Torstar
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Torstar Inc. | |
 |
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| Type | Public (TSX: TS.B) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1958 |
| Headquarters | Toronto, Ontario |
| Key people | Robert Prichard - President |
| Industry | Newspaper Communications |
| Products | Newspapers |
| Website | torstar.com |
Torstar Corporation TSX: TS.NV.B-T is an independently-owned Canadian broadly based media company that is named after its principal holding, the Toronto Star daily newspaper.
Its businesses include Star Media Group led by the Toronto Star, Canada’s largest daily newspaper; Metroland Media Group, publishers of daily and community newspapers in Ontario; digital properties including workopolis.com, toronto.com, Olive Canada Network and LiveDeal.ca; and Harlequin Enterprises, a leading global publisher of women’s fiction.
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[edit] History
Torstar was founded after the Ontario government passed a law barring the provisions of late-Toronto Star owner Joseph Atkinson's will from being enacted. Atkinson had bequeathed the newspaper to a charitable organization he had founded. The Conservative provincial government of George Drew (a long time enemy of the Liberal-oriented Star) passed a law banning charitable organizations from operating profitable entities such as newspapers. Rather than sell the newspaper, the trustees of the Atkinson Foundation bought out the Star privately and founded Torstar as a private corporation.
[edit] Operations
The principal activities of Torstar are the publication of newspapers and women’s fiction. Torstar reports its operations in two segments: Newspapers and Book Publishing.
The Newspapers division is the largest. It consists of newspaper, commercial printing and Internet products and services under the Metroland Media Group banner and the Toronto Star, Torstar Media Group Television, Torstar Syndication Services and workopolis.com (jointly-owned with The Globe and Mail) under the Star Media Group banner. The second group is Book Publishing which is also known as Harlequin.
[edit] Newspapers
The newspaper division is split between Metroland Media Group and Star Media Group.
Star Media Group
Star Media Group is a division of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, which is a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. It will hold the flagship newspaper, the Toronto Star, as well as thestar.com, and certain publications that have been previously managed by Metroland –including Torstar’s interests in partnership with Sing Tao Holdings to publish the Sing Tao Daily and the partnership withMetro International to publish the daily commuter papers in Torono, Ottawa and Vancouver of Metro. The group will also look after Eye Weekly, Toronto Real Estate News, Dream Homes, TMG TV, Fantasy Sports, Torstar Syndicate Services, Torstar Media Group Television, and Corporate Information Technology.
Torstar Media Group Television operates ShopTV Canada, a a 24-hour direct-response television business operating. It also operates the Orlando, Florida based Transit Television Network that delivers full motion, broadcast-quality information and entertainment to passengers on buses, rail and other modes of mass transit on screens mounted in that vehicle.
Transit TV currently operates in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Orlando, Milwaukee and Norfolk, with San Diego coming on board in-mid 2006.
Torstar Syndication Services syndicates several articles, writers, advice, and comic strips to newspapers worldwide.
Torstar owns and operates Metroland Media Group, its largest division. Metroland consists of newspapers, printing services, flyer distributing and digtial operations. Metroland operates over 130 daily and community publications. Metroland publishes over 100 community newspapers including former CityMedia Group publications. Metroland also has as a number of specialty publications and operates several consumer shows.
Torstar Digital (also known as Metroland Interactive Media) owns 40 percent of workopolis.com, a Canadian careers web site. Torstar Digital also owns toronto.com which averages 12.7 million page views and 615,000 visitors. In October 2005, Torstar announced a joint venture with LiveDeal.com, a US-based company, to create LiveDeal Canada. LiveDeal Canada is an online classifieds provider that provides Canadians with a cost-effective, easy-to-use and efficient marketplace for buying and selling goods.
[edit] Book publishing
Torstar operates a book publishing division called Harlequin Enterprises Ltd, a major publisher of women’s fiction romance novels. It offers a variety of women’s fiction genres in many different formats including mass-market paperback, trade paperback, hardcover, in multiple channels such as retail outlets, direct-to consumer, and e-commerce in over 94 international markets.
[edit] Other investments
Torstar purchase 40% of Bell Globemedia, Workopolis, owners of the CTV television network and The Globe and Mail newspaper.
Torstar recently launched a weekly celebrity-based magazine called Scoop, which folded one year later.
[edit] Corporate governance
Current members of the board of directors of Torstar are: Don Babick, B. Neil Clark, Martin Connell, Jack Fuller, Christina Gold, Campbell Harvey, John Honderich, Frank Iacobucci (chairman), J. Spencer Lanthier, Sarabjit Marwah, Peter Mills, Robert Prichard, Lance Primis, Ronald Osborne, and Martin Thall.
