Winter Games, should be excellent.
Canadian coverage: CTV will air all the big events, going round the clock with 22 hours of coverage a day. TSN, Rogers Sportsnet and OLN will provide complementary coverage. The French language coverage will be on RDS, RIS, V, and the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network, which will focus mainly on programming in native languages. The Rogers Omni channels will air ethnic content. In total, 12 networks will carry Olympic programming. Online, CTV-Rogers says, “every second of every competition,” will be available on CTVOlympics.ca and RDSolymiques.ca. CTV and its companion channels will employ 156 on-air broadcasters, English and French; NBC and its channels, 53 broadcasters.
U.S. coverage: The major competitions will be on NBC’s main network, with additional coverage on USA Network, CNBC, MSNBC. CNBC will focus on curling; MSNBC on hockey, including the Canada-U.S. game. While CTV will go live with all events, NBC will continue to tape delay the big events for prime time, to maximize audiences. The good news for U.S. viewers is that many of the big events, specifically figure skating, will be live in prime time.
Starting times: Because Vancouver is three hours behind the Eastern Time zone, some of the live coverage will run late in the East. Prime time host Brian Williams will work from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. EST daily. The opening ceremony won’t start until 9 p.m. EST Friday. The figure skating competitions will run late. But, for most of the events, including curling and hockey, the medal games are scheduled for the afternoon.
Olympic studios: Directly behind NBC prime time host Bob Costas is a 152 inch HDTV monitor. The view on either side shows the Vancouver skyline and Lions Gate Bridge. The CTV prime time studio overlooks the Vancouver Harbour and the mountains. Behind Williams is a 152 inch HDTV monitor. “It’s the best I’ve ever worked in,” said Williams.
UPDATE: An earlier draft of this post reported that Olympic content on MSNBC and CNBC would be blacked out in Canada. Rogers Cable reports that it will not black out Olympic content on the two cable channels.
Hits and whiffs
In the category of dumb broadcasters, we give you exhibit A: Don Taylor and Evanka Osmak of Rogers Sportsnet, prattling on about their “awesome” experience of carrying the Olympic torch. They were obviously unaware (or where they?) that worthy people such as Olympians Kerrin Lee-Gartner and Debbi Wilkes were omitted from the torch relay to make room for Taylor and Osmak and others, who have zero reason to be involved except that they work for Olympic rights holding media companies.
- Still on the subject of brain dead decisions, did you notice that VANOC head John Furlong gave a spot in the torch relay to California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger?
- SportsBusiness Daily, the online publication, is posting a daily Vancouver Olympic webpage, with free access, here.
- For more on the torch relay issue, please read broadcaster and instructor Jim Van Horne’s excellent piece at The Canadian Journalism Project website. And read this by the Toronto Sun’s Steve Simmons.
- Paul Romanuk, the former TSN hockey announcer now living in London, will call the Olympic hockey tournament games off monitor for Eurosport, which beams into Europe and Western Asia as well as Britain.
- Still with British media, this is how Olympic “ice hockey” was described in The Guardian newspaper: “Quite the most pointless sport ever to be televised as it is impossible to follow the puck unless certain action is shown in slow motion. Possibly worth watching for the frequent fights but you’ll have to take the score on trust. Not that you will care because Great Britain hasn’t entered a team in either the men’s or women’s competitions.”
- Vancouver is the largest city to be host of the Winter Olympics. Calgary, in 1988, was the second largest.
- Usage: The opening ceremony is singular; the closing ceremonies are plural.
- A Canadian has never won an Olympic gold medal on Canadian soil.
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come on bring good old CBC back starting in 2014 and beyond
I like Brian Williams
The stories here are all correct. They ALL take the blame- they were arrogant getting the games, they were arrogant selling the games, they will be arrongant in spinning the $50 million losses as "benefit to the brand". What happened to the "revolutionary" promo strategy and content? Same as always. Mr. Houston: Watch closely what happens immediately after the games. Resumes are already being handed out. Contracts are being cancelled. People will leave en masse.
People will leave en masse with no other jobs to which to go? I'll believe that when I see it. Whether it is CTV or any other company, people need to eat and feed their families. Therefore, predictions of a mass exodus from any company rarely ever come to fruition, particularly one whose industry faces a VERY tight job market right now.
Exactly,
Some will retire, there will be a small percentage of layoffs/ non contract renewals etc. This is all SOP for an Olympics.
A mass exodus is completely ridiculous.
There will be a natural tightening of the fiscal belt like any post Olympic Year.
Regardless of the comments we have made here, the foot soldiers will broadcast and commentate to Canada's usual standard. I wish them all well. Being selected to work an Olympics is a great honour and should be enjoyed by all.
…or be canned. Expect more cuts across the board at CTV and it's affiliates. Rogers Sporstnet's higher management will do this shortly with it's day-to-day employees after the game's wrap to recoup their costs.
While Canadians have had pride towards the games themselves, those covering it here have been stained. It's been more about boosting the egos of Fecan and Beeforth.
Rogers Cable subscribers should also have the choice of watching NBC's coverage over the Olympic "consortium" (Canada). We pay for it!
Just noticed from an earlier post – Gino Reda, hockey analyst.
If this isn't a 'you've been with TSN for 20-something years' olive branch, what is?
My old man has watched thousands of games live and on television, think he could pick up a freelance gig?
I think it's about time that William Houston exposes all of the things that are going on at CTV. Yes, it is a private company, but when a private company goes to the government and asks for more money out of my pocket (remember the Support Local TV iniative) that's when I get upset. Ivan Fecan must be held accountable. I can't beleive that CTV's board of directors puts up with this guy.
In the interest of full disclosure; I work for an affiliate of CTV. Too many of my friends and colleagues have been laid off and are struggling. The heads at CTV are crying poor. I am here in Vancouver now; I am one of the chosen ones and I can't believe the stories I am hearing about this man who is leading our company into the red. Here are a couple of stories/rumours that I have heard and it's just the tip of the iceburg.
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At first knowing that journalists were a part of the torch relay didn't bother me, but learning that Donovan Bailey and Karen Lee-Gartner have been snubbed has put a sour taste in my mouth. Watching Donovan win the 100 meter Gold in Atlanta was one the top moments in Canadian Olymipic history in my opinion.
How soon to Fecan is running as a Toronto Mayor candidate? He would fit right in?
Any one know when the olympics starts? I only watch Tv, listen to radio and surf the web, ride a bus, fly a plane.
I have not seen enough adds yet:)
- two weeks ago he didn't like the look of the Olympic sets here in Vancouver, so he ordered them changed. The company that makes the sets is in New York. Then, the American director that Fecan hired for the opening ceremonies (this guy costs about a quarter of a million dollars) approved the sets, so now Fecan orded a stop on the changes. How many thousands of dollars did that cost? He wants us to support local television, yet he won't support his fellow Canadians since the set company is American, his office design is American and he hires American producers and directors because he doesn't trust his staff.
- his handlers have told us that we aren't allowed to look at him in his eyes, unless he speaks to us and now he is walking around with a staff because he injured his leg (not a cane or a crutch, but a staff like Plato). Who does he think he is?There are numerous stories about the waste of money and I think Bill needs to research this and write a book or an article. You can't ask us taxpayers to subsidise local TV when there is wasteful spending. I don't think the blame rests on Keith Pelly like many of the comments suggest.
Where there is smoke, there is fire.
And let's not forget about spending seven figures to snatch away the old HNIC theme song to quench some personal revenge on the CBC who kicked him to the curb back in the day. And while they spent that ridiculous amount on a song, they were laying off people. Hopefully what comes around gors around…
Wow, if any of this is true, and I have no reason to believe it is not based on your personal involvement with the company as you state, this guy Fecan sounds like a real arrogant goofball who needs a reality check in life. A staff, really????
Well really, everyone knows the staff is part of his act for parting the Sea of Red his Network will be in post Games.
Yet again, the smokescreen CTV spearheaded to "Support Local Television" is really to defray Olympic costs.
-Fecan was in Vancouver this January and didn't "feel like" flying home for a meeting. So he flew all of the participants from Toronto to Vancouver for the meeting. Wonder what that cost?
- when the Super Bowl was in Phoenix, Fecan held a party at a restaurant and didn't like the dishes (china) that the meal would be served upon. So he had his chauffer drive all around Phoenix to buy dishes that he approved for the restaurant.
- when Fecan moved his office down to Queen St., he installed a private elevator and a private kitchenette in his office which cost about a million dollars due to structural changes to the building. Was it neccessary?
any comments on NBC's Bob Costas carrying the torch in the relay today? I believe one of the blog posts a couple months back said this holier than though sports genius would be above running with the torch
A lot is on the line for CTV/Rogers, especially since the last times that the Olympics weren't shown on CBC — Barcelona 1992 & Lillehammer 1994 — the coverage was laughable. Who can forget, following a heart-breaking gold medal game shootout loss to Sweden, Rod Black asking Todd Hlushko an insensitive question about his late father moments after the game ended. Expect more of the same over the next two weeks with the consortium rolling out a host of broadcasters who are ill-equipped for prime-time let alone the greatest and most ambitious sports TV endeavour of all-time.
All I really care about with these games is that a Canadian wins a gold. To be the first Olympian to do this on Canadian soil will be very cool for that person. Good luck to all the guys and gals on Team Canada!
Why are the broadcasters dumb for enjoying their experience? I suppose everyone who runs be guilt ridden for taking the place of Debbi Wilkes.
If Taylor had dropped out would Wilkes or Lee Gartner have replaced him? That seems doubtful.
CTV-Rogers already have London 2012 in the bag which could be an exponentially higher loss… time will tell. Many of the CTV-Rogers so-called leaders have already blamed their incompetence on "world-wide economic conditions", but in reality it is greed and a totally overhyped and misaligned valuation of the business on the return. Keith Pelley strikes again driving a business into the RED.
Yo Wolf- FYI Keith Pelley had nothing to do with the bidding process for the games. He was brought on later to try to fill the coffers. It was Ivan Fecan follyand his henchmen. If anyone should take the blame its the white haired wonder. Besides, CTV is a private corporation who cares how much money they lose?
Mr. Van Horne,
I stand corrected with the Pelley comment. However whenever I hear the little smurf talk, I can't help but check to see if my wallet hasn't been picked. He really comes across like a used car salesman, or worse… a politician. Yes Pelley, really is just a hired gun on a contract, but he does have a lot of input as to the direction of expenditures… most specifically in hiring high-priced talent and appeasing all their wants and demands which equals overspending on a few at the peril of the whole project. But it does seem that the greed and arrogance flows down from the top "leadership" of Ivan Fecan to his generals in place of creating the Olympic programming.
I just read the post(s) by markmywords. He says a lot and is seems to be echoing the statements of many. He does point out that government has propped up greatly these "private" companies with taxpayers dollars. It will be interesting to see how fast CTV and Rogers go with hands out looking for more funds and when they apply to the CRTC to raise rates for all their services. Once again, the average guy on the street will end up paying for the indiscretions and gaffs of top executives.
CTV/Rogers expected to lose $20-30 million for the Vancouver Games…Wow!!! I don't think they will be that eager when the bid for the 2014 and 2016 TV Rights. As much as CTV-Rogers is ambitious, it doesn't seem right without the mothercorp….
"an Olympic channel called V"
Not so. "V" is the new name of what was formerly known as Télévision Quatre-Saisons (TQS), the third-place general-interest network in Quebec.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V_(TV_network)