Craig Wireless
Craig Wireless Systems, Ltd. (initially Western Manitoba Broadcasters Ltd., then Craig Broadcast Systems, Inc., & next Craig Media, Inc. before its current branding) is a Canadian company which offers
In 2004, the company's media assets (its TV stations & A-Channel TV network) were acquired by CHUM Limited.[1]
History
The company has its roots in Western Manitoba Broadcasters, a company John Craig founded alongside Dr. H.O. McDiarmid, Alexander Boyd, Edmund, Fotheringham, Harold Smith, James Rust and M.W. Kerr in 1948.
In the mid-1940s, Craig had bought radio station CKX-FM from the Manitoba Government Telephone System upon its relinquishment of its two licenses for CKX-TV & CKY-FM.
By 1955, John's son, Stuart Craig, had succeeded his father as President and General Manager of CKX-TV (which brought television to Brandon, Manitoba) & CKX-FM (which followed in 1963). Craig took it upon himself to expand the operations of both CKX stations; those expansion operations resulted in the launch of the broadcast company.
The company was based in Brandon, Manitoba, then later in Calgary, Alberta with Drew Craig, John's grandson & Stuart's son, as its CEO.
In 1991, Western Manitoba Broadcasters changed its name to Craig Broadcast Systems.
Craig Broadcast Systems was the owner of the original
Eventually, the company was also operating in the telecommunications industry, offering wireless cable television and high-speed Internet services.
In 2003, after securing financing in the area of $145 million ($110 million from
In 2004, the company's TV broadcasting operations (A-Channel & its stations) were acquired by CHUM Limited[1] for CA$265 million ($197.8 million) in cash.[3] CHUM did not acquire the company's telecommunications operations, which remain in operation under the Craig Wireless name, which the company took on after CHUM's acquisition of its television broadcasting assets. Upon the name change, another of John's grandsons, Boyd, took over the company.
Former assets
Local stations
- A-Channel (now Citytv)
- CKX - Brandon, Manitoba (ceased operations on October 2, 2009)
- (ceased operations as of November 2011)
Digital television stations under Craig Specialty
- MTV Canada, now MTV2 Canada- originally conceived as "Connect" (youth lifestyle programming)
- MTV2 Canada, now Stingray Juicebox - originally conceived as "Music 5" (a service consisting of 5 separate music video channels: Pop, Dance, Urban, R&B, and "Hot Hits")
- TV Land Canada, replaced by Comedy Gold in 2010 (ceased operations as of September 2019) - originally conceived as "Retro" (classic television programming)
Proposed, but never launched
- A-Channel News Now (24 hr. news)
- Action Channel (action-oriented programming)
- Jazz & Blues TV
- PATV (Pets & Animals)
- The MET (music and entertainment television dedicated to the presentation and promotion of emerging Canadian artists in the rock genre)
- Stampede (western-themed programming)
- Click TV (programs about the Internet, computers and e-business)
- Style TV (devoted to programming about fashion, design and architecture)
References
- ^ a b "CHUM purchases Craig Media, adds to western TV holdings". Retrieved 2020-09-08.
- ^ "CRTC Decision 89-114". April 6, 1989.
- ^ "Canada's CHUM To Acquire Broadcaster Craig Media". Billboard. 2004-04-12. Retrieved 2020-09-08.