Montréal, April 28, 2009 - Videotron is pleased to be the main sponsor and presenter of the Juste pour rire / Just For Laughs Festival for the third year in a row, and to be part of today's launch of the indoor program for the 27th edition of the comedy festival, to be held from July 3 to 26, with English and Street Arts programming from July 16 to 26, 2009. This year, the Company is again presenting the Galas Vidéotron Juste pour rire and the Videotron Just For Laughs Galas, as well as two original concepts that give young comics a chance to perform before the public: the popular En route vers mon premier Gala television show and the Tout Show performance series.
The Just For Laughs Festival is held in Montréal, but Videotron gives all its customers across the province front-row seats, said Claude Foisy, Vice President, Brand and Content.
Videotron is again applying its content convergence and multiplatform distribution strategies to bringing its customers an abundance of comedy programming, said Mr. Foisy. Videotron subscribers will be able to watch and rewatch the programs on illicoTM Digital TV at the time of their choosing. All our customers will be able to experience the 2009 edition of the Juste pour rire / Just For Laughs Festival through illico on Demand and VOX, and access exclusive content at videotron.com/enroute and hahaha.com.
En route vers mon premier Gala Juste pour rire – on illico on Demand and VOX
En route vers mon premier Gala, developed in collaboration with Juste pour rire and VOX, gives 48 aspiring comics a chance to show their stuff before an audience at Studio Juste pour rire. The winner gets to perform at the July 10 Gala Vidéotron hosted by Mike Ward. All Videotron customers will be able to follow the competition on illico on demand and VOX.
The one-hour En route vers mon premier Gala Juste pour rire shows will be taped before a live audience at Studio Juste pour rire and broadcast on VOX on Saturdays at 8 p.m. from March 14 to June 6. The programs will be available on illico on Demand as of the next day. Each week, six contestants perform comedy routines. The most entertaining and original comics proceed to the next round. This year's jury is made up of well-known author Jean-Pierre Plante, Bruno Landry, a former member of the RBO comedy ensemble, and culture reporter Pascale Lévesque.
Videotron is pleased to support the stars of the future and to provide them with exposure to a wider audience by broadcasting original comedy performances and television programs, said Claude Foisy.
Tout Show – June 15-26
Videotron and Juste pour rire are bringing back the popular Tout Show indoor series, which features young comics. It will be broadcast from the Studio Juste pour rire on St. Laurent Boulevard in Montréal. Audiences will be close to the stage in the intimate atmosphere of the 300-seat hall. Tickets will be available at the door on a first-come first-served basis.
All subscribers to illico Digital TV can access illico on Demand at channel 900 on the dial. En route vers mon premier Gala will be broadcast on VOX, channels 9 (SD) and 609 (HD) on the dial.
illico is a trademark of Videotron Ltd.
Videotron Ltd. (www.videotron.com), a wholly owned subsidiary of Quebecor Media Inc., is an integrated communications company engaged in cable television, interactive multimedia development, Internet access services, cable telephony and wireless telephone service. Videotron is a leader in new technologies with its illico interactive television system and its broadband network, which supports high-speed cable Internet access, analog and digital cable television, and other services. As of December 31, 2008, Videotron was serving 1,715,616 cable television customers in Québec, including 927,322 illico Digital TV subscribers. Videotron is the Québec leader in high-speed Internet access, with 1,063,847 subscribers to its cable modem service as of December 31, 2008. As of the same date, Videotron had activated 63,402 lines on its wireless telephone service and was providing cable telephone service to approximately 851,987 Québec households and organizations.
