# Canwest

> former Canadian television broadcasting company

**Wikidata**: [Q1031818](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1031818)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canwest)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/canwest

## Summary
Canwest was a former Canadian television broadcasting company founded in 1974 by Izzy Asper and headquartered in Winnipeg. It operated as a business corporation in the telecommunications industry until its dissolution on October 27, 2010, after which its broadcasting assets were acquired by Shaw Media and its publishing assets by Postmedia Network.

## Key Facts
- **Inception**: Founded in 1974.
- **Founder**: Izzy Asper.
- **Legal Form**: Business corporation.
- **Headquarters**: Winnipeg, Canada.
- **Dissolution**: Ceased operations on October 27, 2010.
- **Instance Of**: Broadcaster.
- **Country**: Canada.
- **Industry**: Telecommunications.
- **Product/Material Produced**: Television.
- **Successor Entities**: Assets followed by Shaw Media and Postmedia Network.
- **Aliases**: CanWest Global, CanWest Global Communications, Canwest Publishing, キャンウェスト・グローバル・コミュニケーションズ, キャンウエスト, 加西全球通訊公司, 加西環球通訊, 加西通讯, 加西公司.
- **Official Website**: http://www.canwest.com/.
- **Identifiers**: 
  - Freebase ID: /m/02tbg7.
  - Crunchbase Organization ID: canwest.
- **Wikipedia Presence**: 
  - Title: Canwest.
  - Languages: Arabic (ar), German (de), English (en), Spanish (es), Persian (fa), French (fr), Portuguese (pt).
  - Sitelink Count: 7.
- **Wikidata Description**: Former Canadian television broadcasting company.

## FAQs
**When and where was Canwest established?**
Canwest was founded in 1974 by Izzy Asper and was headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It operated as a business corporation within the Canadian telecommunications sector.

**Who was the founder of Canwest?**
Izzy Asper founded Canwest in 1974. He was a Canadian media magnate who built the company into a major broadcasting and publishing conglomerate before its eventual dissolution.

**What type of corporate structure did Canwest have?**
Canwest was legally structured as a business corporation. This form allowed it to operate commercially within the broadcasting and telecommunications industries.

**When did Canwest cease to exist as a company?**
Canwest was formally dissolved, abolished, or demolished on October 27, 2010. This marked the end of its operations as an independent corporate entity.

**What primary media product did Canwest produce?**
The core product produced by Canwest was television programming and broadcasting services. It was a significant player in the Canadian television market.

**What happened to Canwest's assets after its dissolution?**
Following its dissolution in 2010, Canwest's broadcasting assets were acquired by Shaw Media. Its publishing assets, including newspapers, were sold to Postmedia Network.

**How is Canwest classified in knowledge systems?**
In structured data, Canwest is classified as an instance of a "broadcaster." This places it within the broader organizational category of entities responsible for producing and transmitting radio and television programs.

**What are the alternative names for Canwest?**
Canwest is also known by numerous aliases, including CanWest Global, CanWest Global Communications, and Canwest Publishing, along with translations in Japanese, Chinese, and other languages.

**What is the official web presence for Canwest?**
The official website for Canwest was http://www.canwest.com/. This domain served as its primary online hub during its operational years.

**In which languages is Canwest documented on Wikipedia?**
Wikipedia has articles about Canwest in seven languages: Arabic, German, English, Spanish, Persian, French, and Portuguese, reflecting its international recognition as a media entity.

## Why It Matters
Canwest was a pivotal entity in the Canadian media landscape, representing a major consolidation of television broadcasting and newspaper publishing under one corporate umbrella. Its rise, under founder Izzy Asper, and its eventual collapse in 2010 were significant events that reshaped media ownership in Canada. The company's dissolution directly led to the transfer of its valuable broadcasting licenses and stations to Shaw Media (now part of Corus Entertainment) and its newspaper chain to Postmedia Network, fundamentally altering the competitive dynamics and concentration of ownership in Canadian television and print journalism. Understanding Canwest's trajectory provides critical context for analyzing the evolution of commercial broadcasting, corporate debt crises in media, and the ongoing debates about media diversity and public interest in Canada.

## Notable For
- Being founded by prominent Canadian media entrepreneur Izzy Asper.
- Maintaining its corporate headquarters in Winnipeg, Manitoba, rather than the more typical media hub of Toronto, Ontario.
- Its dramatic 2010 dissolution following financial restructuring, which was one of the largest corporate failures in Canadian media history at the time.
- The bifurcation of its assets, with broadcasting going to Shaw Media and publishing to Postmedia Network, creating two major new media entities from its breakup.
- Having a multilingual Wikipedia presence across seven language editions, indicating its historical significance beyond Canada.
- Operating as a business corporation in the telecommunications industry, distinct from public broadcasters like the CBC.
- Its identification as a "broadcaster" in formal ontologies, linking it to global classifications of media organizations.

## Body

### History and Corporate Timeline
Canwest was founded in 1974 by Izzy Asper. It grew from a single television station in Winnipeg into a national media conglomerate with holdings in television broadcasting and newspaper publishing. The company pursued aggressive expansion throughout the 1990s and 2000s. After accumulating significant debt, it filed for creditor protection in 2009 and underwent a court-supervised restructuring. This process concluded with its formal dissolution on October 27, 2010. The company's lifespan was therefore 36 years, from 1974 to 2010.

### Corporate Identity and Structure
Canwest's legal form was that of a **business corporation**. This structure facilitated its ability to raise capital, acquire other companies, and operate for-profit within the competitive **telecommunications industry**. Its **headquarters** were located in **Winnipeg**, Manitoba, Canada. This geographic choice was notable, as it anchored the company in the Canadian Prairies rather than the more centralized media markets of Ontario or Quebec. The company's **country** of origin and primary operations was **Canada**.

### Core Operations and Industry
The primary **product or material produced** by Canwest was **television**. As a **broadcaster**, its core function was the production and transmission of television programs. It owned and operated multiple television stations across Canada, including the Global Television Network. Its operational scope placed it within the **broadcasting industry**, a subset of the larger telecommunications sector.

### Ownership Transition and Successor Entities
The most significant post-dissolution fact is the fate of its assets, recorded as **followed_by**. Canwest's broadcasting assets were acquired by **Shaw Media**. Its substantial newspaper publishing portfolio, including titles like the *National Post*, was sold to **Postmedia Network**. This split created two distinct successor companies from the former Canwest empire, each continuing in a different segment of the media industry.

### Digital Footprint and Documentation
During and after its operation, Canwest maintained an official **website** at `http://www.canwest.com/`. Its historical significance is documented across multiple **Wikipedia** language editions, including Arabic (ar), German (de), English (en), Spanish (es), Persian (fa), French (fr), and Portuguese (pt). The total **sitelink count**—representing connections to structured data across Wikimedia projects—is **7**.

### Classification and Linked Data
In formal knowledge representations, Canwest is an **instance of** the class **broadcaster**. This classification ties it to the global concept of organizations that produce and transmit radio and television programs. The entity is associated with several persistent identifiers:
- **Freebase ID**: `/m/02tbg7` (from the now-defunct Freebase knowledge graph).
- **Crunchbase Organization ID**: `canwest` (from the business data platform).
- **Wikidata Description**: "former Canadian television broadcasting company," which succinctly captures its essence.

### Multilingual and Cultural Aliases
Beyond its primary English name, Canwest is known by numerous **aliases** in other languages and contexts. These include corporate designations like **CanWest Global** and **CanWest Global Communications**, as well as **Canwest Publishing**. The list extends to Japanese (キャンウェスト・グローバル・コミュニケーションズ, キャンウエスト), Chinese (加西全球通訊公司, 加西環球通訊, 加西通讯, 加西公司), and other variants, reflecting its international business dealings and recognition.

## References

1. [Crunchbase](http://www.crunchbase.com/organization/canwest)
2. Freebase Data Dumps. 2013