[Dr.Dave]

Allarco Entertainment 2008 Inc. and Allarco Entertainment Limited Partnership (Allarco) announced today, after consideration of all available alternatives, that it is initiating a Court-supervised restructuring process under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act ("CCAA") in order to facilitate a restructuring and refinancing of its business operations...Allarco will continue to operate under CCAA protection...

Source: Official Press Release

Allarco launched Super Channel in 2007 and previously operated under CCAA from June, 2009 to August, 2010 because it had difficulty gaining carriage on many TV providers.

I found an article in the Edmonton Journal where Allarco is based.

Company president Malcolm Knox said Friday their revenue has been hit over the last 18 months by subscribers dropping Super Channel...While lots of people still sign up, he said the $15 to $18 monthly price charged by many of the cable and satellite firms that offer Super Channel is too high....“We have been working with all of (the providers) to get us repriced to 10 bucks … We have found with those that have reduced us, the retention rate is higher.”

...

“It’s always a challenge, but we’re looking ahead to having a strong programming lineup in the fall, working at this in the summer and coming out the other side. A lot of companies in our industry have used this process.”

 

[scrooloose]

Although I'm a subscriber to both Superchannel and The Movie Network, I hope SC shuts down. It doesn't benefit Canadians to have two movie networks if all it does is split the good programming between the two. The quality of movies on TMN has really declined since SC launched but if I give up one it will be SC.

-Mike

 

[mdl124]

Superchannel Might Drop Homeland

 

[ExDilbert]

Superchannel is definitely not a good deal at $15. Many of their series are second run or air after the US showing and some are from non-premium channels in the US or overseas. In addition, they have fewer series than TMN/HBO. I subscribed a couple of times when it was half price. Since then, then the quality of programming seems to have gone downhill so I wouldn't even pay that.

I second the opinion that SC is draining good programming from other channels. Homeland would probably be on a regular specialty channel like Bravo or Showcase if SC didn't exist. The same goes for a number of other series. $15/mo is gouging for the variety and quality of programming that SC provides. I might pay $5 bundled with TMN if they pick up some new first run series.

 

[kcbrk32]

I used to subscribe. Dropped the service after the Falling Skies series originally on TNT ended summer 2015. Just too many series intended for non-premium channels, 2nd and 3rd rate movies to pay $18 a month on Shaw. Even $10/month is pushing it for what's on there now. maybe $5 as suggested by ExDilbert.

I think they should have negotiated a deal to become Showtime Canada a few years back, but all Showtime programming is on TMN now.

I wonder if Corus or Bell Media would buy them out, or just let it circle the drain?

 

[mike10]

netflix has also made a big impact on TMN's selection of new movies

 

[Danster]

SuperChannel used to cover boxing matches that HBO wouldn't have. I haven't seen any boxing on their since maybe last year.
I keep it just for the rare gem that might be on it but when it goes, it won't be missed.

 

[Tridus]

For what it offers, it's incredibly overpriced. They really want to pitch this as being nearly twice as expensive as Netflix, on top of the cable sub you need to get it in the first place? It's madness.

 

[SportsFan]

Superchannel Might Drop Homeland

If they drop their most popular series they might as well just shut down.

... some [series] are from non-premium channels in the US or overseas.

Why does that matter?

... Homeland would probably be on a regular specialty channel like Bravo or Showcase if SC didn't exist.

It is on Bravo, but much delayed. New episodes of Homeland would probably be on TMN like most Showtime series.

They really want to pitch this as being nearly twice as expensive as Netflix?

You didn't read the first post.

 

[cslusarc]

I think that if Superchannel cannot make it on its own then Corus or Rogers should acquire it.

 

[RaginRonic]

CSL, I don't see Corus getting in on bidding for Super Channel. They just barely got out of Premium Pay TV ownership with their closure of Movie Central.

Rogers would be the most likely to get Super Channel, if the bidding rights came up. If not, then I'd only see the rights to all their shows/movie catalogues being defaulted to Bell Media's TMN.

In terms of the financials surrounding Super Channel, I think that the Allards might be out of era in the current TV climate. Whatever they've tried to do the last 8 1/2 years doesn't seem to have worked out well, as a whole.

=P

 

[bigoranget]

I doubt there would be any buyers for Superchannel. Shaw/Rogers own Shomi, if anything, they would acquire some of the programming and put it in their streaming service; Shomi. Bell already owns TMN and CraveTV.

 

[Tridus]

There's no reason for anyone to get into a bidding war over Super Channel. It's something in a business that the market is moving away from. If you can get it at bargain basement prices, maybe, but at bidding war prices? That makes no sense at all.

 

[Dr.Dave]

I just looked at Super Channel's series web page and noticed they deleted a lot of series. I'm not sure how many were old series that they were no longer showing, but I see that TNT's RIZZOLI & ISLES (Final season returns Monday, June 6) and MAJOR CRIMES (Returns Monday, June 13) are gone from the series list and not on the schedule. I wonder if someone else will pick up the first run of these shows. Showcase airs the second run of RIZZOLI & ISLES about a year after Super Channel.

Homeland from Showtime is still on the series list, but it doesn't debut until January this year, so who knows what will happen.

 

[Dr.Dave]

I checked Super Channel's twitter feed and they confirmed the shows were dropped.

@SuperChannel when is #majorcrimes and #rizzoliandIsles premiering?

...Due to circumstances beyond our control we no longer have broadcast rights to those shows. We apologize for the disappointment.

 

[ExDilbert]

One less reason for me to subscribe to SuperChannel. Not that I was about to anyway. :\

 

[mismag]

Circumstances such as not being able to afford them, lol.

 

[cslusarc]

I think the issue is that Canadian BDUs are less likely to discount Pay TV services as drastically as much as US based MSOs. When I worked for Convergys here in Winnipeg almost a decade ago, I supported Charter Communication and we'd frequently offer HBO, Starz and Showtime for $5/month per service for periods of upto 12 months. Here in Canada, I don't see Shaw Cable offering me Superchannel for $12/month for 12 months with a 33.3% discount.

 

[bigoranget]

Even TMN's pricepoint of around $20/month is a ripoff when compared to online streaming options. Most BDU's didn't even offer discounts if you took both Super Channel and TMN. Super Channel came to little to late. If the CRTC truly wanted Pay-TV competition, they should have opened that up in the late 90s/Early 20s Super Channel already is not very viable even at $10/month. TMN may still have lots of subscribers but I bet even their numbers are in decline and will likely meet the fate of Super Channel if they don't adjust their business model.

 

[smallmj]

I'm sure TMN is only doing as well as they are because of Game of Thrones.