Major Shake-Up May Be Looming For Toronto Maple Leafs Coverage In Canada, Per Source
The future of the Toronto Maple Leafs Canadian coverage is in doubt due to reports of a takeover which will lead to unfortunate cuts to the network and puts it's sustainability into an uncomfortable question.
A major recent report has indicated serious questions about the future of Canadian sports media, most specifically in the radio department.
A report from Jonah Sigel of YYZ Sports Media, who's coverage focuses on the Canadian media landscape in sports has reported in a recent article published last night that Bell Media, the telecommunications giant and parent company of TSN, is exploring a potential sale of the sports outlet.
Sigel reports that the move signals that Bell is focusing on it's expansion in the telecommunications market, the company last month having spent $3.65B to buy American fiber-optic company, Ziply Fiber.
It was a deal that was made possible in large part to Bell's selling of their shares in Major League Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) to Rogers Communications.
That now means the company owns all five of Toronto's major men's sports franchises, while also owning TSN's network rival, Sportsnet.
Sigel also brings up Sportsnet's future, especially on it's radio side. Sigel reports that the company could begin phasing out it's radio coverage with Toronto's FAN 590, and head to the growing podcast route.
Radio has been on the downturn since the 2010's as the podcasting medium rose in popularity.
The accessibility and ability for anyone to create podcasts has made it an alluring choice for news from professional media publications to everyday citizens alike.
Prominent Sportsnet host Bob McCown left the company and his highly popular talk show, 'Prime Time Sports' in 2019, going independent on the podcasting route.
Sportsnet has active stations in Toronto, Vancouver, and Calgary.
TSN owns radio stations in Toronto, Ottawa, & Montreal, focused on Canada's East having shuttered their Western stations in Vancouver, Edmonton, and Winnipeg in recent years.
The news of possible changes to either outlet has not been verified by Hockey Patrol or another independent media outlet at this time. Neither TSN nor Sportsnet have commented publicly on the matter.
The Future Of Radio, TSN/Sportsnet, and Canada's Sporting Coverage
If TSN and/or Sportsnet choose to go in the way of shuttering the radio, one potential option is to nationalize their coverage.
Perhaps focusing on producing a single entity that transmits across the country or in existing areas that has programming, but less catered to specific cities and from a national perspective.
One other option is for a potential merger with another entity that would either produce content for the company, or Sportsnet/TSN provide an existing outlet with live sports radio coverage secondary to an existing or unified media brand.
In Toronto, the Rogers-owned AM station '680 NewsRadio' merged with CityNews earlier this past year.
Bell owns AM station Newstalk 1010. Rogers Media shut down CityNews Ottawa's radio operation last year.
CBC-Radio Canada, the national broadcaster of Canada, reduced their workforce by 10% in December of last year as the company also faces the move from radio to digital, their radio coverage available on streaming platforms such as Spotify.
Television isn't something being lacking, but it's something content providers such as Bell and Rogers will be looking into for it's profitability.
The NHL's partnership with Amazon Prime for hockey coverage is a sign of streaming platforms making their foray into the world of live sports, once something they tried to avoid.
Apple TV+ has begun broadcasting MLB games, including the Toronto Blue Jays, the major stronghold for Sportsnet as the exclusive rights holder for games.
The streaming giant is expanding it's sports presence with a Christmas Day hosting of two games with a performance by Beyoncé as well as an exclusive deal to broadcast WWE RAW in 2025, the company's flagship program for over 30 years.
Sports giants DAZN & Fubo have also taken a chunk of non-Canadian content for streaming, including exclusive rights in soccer to the UEFA Champions League, as well as the Europa and Conference League, as well as rights to the Premier League in the UK.
In February, a joint streaming partnership was introduced between ESPN, FOX, & Warner Bros/Discovery that would allow for a joint service of multiple sports in the United States under a single platform, which would include all four major U.S. sporting leagues (NBA, MLB, NHL, NFL).
It also brings golf, tennis, racing coverage along with the companies' existing college sports rights.
A successful antitrust lawsuit from Fubo blocked the proposed service, Venu Sports, which was set to launch in the fall of 2024 and is now in limbo.
A trial is set for 2025. The current U.S. Justice Department, along with 16 state attorneys general, have backed Fubo in the case over concerns it would monopolize the sports media industry, giving Venu over 50% of all streaming access the United States.
It's unclear on where the incoming administration of President-Elect Donald J. Trump will stand on the issue. Gail Slater has been nominated as the next head of the DOJ's Antitrust Division, which focuses on matters such as the split between Fubo and Venu. Slater was previously an executive at Fox Corp., one of the companies involved in Venu.
In Canada, no such mega-outlet exists, with sports coverage still largely scattered across multiple networks at different costs for their services, with cable still a major player in broadcasting rights.
Sportsnet and TSN appear poised to continue their sports focus on TV, with live coverage and breaking news still something that the company can provide, but it's future in radio is slowly dwindling as just like live sports it faces a serious challenge from non-traditional players.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 9 | 869 ANSWERS Major Shake-Up May Be Looming For Toronto Maple Leafs Coverage In Canada, Per Source Do you listen to SN FAN 590? | ||
| Yes | 340 | 39.1 % |
| No | 529 | 60.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
