A feeling of urgency and imminent end hangs over TVA Sports.
An email recently received from a loyal subscriber perfectly illustrates the growing unease among viewers:
“I have a question for you. It’s November 7 and there are 12 games on the NHL schedule. However, none are broadcast on TVA Sports, the official broadcaster of the NHL. Do you know why? “
“Also, yesterday, two games were broadcast on TVA Sports, but the second was shown in progress in the middle of the 2nd period. Why not broadcast the second part on TVA Sports 2?”
This message reflects widespread dismay. Despite a colossal investment of $720 million to obtain exclusive rights to the NHL, TVA Sports seems to be gradually abandoning the broadcasting of matches even before the end of the contract in 2026.
This decision surprises many subscribers, especially when we know that the channel has invested so much money to secure exclusive French-speaking rights until 2026.
But the reality is cruel: television ratings are so low that TVA Sports judges that it is no longer profitable to pay employees to broadcast matches that almost no one watches.
Hockey fans note with sadness that the channel is disappearing from the Quebec television landscape.
We can feel the frustration of hockey fans who do not understand why the specialty channel seems to be disengaged from its primary mission.
The answer is unfortunately simple: audiences are in free fall.
Recent figures confirm this alarming trend. During the highly anticipated match between the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs, broadcast simultaneously on TVA and TVA Sports, the television ratings were disappointing.
Only an average of 570,000 viewers per minute followed the match, almost equally distributed between the two channels.
Although this is slightly above the usual average of 400,000, it is well below expectations for such an event.
This public rejection has direct consequences on programming.
If the Montreal Canadiens, on a Saturday evening, attract barely 400,000 viewers. Imagine an NHL game not including CH during the week. The numbers are simply catastrophic.
Broadcasting an NHL match requires significant human and technical resources: production teams, commentators, analysts, technicians, not to mention the broadcast costs themselves.
When the audience is not there, the costs incurred are no longer justified. TVA Sports, already weakened by financial losses of around $300 million since its creation, must therefore make strategic choices to limit the loss.
The decision to reduce the number of matches broadcast, despite exclusive rights, is the symbol of a channel in difficulty.
Viewers, more and more numerous are turning to other platforms or English-speaking broadcasters such as Sportsnet, are contributing to accentuate the vicious circle of declining audiences.
In addition, competition from streaming services and new technologies is changing consumption habits, making the task even more difficult for TVA Sports.
This public disaffection is all the more worrying as TVA Sports is going through a major financial crisis.
Since its creation in 2011, the chain has never been profitable, accumulating losses of around $300 million.
Efforts to redress the situation are failing, and signs of irreversible collapse are increasing.
The decision not to broadcast certain NHL matches, despite the status of official broadcaster, reinforces the feeling that TVA Sports is on the verge of capitulating.
Paradoxically, while the chain is collapsing, Quebecor executives continue to receive crazy salaries.
Pierre Karl Péladeau, president and CEO, pocketed $4.9 million in 2023, an increase of 57% from the previous year.
The company’s top five executives shared $13.8 million, doubling their earnings in one year.
This disparity is shocking, especially considering the waves of dismissals that have affected hundreds of TVA Group employees, including TVA Sports.
Meanwhile, the Péladeau family continues to consolidate its hold on Quebecor. Pierre Karl Péladeau controls nearly 76% of the shareholder’s voting rights thanks to multiple voting shares, with a value of his shares estimated at $2.4 billion.
His brothers, Jean B. Péladeau and Érik Péladeau, also hold senior management positions, receiving $1.9 million and $920,700, respectively, in 2023.
This concentration of wealth within the family contrasts sharply with the financial difficulties of TVA Sports and the sacrifices imposed on employees.
The disconnect between workers’ sacrifices and management’s enrichment is not only shocking, but it also threatens the long-term viability of the company.
Successive waves of layoffs not only impact employees’ families, but they also break down trust and loyalty within the company.
Calls for government help to support the “real media” seem hypocritical when executives refuse to sacrifice part of their salaries to save jobs…or to broadcast NHL hockey to its subscribers.
Viewers are deserting, financial losses are piling up, and the company continues to bleed its human and financial resources.
Barring a spectacular turnaround, it is difficult to imagine a future where TVA Sports would regain its place in the Quebec media landscape.
Pierre Karl Péladeau, in his refusal to let go, risks taking with him not only TVA Sports, but also part of Quebec’s media heritage.
His stubbornness, whether pride or passion, could well precipitate the downfall of what he spent so much time building.
Employees, viewers and the entire media industry are watching this sinking ship, hoping that lessons will be learned from this debacle.
It is time for Quebecor to rethink its strategy, to demonstrate humility and social responsibility. The survival of TVA Sports, and more broadly of the Quebec media ecosystem, depends on an urgent awareness of economic reality and the needs of the public.
Pierre Karl Péladeau’s determination to keep TVA Sports afloat, despite colossal financial losses, raises many questions.
His recent meeting with Geoff Molson, owner of the Montreal Canadiens, and Louis-Philippe Neveu, general manager of TVA Sports, shows that he wants to renew the broadcast rights of the NHL in 2026.
This determination, perceived by some as stubbornness, contrasts with the difficult economic reality that the company is going through.
The reviews are scathing. Many wonder why continue to invest in a channel that fails to attract viewers, when employees are losing their jobs and resources could be allocated to more promising sectors.
The gap between the sacrifices of workers and the high remuneration of managers accentuates the unease.
The subscriber’s email highlights a fundamental problem: the elimination of public trust and engagement in TVA Sports.
The lack of broadcast of important matches, the inconsistency in programming and the lack of clear communication fuel frustration.
Hockey fans are turning to other options, leaving TVA Sports in an increasingly precarious position.
It is difficult not to see in these events the warning signs of the end for TVA Sports. The combination of significant financial losses, disappointing ratings and viewer dissatisfaction creates a perfect storm.
Barring a spectacular turnaround, the channel could well cease operations even before the current contract with the NHL expires.
The future of TVA Sports is more uncertain than ever. The decisions made in the coming months will be crucial to determine whether the channel can reinvent itself or whether it will disappear from the Quebec media landscape.
Viewers, for their part, are waiting for answers and concrete actions to revive a channel which was supposed to be a reference for sports fans.
A channel supposed to be the exclusive French-speaking broadcaster of the NHL.
Imagine Gary Bettman’s face when he learned that the matches are practically no longer broadcast there. Let’s say that it will not improve the already tense relationship with Pierre-Karl Péladeau.
Look no further to find out why the Nords never came back and never will. Bettman never trusted Péladeau.
With good reason…
