boon1 n. an advantage; a blessing.

boon2 adj. a close friend, favourite (boon companion)

About Boon Dog

Boon Dog Professional Services Inc. is an Ottawa-based research and consulting firm offering a range of professional services and research studies to clients in a number of sectors, with an expertise in the broadcasting and media sectors.

Boon Dog consists of the husband and wife team of Mario Mota and Leila Goldberger.

Mario Mota has extensive knowledge of the Canadian broadcasting and communications industries

and CRTC regulatory processes. From 1999 to 2000, Mario served as Director of Policy and Regulatory Affairs at the Specialty and Premium Television Association (SPTV), which represented licensed Canadian specialty, pay, and third-language TV services. Mario assumed the position of Director of Specialty and Pay Television Policy at the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) following SPTV’s merger with the CAB in December 2000. From April 2006 to November 2010, Mario oversaw broadcasting policy and regulatory matters for the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) (formerly the Canadian Film and Television Production Association – CFTPA), first as Senior Director of Broadcast Relations & Research and then as Vice-President, Broadcasting Policy & Regulatory Affairs.

Prior to co-founding Boon Dog Professional Services in 2006, Mario Mota was Vice-President of Broadcast/Media Research at Decima Research Inc. (now Harris/Decima) where he managed the company’s growing broadcast and media research practice. In this capacity, he oversaw the work of other staff and directly conducted all facets of project work, including research and questionnaire design, data analysis, report writing, presentations, and client liaison.

Mario first joined the Decima group in July 2001 as President and Publisher of Decima Reports Inc. (then Decima Publishing but now The Wire Report and published by The Hill Times). One of Mario’s key mandates in this leadership position was to increase Decima Research’s exposure and credibility in the broadcasting sector. He achieved this by coordinating research projects on broadcasting industry topics such as digital television and HDTV. During his time at Decima Reports, Mario developed and managed Decima’s successful THE DIGITAL DOMAIN research series, Canada’s most comprehensive independent research series on the digital TV market. Mario continued to manage this highly regarded research product when he joined Decima Research in June 2004. Boon Dog Professional Services continues to produce this report series today under the name Canadian Digital TV Market Monitor.

Mario holds a Bachelor of Journalism with a combined honours in Political Science from Carleton University.

Prior to co-founding Boon Dog Professional Services, Leila Goldberger worked for seven years as the sole

proprietor of Boon Dog Productions where she managed, coordinated, and edited the Canadian Association of Social Workers’ (CASW) annual peer-reviewed journal (Canadian Social Work); produced the CASW bi-annual news magazine (the Bulletin); provided her expertise to numerous clients as a writer, editor, and graphic designer; and designed and created several websites for various clients.

Leila is a graduate of the University of Ottawa’s Department of English Literature, where she was chosen to be part of a select creative writing poetry group two years running under Professor Seymour Mayne. A talented artist formally trained in traditional artistic mediums, such as pen and ink, paint, sculpture, and photography, Leila also completed a degree in Visual Arts while at the University of Ottawa. After finishing university and working in Ottawa’s hi-tech industry for companies like Nortel and Appendix Publishing Inc. as a Technical Writer and SGML analyst, Leila further developed her artistic repertoire to include desktop publishing, website design, and graphic design.

As a creative thinker, Leila excels at problem solving, troubleshooting, and generating ideas. Sometimes you just need a fresh pair of eyes and a new perspective to find a solution.

In her spare time, Leila is a singer/songwriter and recently won the Colleen Peterson Songwriting Award from the Ontario Arts Council for her song “Sisters”.

You may have also guessed by now that we have a genuine love for dogs. We shared many great years with our two faithful companions: Kluane and Juniper. Sadly, after living amazing, long lives both dogs have passed away (Kluane at 16 and Juniper at 15) leaving a loving imprint on our hearts. They are deeply missed.