Canwest: Canadian Press wire service moving to end co-operative

[tuvor]

After nearly a century, The Canadian Press wire service will cease to function as a not-for-profit co-operative under a tentative new deal that will place the media organization under private ownership.

According to an internal human resources memo obtained by Canwest News Service, CP’s three biggest current members — CTVglobemedia, which owns the Globe and Mail, Torstar Corp., which runs the Toronto Star and Gesca, which owns La Presse — would become equal partners in a new for-profit entity. It would be called Canadian Press Enterprises.

The memo from Paul Woods, CP’s director of human resources, said financial difficulties, including major pension plan problems, have led to the restructuring of the co-operative, which has provided news coverage to member organizations for 93 years.

In the past few years, CP has lost several large members, including Sun Media, which broke ties with CP on July 1, and the chain of newspapers owned by Canwest Global Communications Corp., which are now in the process of being sold to a group of creditors led by National Post chief Paul Godfrey

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http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Media+companies+strike+deal/3234990/story.html