Corus Entertainment (TSX: CJR.B) is a company whose principal business activities are operated through two reporting segments. The television segment is composed of 34 discretionary specialty television networks that provide programming to audiences across Canada, including news, drama, lifestyle, arts, children’s, and entertainment content.
Diverse product segments
The company also owns television stations and a content business which includes wholly-owned Nelvana, a producer and distributor of children’s animated content and related consumer products, as well as Corus Studios, a global creator and distributor of lifestyle and factual reality content.
The radio segment is comprised of 39 radio stations that are situated primarily in high-growth urban centres in Southern Ontario. The company also operates companion websites and other digital platforms, including apps, which are related to Corus’ brands.
Robust strategic planning
In 2020, the company introduced a new strategic plan designed to increase long-term value for stakeholders. This holistic framework composed of strategic pillars, priorities and initiatives has been created to enable Corus to successfully navigate and thrive in an extremely dynamic media landscape.
The strategic plan is designed to capitalize on the ongoing shifts in audience behaviours and habits, content creation and distribution, advertising and marketing, and any future changes in the Canadian regulatory environment. The company has also contemplated the immediate and longer-term impacts of COVID-19 on Corus’ people and business, which has the potential to accelerate structural changes in the industry.
Building relationships
Corus’ foundation of long-term success is a strong, inclusive corporate culture that attracts and retains talented people, supports local communities, and creates opportunities for innovation and growth. Corus is proactively responding to changing consumer habits and audience expectations for high-quality content across a variety of platforms.
This is accomplished through deep relationships with international content partners and the creation of compelling original content.
Advertising plays a critical role in the future of media, and Corus has developed a portfolio of innovative solutions that provides the company’s clients with more targeted ways to engage audiences.
To achieve growth objectives, the company is employing a disciplined approach to Corus’s cost structure, strengthening the company’s core business while, at the same time, investing in new growth opportunities.
Growing content
Great content is the foundation of Corus’ business. Corus is working on securing long-term access to multiplatform rights from studio partners, creating original Canadian content, and growing the company’s slate of owned content for international sales.
Further, Corus is focused on the creation of engaging content and brand experiences, reaching and interacting with consumers on new platforms, and developing a unified view of audiences. The company is also focused on building businesses and brands and aspires to create powerful and relevant interactions between advertisers and audiences across Corus’s portfolio of assets.
Client-centric approach
Also, the company takes a client-centric approach to building and delivering innovative advertising solutions and becoming a trusted authority in marketing effectiveness. Corus is focused on strengthening and diversifying the company’s financial profile with a particular emphasis on generating free cash flow and achieving the company’s financial leverage goals to achieve greater financial flexibility.
