BCE Inc. is selling off 45 of its 103 regional radio stations as it cuts nine per cent of its workforce, including journalists and other workers at its Bell Media subsidiary.
WATCH: Media and telecom giant Bell has announced it will be laying off nine per cent of its workforce and selling 45 radio stations across Canada, in a major shake-up.The affected stations are in British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada.
But whether or not prioritizing digital growth is viable for the company in terms of generating profit remains to be determined. That extends to two pieces of legislation intended to help Canada’s struggling media sector: Bill C-18, also known as the Online News Act, meant to force tech giants to compensate Canadian news outlets for their content, and Bill C-11, which updates the Broadcasting Act to require digital platforms such as Netflix, YouTube and TikTok to contribute and promote Canadian content.
But the Bell executive said the company needs immediate relief, which could come from a fund it has proposed that would see streamers subsidize local or national news.“We hope they do that but we can’t wait two years for that to happen, so then you see actions like this today,” he said.