Bloomberg to launch Canadian business TV channel this year

Financial news and data company Bloomberg LLP will launch a Canadian television channel by mid-2015 that will highlight domestic news makers and detail the impact of global news on Canadian business, the company said on Thursday.

"Canada is a vital market for us," founder and majority owner Michael Bloomberg said in a statement. "It is now one of our fastest-growing markets in the world."

The Bloomberg TV Canada channel will be launched in partnership with Channel Zero, an independent media company.

Broadcasting non-stop from a studio in Toronto's downtown financial district, it will feature content from bureaus in Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary, Montreal, Vancouver and Winnipeg.

Bloomberg competes with Thomson Reuters in providing news, data and information to business and media clients.

The move pits Bloomberg against its obvious television competitor, Bell-owned BNN, which currently has more than 6 million subscribers and earned $14 million in profit before taxes in 2013, the last year for which data is available.