Top 20 TV Programs tracks ratings for the top 20 television shows in Canada for the period July 10-16, 2006.

The final game of the FIFA World Cup tournament that saw Italy defeat France on July 9 brought in an average of 2.8 million viewers for CTV – peaking at four million for the match-ending penalty kick shootout – capping a record ratings month for soccer in Canada.

CHUM’s big day ended with a big shock for the nearly 300 employees who were handed pink slips on July 12, within hours of news that the broadcast giant was being bought out by CTV parent Bell Globemedia, pending regulator approval.

* Marni Shulman-Tucker has joined Alliance Atlantis as its VP of content for Showcase Action, Showcase Diva and IFC, coming over from CTV Travel. AA has also promoted Muriel Solomon to VP of marketing and publicity for its lifestyle networks.

CSI still selling

There’s been a significant growth in the number of Canadians who watch satellite TV, according to a new report from the CRTC that says profits and market share were up for DTH satellite and multipoint distribution systems in the period between 2001 and 2005.

Despite Bell Globemedia’s proposed buyout of CHUM, it’s business as usual for the latter’s new broadband service MuchAXS.

Ruling on Bell Globemedia’s proposed takeover bid of CHUM Ltd. will show just how much teeth the federal regulators have.

Richard Stursberg is CBC’s executive VP in charge of English television.

Well, the industry seems to like it, even if the public hasn’t caught on. In response to a recent online Playback poll question asking which new summer series shows the most promise, an overwhelming 48% of respondents picked CBC’s What It’s Like Being Alone (which has averaged only 118,000 viewers so far). This was followed by CTV’s Whistler, with 23% of the vote, CTV’s Alice, I Think (13%), CBC’s North/South (11%) and CBC’s 11 Cameras (5%).

CSC Global Technologies is CANVID, not CANBID as reported in the July 10 article ‘High-def video coming to the Internet.’ That same article misspelled the address of CSC’s hollyflicks.com website.

Stop-motion animation and an expansion to teen and adult audiences is paying off for Cuppa Coffee Studios (Tigga and Togga, A Very Barry Christmas), where new titles are in production for MTV Networks and E! Entertainment.