CBC - You Snooze, You Lose

CTV purchases The Hockey Theme

CTV Inc. has acquired the rights to The Hockey Theme in perpetuity, the network announced Monday.

The agreement was reached with Copyright Music & Visuals, which was unable to renew a deal with CBC Sports.

CBC Sports executive director Scott Moore said he was disappointed but not surprised the song was shopped elsewhere.

"The two sides were so far apart and there was so much bad blood that we knew a deal would be difficult," he said. "The reality is it takes two sides to do a deal and we tried everything we could to do a deal.

"We offered arbitration, mediation — we offered to meet their price. On Friday, when it came right down to it, we never got a response from them on our latest offer and find out, in the meantime, they appeared to be negotiating with CTV."

Moore said CBC had negotiated for 14 months but to no avail, and that the agency was asking for $2.5 million to $3 million for use in perpetuity.

"If they got that from CTV, we would never have been able to get there," Moore told CBC Newsworld. "It is not a responsible price for us.

"If that is the price CTV wants to pay, it won't be the first time nor will it be the last time, probably, that they outbid us for something. They have a lot more profits than we do."

The song had been used on Hockey Night in Canada since 1968.

"Hockey is a game, it's not a song," Moore said. "We have the No. 1 sports property in Canada.

"I don't expect one less viewer to tune in on Saturday to watch Hockey Night in Canada. They will continue to watch their favourite team."

According to a release, CTV said it agreed to a deal with Copyright Music & Visuals after Friday's deadline with CBC passed.

The agency represents the song's composer, Dolores Claman, who was born in Vancouver.

"The song has a long and storied history in Canadian sports, and has become ingrained in the hearts and minds of hockey fans across the country. It is an iconic tune, embraced by Canadians everywhere, and we felt it was imperative to save it," said Rick Brace of CTV Inc.

Moore said he was surprised a rival network would purchase something so inextricably linked to the Hockey Night brand.

"It's a constant commercial for our network," he said.

Lawsuit complicated negotiations

Earlier on Monday, CBC Sports had said it planned to bring in noted sports and entertainment lawyer Gord Kirke in a last-ditch effort to bring about a mediated resolution.

Complicating the bid for a settlement was an outstanding lawsuit filed against the CBC in late 2004 surrounding its use for ringtones and downloads.

Moore said CBC wanted to resolve that issue along with the song's future use, but that representatives for Claman wanted to keep them separate.

Claman, 80, has written about 2,000 jingles over her career, including the Ontario theme A Place to Stand, which she co-wrote with her husband, Richard Morris.

"I am very moved by how so many Canadians have taken the hockey theme to heart. We are so pleased the song has found a new home," said Claman, who now resides in Britain.

Before Kirke's involvement was announced, CBC Sports announced plans to launch a new national contest in conjunction with Nettwerk Music Group to find a new theme song.

Canadians will be invited to write and record an original song for Hockey Night in Canada, with fans and a jury of experts to choose the best new composition.

"I think it'll help us get a new demographic," Moore said. "The theme that we had was a great theme. [But] it was 39 years old. Maybe it's time for something else."

The son of Stompin' Tom Connors said Monday his father is open to licensing his famed hockey song to CBC as a replacement.

"If they want to use The Hockey Song, it's a good song, whether Tom sings it or not," Tom Connors Jr. said. "There's other versions out there.

"Even if they wanted to commission some other band, like a big [name] band if they wanted to do more of a Hockey Night theme, everything is open for negotiations, of course. That's the business we're in."

The last 3 paragraphs of that article scares me. For the love of all things hockey, please... NOT Stompin' Tom Connors. I don't like Stompin' Tom. And I don't like "The Hockey Song". I don't think it would matter who sang it.

Anyway, the CBC really dropped the ball on this one. They're trying to make it look like they did everything possible, but seriously, how can they expect anyone to believe them when they openly admitted that they were going ahead with the contest to find a new HNIC song, while trying to negotiate a deal? Would a few more days of waiting really make that big of a difference to their contest?

CBC requests mediator for song dispute

From the Sportsnet web site:

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2008/06/09/kirke_hockey_song/

TORONTO -- CBC appears to be making a last-ditch effort to rescue the popular Hockey Night in Canada theme song.

The public broadcaster has asked Toronto sports lawyer Gord Kirke to mediate negotiations between CBC and Copyright Music and Visuals, the company that controls the song.

CBC Sports executive director Scott Moore says CBC feels it's worth one last effort to save a theme song that evokes such passion among Canadians.

CBC's licence for the song, written by composer Delores Claman and a staple of Hockey Night in Canada since 1968, expired last week following the Stanley Cup finals.

The parties were in negotiations late last week before CBC announced Friday it would begin the search for a new theme song.

The broadcaster has asked Canadian musicians to vy for a $100,000 prize by submitting their own original compositions to replace the theme.

I can't see this making any difference... but hey, it's worth a shot... I guess.

Paint Chips Follow-up

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My wife took the truck to the For dealerership during the week. The warranty on the paint is 3yr/60,000kms. They have to order some part(?) first and will call us to set up a service appointment once it's in.

No definite word on exactly what they're going to do.

Deal to keep Hockey Night theme song falls through

What a load of crap.

Negotiations to keep the Hockey Night in Canada theme song have collapsed, meaning the CBC program is now in search of another anthem.

Copyright Music & Visuals, the Toronto agency representing the song's composer, Dolores Claman, said on Friday that the deal had fallen through.

That news came as a surprise to the CBC, said Scott Moore, executive director of CBC Sports.

"We're disappointed, as many Canadians are," Moore said, adding he found out about the deal falling through from CBC News.

"We have no real idea why the deal fell apart," he said. "We're not sure why because the other side hasn't communicated with us.

"You have to ask the other side what happened."

Copyright Music & Visuals said it had offered the public broadcaster a chance to renew its licence to use Claman's song — a staple on HNIC since 1968 — on terms that were "virtually identical to those that have existed for the past decade."

Previously, each use of the song cost the CBC about $500, the agency said.

After the first two years of a new agreement, the rates would rise about 15 per cent, an increase Copyright Music & Visuals president John Ciccone called an industry standard.

"We offered to continue paying the richest licence fee in Canadian television, which was the price they asked for," said Moore. "We also offered to buy it outright for a high six-figure sum."

A call made to Ciccone by CBCSports.ca was not returned Friday.

Claman, who has written about 2,000 jingles over her career, is also credited with the Ontario theme A Place to Stand, which she co-wrote with her husband, Richard Morris, in 1967.

Contest for new theme in works

Moore said Friday the two sides had agreed upon a price, but added an "unfortunate set of circumstances," including an outstanding lawsuit, hovered over negotiations.

A lawsuit filed against the CBC in late 2004 by the composer alleges that the broadcaster was overusing the Hockey Night in Canada theme and has not been settled. Copyright Music & Visuals said the litigation hasn't interfered with the CBC's use of music, nor was settlement of the suit a condition for the proposed new licensing agreement.

"We really can't do business with a lawsuit hanging over our heads," Moore said. "We feel that we've done everything we possibly can."

CBC Sports will now move on and launch a new national contest in conjunction with Nettwerk Music Group to find a new theme song, he said. Canadians will be invited to write and record an original song for Hockey Night in Canada, with fans and a jury of experts choosing the best new composition.

The winner will receive $100,000 and proceeds from any royalties will go to minor hockey across the country. More details on the contest will be revealed in the next week.

"We expect a lot of terrific music, and we expect that the new theme for Hockey Night in Canada will be as iconic as the last two themes have been," Moore said.

Earlier on Friday, Liberal heritage critic Denis Coderre told reporters in Ottawa that Conservative Heritage Minister Josée Verner must defend one of Canada's most famous musical traditions and do everything possible to ensure the CBC continues to broadcast the theme.

"The Hockey Night in Canada theme is a part of Canada's culture that goes beyond sport," Coderre said. "If the minister wants to show that she cares about Canadian heritage, this is her chance."

This is disappointing, but I'm not too surprised. I don't believe that the CBC went back into negotiations in good faith. The only reason they did it was an attempt to make the public think that they cared. They keep bring up the outstanding litigation "hovering over our heads", when the other side said it has no affect on the terms on the proposed contract.

This sucks.

And now they'll no doubt spend a bundle on promoting the contest to find a new theme.

I feel sorry for the person who wins because I can't see the public accepting it.

More Hockey Night song stuff

Here's a summary of what I've heard about the CBC / Hockey Night song fiasco:

• CBC claims they're still in negotations with Copyright Music & Visuals (the company who manages the copyright on behalf of the song's composer, Dolores Claman)
• Copyright Music & Visuals claims that they received an email from CBC stating that they would not renew the contract.
• CBC said that if they don't renew, they have plans this summer to hold a public contest to write a new theme.
• CBC is currently being sued by Dolores Claman alleging that CBC repeatedly used the theme song in broadcasts not covered under her licence agreement and refused requests to negotiate additional fees.
• Copyright Music & Visuals claims that resolution of the ongoing litigation is not a precondition of the new proposed licence agreement..
• CBC says "You don't do business with someone who is suing you." While that may be true, we're not talking about a multi-million dollar contract here. This smells like CBC trying to take a little heat off their poorly thought out decision.
  

While change can be a good thing, I'm convinced that this change is not. The song celebrates its 40th anniversary next year. To axe the song now would be like firing someone after 40 years of dedicated service in a company.

I think CBC is missing out on a good marketing opportunity/partnership here. Maybe they're trying to use this to their advantage? "Play by OUR rules, or your song doesn't see its 40th birthday."

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