RDS 2012 annual review: 12 highlights
(December 20, 2012)

- A must-see for sports fans, with over 20 major properties –
- Sports unlimited in 2012! –

To tweet this release: http://bit.ly/U1Yzfm

Montreal, QC (December 21, 2012) As 2012 comes to a close, RDS looks back on its year, which featured the most comprehensive programming in its history. Sports fans were treated to more football, more soccer, more baseball, more tennis and more cycling than ever before. Thanks to RDS, RDS2, RDS INFO, RDS.ca and RDS Mobile, sports are more than ever an integral part of consumers’ daily lives. Here are RDS’s 12 major highlights of 2012!

1. Over 20 major properties, 80% of total Québec sports-related viewing, 275 hockey games, 250 tennis matches, 220 auto races, 170 football games, 120 soccer games, 100 baseball games, 110 rounds of golf, 11 UCI events totaling 87 days of cycling, 135 special guests on L’ANTICHAMBRE, 1 up-close and heartfelt conversation with David Beckham, 1 exclusive interview with André Agassi... And even a Justin Bieber concert!

2. London Olympic and Paralympic Games: 18 Canadian medals, 300 staffers on the RDS Olympics event team, 5,255,000 viewers reached, 78.2% of Québec’s population glued to their TV sets, computers or smartphones, 1,545 tweets from @RDSolympiques and 472 posts on the RDS Olympiques Facebook page throughout the Games. Most popular event: 6.2 million viewers across Canada for the men’s 100 metre final.

3. RDS Info Sports morphs into RDS INFO, becoming the network’s nerve centre for all RDS sporting news. 8,255 SPORTS 30 news bulletins were broadcast this year. As a result of updated technologies, 179,832 metres of cable were installed for our new studios and control rooms, while the make-up budget was increased by 35% to meet the new HD requirements of our original productions.

4. Renaud Lavoie was in New York City 12 times to cover the NHL labour dispute for HOCKEY 360 and SPORTS 30, for a total travelling distance of 13,088 km over the last few months. Here are his top NYC addresses:
• Best steakhouse: Del Frisco’s
• Best sports bar: Tonic
• Best burger: Shake Shack
• Best neighbourhood: Soho
• Favourite stadium: Yankee Stadium

5. The best of the best:
• Most-watched 2012 broadcast: the New York Giants Super Bowl victory
• Most popular article on RDS.ca in 2012: http://bit.ly/1259Hy4
• Most-watched video on RDS.ca: http://bit.ly/Ue0PQf
• Most popular Facebook post: http://on.fb.me/W5C4vM
• RDS personality with the most Twitter followers: http://bit.ly/TSCa6B

6. In 2012, Le 5 À 7 on RDS provided some serious entertainment: 38 André Roy songs, 633 instances of “Le Baron’ using the word “Chef” on air, 1,341 mentions of Tim Tebow in Valérie Sardin’s social media news, 4,332 mentions by Frédéric Plante that he is the “real #1”, while Yanick Bouchard said the same thing 4,332 times as well, 24,541 fans for the 5 à 7 Facebook page.

7. In the world of sports, anything can happen, and that’s what sets RDS apart from other specialty channels: overtime action in tennis and baseball, exciting auto racing, NHL labour dispute, etc. The result? 8,355 programming changes on our 3 channels, 48 modified schedules, 11 consecutive on-air hours for the NHL trade deadline special broadcast.

8. 93,000 fans for the RDS Facebook page, a 43% increase in 2012, and 32,500 Twitter followers, a 30% increase for the year. 6 million visits on the RDS.ca website originating from social media. Have you signed up as a fan yet?

9. Over $1 million invested in Québec amateur sports. RDS is an active partner of the following organizations, among others: Fondation Sport-Études, Fondation de l’athlète d’excellence du Québec, Club de la médaille d’or, Fédération de soccer du Québec, Football Québec, Baseball Québec, Défi Sportif, etc. Community involvement is central to our mandate.

10. Milestones: After the 100th Grey Cup and the 40th IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship, next year will feature the 100th Tour de France, the 75th March Madness Tournament, and a newly redesigned RDS.ca.

11. From 75 employees when RDS launched in 1898, we have grown to over 600! 100 on-air personalities and only one trade: Michel Therrien was traded to the Habs in exchange for future considerations.

12. 1 brand where fans can access the best of the world of sports on all platforms: RDS.

-RDS-

For more information :
Katia Aubin, (o) 514.529.2104, (c) 514.208.1235, katia.aubin@bellmedia.ca
Julie Gosselin, (o) 514 529-2127, (c) 514 913-6799, julie.gosselin@bellmedia.ca
Twitter
@RDS_RP

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