bankruptcy | Fagstein

The Source outlets in Canada (including this one in the Eaton Centre downtown) remain open for business

Dear Circuit City,

I’ve never been to any of your U.S. stores, so I can’t really comment on why you’re facing bankruptcy right now. But I have been to The Source, your Canadian outlets that used to be Radio Shacks, and it doesn’t surprise me that your Canadian subsidiary is also filing for bankruptcy protection.

I realize it’s convenient to blame this on the economic downturn, but may I offer some other suggestions:

You took a recognized (if imperfect) brand and replaced it with one that nobody gets or relates to.
You changed from an electronic component store to a home electronics store, trying to compete against a behemoth you had no chance against
Instead of innovating, you copied their ideas without improving on them
Your big-ticket items are more expensive than identical ones at Best Buy and Future Shop, and you have much less selection
Your stores are tiny, a problem you have only recently been trying to fix
You sell cheap plastic junk that doesn’t work and that nobody wants
You fired specialists and replaced them with minimum-wage morons, a plan which quickly backfired (*cough*)
You have no morals, which has gotten you in court several times against customers and your own employees

And yet, shockingly, you’re in the hole. I guess that means this job you just posted in TMR isn’t getting filled…

TQS

TQS, which you’ll remember is in serious financial trouble, blaming it on a lack of revenue from cable operators to which they’re not entitled, asked CIBC World Markets to conduct a business review and tell them what they should do with themselves to avoid going under.

The answer, apparently, is bankruptcy protection and a major overhaul. Ouch.

TQS is owned 60/40 by Cogeco and CTVglobemedia.

UPDATE: Le Devoir goes into detail about the network’s troubles and owner Cogeco’s financial situation. It even adds an editorial cartoon.

UPDATE (Dec. 19): More stories about the network’s troubles:

The Globe and Mail speaks to Adrien Pouliot, the son of the network’s founder, who says he’s disappointed.
La Presse reports that 110% will stay on unaffected for now, and the 2010 olympics (which TQS and CTV are supposed to telecast instead of CBC/RadCan for the first time) are up in the air.
La Presse also has an FAQ up of seven questions and a timeline of its history.
TQS blogger Jean-Michel Vanasse links to two Facebook groups already setup by ~~the cast of Loft Story~~ concerned viewers. (And an anti-TQS group too for good measure)
The Fédération professionnelle des journalistes du Québec releases a brief statement hoping for a solution.

UPDATE (Dec. 20): Patrick Lagacé writes eloquently about how Quebec media, and not just Radio-Canada, have special treatment from the CRTC that forces people to subscribe to their channels whether they want to or not.

The idea of blaming Radio-Canada for being government-funded is kinda funny. People blame the Mother Corp when they waste government money on unpopular programming. Then they blame RadCan for popular programming.

Considering TVA, an entirely private company, is killing TQS in the ratings, the blame seems a bit misguided. Perhaps if they just stopped producing crap…

UPDATE (Dec. 21): The Globe and Mail’s Report on Business has an article about Radio-Canada and how it’s a ratings success compared to CBC’s ratings failure. I’m sure the fact that CTVglobemedia owns the Globe and 40% of TQS has nothing to do with the article’s negative stance toward RadCan.

The article also misses one very important point in comparing CBC and Radio-Canada: French TV receives 22% of the CBC’s budget, and English TV 36%. That’s a pretty significant advantage for RadCan considering the number of francophones in Canada’s population.

UPDATE (Dec. 22): La Presse’s Nathalie Petrowski asks what Quebec would lose if TQS just disappeared.

Fagstein

Tag Archives: bankruptcy

The failed business model by Circuit City

TQS on the brink