" Canada's largest private contributor to our cultural industries year after year. "
- André Bureau, Chairman of the Board, Astral Media
Social responsibility
Astral Media is dedicated to making a positive contribution to Canadian society. Our involvement in the communities where we operate and where our employees work and live with their families takes three main forms:
We promote the culture, identity and values we share as Canadians by making major investments in every aspect of film, television and music production, both English and French.
Each year, we support and work to promote dozens of kids health and education causes and non-profit organizations through public fundraisers and monetary and advertising space donations that allow them to raise their profiles and benefit from major public visibility.
In both our operations and on-air programming, we take concrete actions for the environment and raise the awareness of Canadians on the importance of preserving our resources.
Active support of culture
Astral Media has supported Canadian culture for many years. We are determined to play a leading role in supporting the extraordinary creative talent in the Canadian film, radio and television industries.
In Fiscal 2009, Astral Media's pay and specialty television services and radio stations dedicated over $172.4 million to developing and purchasing Canadian content and original programs and supporting Canadian talent. Of this, $91.1 million was invested by Astral Media's French-language radio and pay and specialty television operations.
Supporting Canadian-made television content
We continue to be the largest Canadian investor in English- and French-language content; we finance each step of film production, from screenwriting to capital investments to promotion. We are proud to broadcast Canadian productions on our stations, thereby providing considerable visibility to Canadian talent.
As leading funders of Canadian and Québec programming, The Movie Network and Super Écran have increased their investments year after year. In Fiscal 2009, together the two channels invested $50 million in such films as De père en flic on Super Écran and Barney’s Version on The Movie Network and original series like Pillars of the Earth and Meet Phil Fitz, also on The Movie Network.
Les Chaînes Télé Astral invested over $49.8 million to support and develop Canadian programs such as the magazine Décore ta vie, shown on Canal Vie, Dossiers justice on Canal D and La revance des nerdZ on Ztélé.
Astral Media The Harold Greenberg Fund
Since its creation, Astral Media The Harold Greenberg Fund has invested more than $70 million to support over 3120 Canadian productions. In Fiscal 2009, The Fund injected over $4.3 million in 173 projects, including the productions Defendor and The Bang Bang Club. The Fund also invested in French-language projects, such as the films La donation , 1981, Les grandes chaleurs and Incendies.
Supporting the Canadian music industry
Astral Media believes in the Canadian music industry and demonstrates its support each day by investing in various projects and presenting Canadian talent, particularly emerging artists.
Upon the purchase of the assets of Standard Radio Inc. in 2007, Astral Media Radio committed to invest over $100 million in the advancement of Canadian musical talent and members of specific identified groups. Over 20 new initiatives have been launched supporting singers, songwriters and performers, as well as organizations working in the aboriginal space.
Astral Media Radio is not only the largest radio group in Canada, but is also the most innovative in terms of its work in the development of these groups. For details on its work in this field, visit itallstartswithasong.ca.
One of the most exciting of these projects is an initiative to record emerging Canadian bands in Toronto streetcars for distribution on our airwaves, on our web sites and on social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook. To see the results of these sessions, visit thetransittapes.ca.
Solid community presence
As a media company, we have an extraordinary ability to help charities raise their public profiles, increase public awareness of their causes and, by extension, optimize their fundraising campaigns. Our employees work in 45 cities in eight provinces, and we are actively involved in every community where we are present.
In Fiscal 2009, we provided the equivalent of over $20 million in assistance to a large number of organizations from coast to coast. We promoted hundreds of public service campaigns on our television channels, radio stations and advertising panels. A few of the main projects in which we participated in Fiscal 2009 are:
The Astral Media Caring for Kids Radiothon raises over $7 million
On April 30, 2009, fifty Astral Media radio stations in 28 Canadian cities participated in the Astral Media National Day of Caring for Kids Radiothon to raise funds for 20 hospitals and pediatric health centres across the country. The participating radio stations collected over $7 million in donations – the largest sum ever raised in a single-day radiothon in Canada.
Astral Media fulfills its $3 million commitment to support multiple sclerosis research
In Fiscal 2009, Astral Media fulfilled its long-term commitment to provide $3 million in advertising space to the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada (MSSC) for a multiplatform fundraising campaign in support of MS research. The commitment provided the MSSC with a unique vehicle for raising awareness of one of the most common neurological diseases to affect young adults in Canada.
RockDétente Radiothon for the Québec Breakfast Club
On November 20, 2008, the 9th Grand Radiodon RockDétente was held across Québec. The radiothon brought in thousands of donations for the Québec Breakfast Club from listeners and companies throughout the province and raised over $2.7 million. This money will ensure that more children can have a nutritious breakfast and go to class ready to learn.
Stand UP! Kids from coast to coast rally with Family Channel against bullying
Family Channel’s sixth annual national Bullying Awareness Week took place in November 2008 with the mission to teach and reinforce effective strategies to help kids stand up to bullying. This year Family Channel commissioned an original stand UP! song and accompanying music video. Kids from all regions of Canada submitted their own songs and lyrics sharing how they "stand UP!" to bullying. Ultimately, three schools were selected to host ‘’stand UP!’’ rallies featuring the cast of The Latest Buzz in Kingston, Winnipeg, and Richmond.
The Big Media Food Drive
In December, Astral Media employees bundled up to operate three collection points at busy street corners across downtown Montréal in front of Astral Media offices. They intercepted pedestrians and drivers to collect food items and cash donations. In total, well over 200 Astral Media employees from every business unit were on the streets.
The final results of the 2008 edition of the Big Media Food Drive were published in early March 2009. Astral Media and all the other organizers of this major food drive were proud to announce that between November 24 and December 24, 2008, they collected a record $2.5 million. All donations were distributed to organizations in each of the regions where the food drive was held.
Grand Défi Pierre Lavoie
Dedicated to fighting physical inactivity among young people, Astral Media was a media partner of the Grand Défi Pierre Lavoie, a multi-event challenge to promote healthy habits to young people. VRAK.TV, TÉLÉTOON and NRJ all participated in the challenge. The challenge started in fall 2008 and culminated in a festive gathering at Olympic Stadium in Montréal on June 14 and 15, 2009. At least 5,000 school kids were on hand to celebrate and enjoy being physically active. The event at Olympic Stadium coincided with the conclusion of the 1,000 km Fondation Go bicycle marathon. A number of Astral Media employees participated to raise donations for research into orphan diseases.
Changes for the environment
Our commitment to the environment includes concrete initiatives to reduce our environmental footprint. It also takes the form of programming designed to raise awareness of various environmental issues among our listeners and viewers.
In June 2009, our Radio and Outdoor Advertising Groups in Toronto officially became green-powered when they switched to Bullfrog Power, which produces electricity from Environment Canada-certified low-impact sources. This conversion to green electricity includes Astral Media's three Toronto stations: 97.3 EZ Rock, Virgin Radio 999 and CFRB 1010. In addition, Bullfrog Power provides the power to light all of Astral Media Outdoor's advertising panels and transit shelters in Toronto.
Our Outdoor Advertising Group introduced BIOFlex, Canada's first biodegradable vinyl product for outdoor advertising panels, and it equipped our Toronto transit shelters with solar panels and energy efficient lighting to generate energy savings of 40%. It also uses recycled and recyclable materials in its street furniture program.
Our Television Group adopted a large number of environmental measures and promotes the environment in its programming. For example, Canal Vie's series Billet$ Vert$ gives viewers concrete suggestions on how to do more for the planet. Our channels' Web sites also feature tools for viewers to measure their environmental footprints.
Our Corporate Communications department committed to communicate with all of its audiences online. Today, our annual report is mainly read online and we only print the minimum number of copies required by law. In three years, we reduced by 60,000 the number of printed annual reports.
A few years ago, we launched an Intranet portal. Since its launch, all communication with employees occurs electronically, which allowed us to abolish the use of paper. These commitments are in addition to our Earth Day and Climate Challenge activities as well as other initiatives organized by and for our employees.
The impact and scope of these concrete initiatives continue to grow year after year. We are determined to make a difference, change our habits and implement procedures that get employees involved and reduce our environmental footprint.