And yet, each spring the leaders of Canada’s media companies gamely take the stage, reading light banter from teleprompters. Some even star in cutesy videos, joking about the industry – or in the case of Corus Entertainment Inc.'s chief executive officer Doug Murphy and chief revenue officer Greg McLelland, boogieing to the Pointer Sisters – to the evident delight of media buyers in the audience.
“To trade on a rate card that then inflates in June for the fall, is a bit out of date,” said Stuart Garvie, CEO of media- buying and planning agency GroupM Canada. “It doesn’t fit our market. ... It’s more likely we’ll be approving budgets in August or September for the fall. That’s what our clients want now. They want more flexibility rather than piling in at one particular time of the year.
Broadcasters have experimented with a different approach. In 2009, in response to the recession, all three major networks scaled back their celebrations. Last year, Corus – which owns Global as well as specialty channels such as HGTV Canada and others – held a smaller event. This year, Rogers is holding individual meetings with agencies in lieu of its big party for its Citytv network and specialty offerings such as Sportsnet. Rogers took a similar approach in 2015.