William Craig (broadcaster)
Encyclopedia
William Craig is a Canadian
broadcaster.
Craig began his career as a researcher for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
's This Hour Has Seven Days
. He subsequently joined the programming departments at the CBC, TVOntario
and Rogers Cable
. He was also a policy analyst for the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission in the 1970s.
In the 1990s, Craig launched four regional sports networks in the United States
. In 1999, he launched iCraveTV
, a controversial website
which offered streaming broadcasts of television stations. He shut down the website the following year after a copyright
infringement lawsuit from the American broadcasters whose signals were available on the service.
He acquired PrideVision, Canada's LGBT
television network, in 2004, and announced plans to improve the channel's cable distribution by separating its adult entertainment and general interest programming onto two distinct channels.
In 2005, the CRTC approved Craig's licence for an adult entertainment channel, and relaunched PrideVision as OUTtv
and carried the PrideVision name to the adult channel named HARD on PrideVision
, later renamed HARDtv. In 2006, Craig sold his interest in OUTtv and HARDtv to Shavick Entertainment
and Pink Triangle Press
.
In 2011, Craig became the CEO of Citywest, a municipally owned communications in Northwest BC.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
broadcaster.
Craig began his career as a researcher for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
's This Hour Has Seven Days
This Hour Has Seven Days
This Hour Has Seven Days is a controversial CBC Television newsmagazine which ran from 1964 to 1966. The show, inspired by the BBC-TV and NBC-TV satire series That Was The Week That Was, was created by Patrick Watson and Douglas Leiterman as an avenue for a more stimulating and boundary-pushing...
. He subsequently joined the programming departments at the CBC, TVOntario
TVOntario
TVOntario, often referred to only as TVO , is a publicly funded, educational English-language television station and media organization in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is operated by the Ontario Educational Communications Authority, a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Ontario...
and Rogers Cable
Rogers Cable
Rogers Cable Inc., a subsidiary of Rogers Communications Inc., is Canada's largest cable television service provider with about 2.25 million television customers, and over 930,000 Internet subscribers, in Manitoba, Southern & Eastern Ontario, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador.The...
. He was also a policy analyst for the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission in the 1970s.
In the 1990s, Craig launched four regional sports networks in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. In 1999, he launched iCraveTV
ICraveTV
iCraveTV was a Canadian website, which operated from 1999 to 2000. The site offered streaming Internet broadcasts of the conventional television stations, both Canadian and American, that were available as over-the-air signals in Toronto....
, a controversial website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
which offered streaming broadcasts of television stations. He shut down the website the following year after a copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
infringement lawsuit from the American broadcasters whose signals were available on the service.
He acquired PrideVision, Canada's LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
television network, in 2004, and announced plans to improve the channel's cable distribution by separating its adult entertainment and general interest programming onto two distinct channels.
In 2005, the CRTC approved Craig's licence for an adult entertainment channel, and relaunched PrideVision as OUTtv
OUTtv
OUTtv is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel that airs entertainment and lifestyle programming for LGBT audiences.OUTtv's licensee is OUTtv Network Inc. which is 55.9% owned by Shavick Entertainment, 24.94% owned by Pink Triangle Press, 15% owned by Peace Point Entertainment...
and carried the PrideVision name to the adult channel named HARD on PrideVision
HARD on PrideVision
HARDtv is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel. It is a premium adult entertainment television channel aimed at gay men, with programming consisting mainly of adult films and adult-related television series....
, later renamed HARDtv. In 2006, Craig sold his interest in OUTtv and HARDtv to Shavick Entertainment
Shavick Entertainment
Shavick Entertainment is a Canadian film and television production company. Owned and operated in Burnaby, British Columbia by James Shavick and his wife, former British Columbia politician Joy MacPhail, the company has primarily produced television films, as well as a few theatrical films and a...
and Pink Triangle Press
Pink Triangle Press
Pink Triangle Press is a Canadian non-profit organization which specializes in LGBT media including publishing, online interactive media, and television. PTP's main asset is the LGBT magazine, Xtra! and its spinoffs Xtra! West and Capital Xtra!...
.
In 2011, Craig became the CEO of Citywest, a municipally owned communications in Northwest BC.