CBC/Radio-Canada

Meta Builds First Major Canadian AI Data Center

Meta announced it is building its first major Canadian data center: a 1-gigawatt, AI-optimized facility in Sturgeon County, Alberta. The company said the project will cost about $9 billion and take roughly two to three years to build; it will be Meta’s 33rd data center. The firm says the site was chosen for strong energy availability, grid access and community partners. Meta worked with local energy firms including Greenlight Limited Partnership, Altalink, Capitol Power and the Alberta Electric System Operator to plan energy needs. The company plans to monetize excess capacity as part of a potential cloud computing business. The move intensifies competition with hyperscalers (Alphabet/Google, Microsoft, Amazon) and has prompted environmental concerns locally about emissions, water use and noise.

Canada to Compete in Eurovision from 2027

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) confirmed that Canada will participate in the Eurovision Song Contest beginning in 2027, after the national broadcaster CBC/Radio‑Canada became a full EBU member. The announcement, made on Canada’s national day, states Canadian artists will be eligible to perform and Canadian viewers will be able to vote while seeing their country represented on the Eurovision stage. EBU Eurovision director Martin Green and CBC/Radio‑Canada president and CEO Marie‑Philippe Bouchard commented on the milestone, noting the contest’s widening global reach and Canada’s historic connections to Eurovision (notably Céline Dion’s 1988 win for Switzerland). The 2027 contest is scheduled to take place in Bulgaria. Canada is the first new participating country since Australia’s debut more than a decade ago.

Broadcasters Shift to Streaming; Comcast Sells YouTube TV

In May 2026 several major U.S. and Canadian media and distribution players announced moves that accelerate the shift from linear TV to streaming. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation will close its linear Documentary Channel on August 31 and launch a free ad-supported streaming (FAST) documentary channel on CBC Gem this fall, supported by a $7 million investment in Canadian documentary content. Fox Corporation will discontinue its standalone Fox Sports app on major connected-TV platforms around May 7, directing viewers to its unified FOX One streaming service (which surpassed two million subscribers). Comcast began offering YouTube TV as an add-on for eligible Xfinity internet customers via the Xfinity Stream Store at $82.99/month, integrating the service into its streaming ecosystem to reduce churn and appeal to internet-only households.