What Castanet does

Castanet (operating as Castanet Media) is a privately held digital media company headquartered in Kelowna, British Columbia, that operates a hyperlocal news and community information platform serving British Columbia's Interior region. The platform aggregates news, classifieds, weather, events, obituaries, scenic webcams, movies, and real estate listings across more than eight community-specific channels spanning the Okanagan, Thompson-Nicola, and West Kootenay areas. The company does not maintain a native mobile application, distributing via mobile web browser instead.

The company monetizes through a multi-channel digital advertising model that includes display advertising on its news properties, transaction fees on classified listings, and commissions on real estate marketplace activity facilitated through its integration with REW. It has expanded into specialized vertical sub-brands including Castanet Automall (castanetautomall.com) for automotive advertising, RV-Boats-Powersports (rvpowersports.com) for recreational vehicles, and The Tango (thetango.net) for entertainment content. Strategic partnerships with Okanagan Edge, The Tango, REW, and the KF Centre for Excellence extend its content footprint and audience reach without direct ownership of those editorial operations.

No funding rounds, acquisitions, leadership changes, or AI/ML capabilities are disclosed in available materials. The business model is a conventional regional digital media operation reliant on local SMB advertising budgets and marketplace transaction economics, with structural exposure to the cyclicality of real estate and automotive advertising verticals.

Name

Castanet

Legal name

Castanet Media

Website

https://castanet.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Castanet Media operates a hyperlocal digital news and community information platform serving British Columbia's Interior region, including the Okanagan, Thompson-Nicola, and West Kootenay. It monetizes via display advertising, classifieds, and real estate marketplace commissions through sub-brands and channel partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Digital News

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)

Keywords

• Local digital news
• Community journalism
• Classified marketplace
• Weather forecasting
• Events calendar

Headquarters

HQ city

Kelowna

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Display Advertising: The primary revenue stream appears to be display advertising on the website. Multiple ad placements are visible throughout pages including banner ads, sidebars, and embedded content ads from local businesses.
2. Classified Listings: Fee-based classified advertising marketplace covering categories including vehicles, real estate, rentals, jobs, services, and various merchandise categories.
3. Real Estate Listings: Real estate marketplace integrated with partner REW.ca for property listings across the Okanagan region.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Castanet is a hyperlocal digital news and community media platform serving British Columbia's Interior region. It operates a web portal aggregating community journalism, weather forecasts, events calendars, obituaries, scenic webcams, movie listings, real estate listings, and a classifieds marketplace across communities including Kelowna, Penticton, Vernon, Kamloops, Nelson, West Kootenay, Oliver/Osoyoos, and Salmon Arm.

Product overview

Castanet is a hyperlocal digital news and media platform serving communities across British Columbia's Okanagan Valley and surrounding regions, including Kelowna, Penticton, Vernon, Kamloops, Nelson, Salmon Arm, and Oliver/Osoyoos. The platform operates as a single unified product combining community news journalism with value-added services including classifieds marketplace, weather forecasting, events calendar, obituary listings, scenic webcams, movie showtimes, and real estate listings. The site functions as a regional portal aggregating content from multiple local communities into a single accessible platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Castanet News Platform Community-focused digital news platform providing hyperlocal journalism for the Okanagan and surrounding regions in British Columbia, covering Kelowna, Penticton, Vernon, Kamloops, Nelson, Salmon Arm, and Oliver/Osoyoos.
• Castanet Classifieds Online marketplace offering listings for vehicles, real estate, rentals, jobs, services, and various consumer goods and services across BC Interior communities.
• Castanet Weather Localized weather forecasting and current conditions service covering communities across the Okanagan and BC, with hourly and extended forecasts.
• Castanet Events Community events calendar featuring local concerts, theatre, sports, markets, and cultural activities across the Okanagan region.
• Castanet Obituaries Funeral notices and memorial information service for communities across the Okanagan region.
• Scenic Web Cams Live webcam streaming service featuring scenic views, ski hills, golf courses, and traffic cameras across the Okanagan region.
• Castanet Movies Movie theatre listings and showtimes for cinemas across the Okanagan region.
• Castanet Real Estate Real estate listings portal integrated with partner REW.ca for property listings across the Okanagan and surrounding areas.

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• The TangominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Tango entertainment platform (thetango.net) appears as an affiliated brand under the Castanet network, sharing branding and cross-promotion.
• Okanagan EdgeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBusiness news and community content partnership. Okanagan Edge content referenced and cross-linked from Castanet business section.
• KF Centre for ExcellenceminorOthersPartnership for coverage of KF Centre for Excellence aviation museum and historical aircraft restoration projects in Kelowna.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Postmedia Network: Canada's largest newspaper chain, operating major dailies (e.g., Vancouver Sun, National Post) and community titles. Overlaps with Castanet in digital local news and classifieds but operates at national scale with a much broader portfolio.
• CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation): Canada's national public broadcaster covering BC news, weather, and community content. Provides overlapping digital local news, weather, and obituaries services but at a national scale and free of charge, putting display-ad pressure on regional players.
• Torstar Corporation: Publisher of the Toronto Star and other Ontario/Canadian regional dailies. A broad incumbent in Canadian digital and print local news with overlapping audience monetization mechanics (display, classifieds, real estate).

Direct peers

• Village Media: Ontario-based operator of hyperlocal digital community news sites (e.g., SooToday, BayToday). Operates the same model of multi-community local journalism plus classifieds and display ads as Castanet, but in a different Canadian region.
• Glacier Media: Western Canadian media company operating community newspapers and digital local news platforms, many in the same BC Interior region as Castanet. Directly comparable in geographic focus, multi-community digital news model, and ad/classifieds revenue mix.
• Black Press Media: BC-based community newspaper chain operating hyperlocal digital news sites across Western Canada. Closest direct comparable to Castanet in terms of multi-community local journalism, classifieds, and display-ad revenue model.
• Kelowna Capital News: Black Press Media's Kelowna community news brand, serving the same Kelowna/Okanagan market as Castanet with overlapping local journalism, classifieds, and advertising offerings.

Emerging players

• Daily Hive: Vancouver-based digital media publisher covering BC and Canadian lifestyle, real estate, and local news. Competes for BC Interior digital audiences and SMB advertisers with a younger, mobile-first content format.
• Narcity Media: Canadian digital media brand (owned by ZoomerMedia) covering local news, lifestyle, and city content across major Canadian markets including BC. Emerging digital-native competitor for audience attention and SMB ad dollars in the same region.

Regional players

• Kelowna Now: Digital-first hyperlocal news outlet covering Kelowna and the Okanagan. Direct geographic competitor to Castanet within the same BC Interior market for both audiences and local advertisers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/castanet-media

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Castanet