Starting today until May 2, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission is conducting public hearings into applications to impose or renew mandatory carriage for various television services. Mandatory carriage means that every cable, satellite and IPTV customer in Canada (or in a region, for those asking for a regional mandate) must have the service as part of their basic package, and television distributors are required to pay a regulated wholesale fee per customer to that service (though some are not asking for a wholesale fee). Many are coming here making big promises because this would mean free money for them.
You can get a general idea of what each is requesting from this blog post I did in January.
CPAC is livestreaming video of the hearings online. You can watch the feed with English translation, French translation or no translation.
The CRTC’s website, which seems to be struggling to deliver pages right now, has audio feeds (English, French, no translation) the hearing’s agenda. It’s reproduced in more readable form below.
Transcripts of hearings are posted on the commission’s website the morning after each day of hearings.
There’s also plenty of reading material from the media:
- The Globe and Mail’s Steve Ladurantaye is tweeting commentary, and has a story about Day 1 on the Globe’s website
- The Financial Post summarizes the issue and notes the “high bar” set by the CRTC
- Le Droit explores the applications from French-language channels promising more coverage of French-language minorities outside Quebec
- A column from tech law expert Michael Geist on why the CRTC should scrap mandatory carriage all together, and a followup arguing the same thing
- A column from Greg O’Brien at Cartt.ca arguing that the CRTC should not be using mandatory carriage to force Canadians to finance unpopular channels
- A blog post from TV writer Bill Brioux that’s very critical of Sun News
- A blog post from policy wonk Kelly Lynne Ashton, and another on what the CRTC is useful for
- A blog post from TV Eh?
- A story from Canadian Business on Sun News
- My own take on Sun News’s future
Stories about the individual appearances are linked to those appearances listed below.
On Twitter, the #CRTC hashtag is the most active one
Tuesday, April 23 (Transcript)
Opening statement from chair Jean-Pierre Blais
Applicants:
- Legislative Assemblies of Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, asking for mandatory distribution (for free) of a channel showing activities of the territorial legislatures on satellite TV distributors serving the North. (Presentation)
- All Points Bulletin, asking to renew the mandate for Avis de recherche in Quebec (increasing from $0.06 to $0.08 per subscriber per month), and a new mandate for an English version in the rest of Canada at $0.06 per subscriber per month. (Presentation)
- Stornoway Communications (FUSION), asking for mandatory distribution at $0.32 per subscriber per month for a new service geared toward youth with user-generated content (Presentation)
- Natural Resources Television (IDNR-TV), asking for mandatory distribution with no wholesale fee for its bilingual mining and natural resources channel
- Sun News Network, asking for mandatory distribution at a rate of $0.18 in English Canada and $0.09 in French-language markets (Presentation) (CP, Globe, Cartt.ca, HuffPost)
- Education Through Media (Dolobox), asking for mandatory distribution (of up to $0.08 per subscriber per month) for its user-generated-content channel (Presentation)
Wednesday, April 24 (Transcript)
- Cable Public Affairs Channel, asking for renewal of its mandatory distribution and an increase in rate from $0.11 to $0.12 per month (Presentation) (Globe and Mail)
- Accessible Media (AMI-tv), asking to renew mandatory distribution for AMI-tv ($0.20 per subscriber per month) and AMI-audio ($0.04 per subscriber per month), and mandatory distribution for a new service AMI-tv Français for $0.30 per month in French-language markets only (Presentation)
- Evan Kosiner (Described Video Guide), asking for mandatory distribution at $0.02 per subscriber per month for a new audio-only service providing a TV viewing guide, customized for each distributor, for described video programming (Presentation)
- Takten Gyurmey Foundation (EqualiTV), asking for mandatory distribution at $0.25 per subscriber per month for an English-language service providing programming targetted at Canada’s disabled communities (Presentation .doc)
- Vues & Voix (Canal M), asking to renew mandatory distribution for the audio service formerly known as Magnétothèque, increasing the fee from $0.02 per subscriber per month to $0.04
- TV5 Quebec Canada, asking to impose mandatory distribution at $0.30 per subscriber per month for TV5 and a new related channel that would be distributed with it that focuses on francophone communities outside Quebec (Presentation)
- ACCENTS, asking for a new French-language service that would focus on francophone minority communities, requesting mandatory distribution at $0.25 per subscriber per month (Presentation .docx)
Thursday, April 25 (Transcript)
- ARTV (CBC/Radio-Canada), asking for access rights (but not mandatory distribution) to all cable services in English-language markets. It currently isn’t carried at all by some cable systems owned by Shaw and Cogeco outside Quebec (Presentation .docx)
- Canadian Punjabi Network, asking for mandatory distribution but no wholesale fee for a new Punjabi service (Presentation)
- Starlight: The Canadian Movie Channel, asking for mandatory distribution at $0.45 per subscriber per month for a new service that airs only Canadian feature films (Presentation .doc) (Cartt.ca, Globe, Financial Post opinion)
- Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN), asking to renew mandatory distribution for APTN, increasing the fee from $0.25 per subscriber per month to $0.40 (Presentation)
- On Purpose TV (Maximum Television), asking for mandatory distribution for a video-on-demand service (Presentation)
- Vision TV (Zoomer Media), asking for mandatory distribution at $0.12 per subscriber per month for Canada’s multifaith channel (Presentation)
Friday, April 26 (Transcript)
Intervenors (people or groups commenting on the applications):
- 1. Bruce Harvey (int. #13,053)
- 2. Nabet 700 CEP (int. #11,901) (Presentation)
- 3. Blue Ant Media (int. #13,047) (Presentation)
4. Youth eMage Jeunesse Inc. (int. #10,950)5. Joe Clark (int. #12,083)- 6. 2251723 Ontario Inc. (VMedia) (int. #13,009) (Presentation)
- 7. Merg Kong (int. #7,693) (in favour of EqualiTV) (Presentation)
- 8. Dimitri Lascaris (int. #1,311)
- 9. Jeff Hanks (int. #5,881) (Against Sun News) (Presentation .docx)
- 10. Gustavo Ruiz (int. #652) (Against Sun News) (Presentation)
- 11. The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) (int. #12,914) (Presentation)
- 12. Tyna McNair (int. #1,754) (Presentation .ppt)
Monday, April 29 (Transcript)
Intervenors (people or groups commenting on the applications):
- 13. Shaw Communications Inc. (int. #12,775) (Presentation)
- 14 Canadian Cable Systems Alliance Inc. (int. #13,294) (Presentation .doc)
- 15. Rogers Communications Partnership (int. #12,625) (Presentation .docx)
- 16. MTS Allstream (int. #13,295) (Presentation .docx)
- 17. Kevin Donaldson (int. #3,383)
- 18. Matthew Hays (int. #11,566) (Against Sun News)
- 19. On Screen Manitoba (int. #13,144) (Presentation)
- 20. WoneWomanWorks ltd (int. #11,286) (Supports APTN) (Presentation)
- 21. Cogeco Cable inc. (int. #12,967) (Presentation)
- 22. Avaaz (int. #12,985) (Against Sun News) (Presentation .doc)
- 23. Canadian Association of Community Television Users and Stations (CACTUS) (for FUSION application) (int. #11,958) (Presentation)
Tuesday, April 30 (Transcript)
Intervenors (people or groups commenting on the applications):
- 24. TELUS Communications Company (int. #13,056) (Presentation)
25. Communications Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada (CEP) (int. #13,171)- 26. The Canadian Media Production Association (int. #11,683) (Presentation)
- Presentations in support of Sun News Network
- 27. Free Thinking Film Society (int. #7,045) (Presentation)
- 28. Adam Giambrone (int. #6,330)
- 29. Andrea Mrozek (int. #4,796) (Presentation)
- Presentations in support of Education Through Media (Dolobox)
- 30. Ryerson University, School of Media (int. #12,960)
- 31. TakingITGlobal (int. #12,931)
- 32. Plasma Management & Productions Inc. (#13,134)
- Presentations in support of Accessible Media
- 33. Ness Murby (int. #12,666) (Presentation .doc)
- 34. Dawn Clelland (int. #6,827) (Presentation)
- 35. Jan Zawilski (int. #4,986)
- 36. Michael Petosa (int. #1,618) (Presentation .docx)
Wednesday, May 1 (Transcript)
Intervenors (people or groups commenting on the applications):
- Presentations in support of ZoomerMedia (Vision TV)
- 37. One Free World International, Reverend Majed El Shafie (int. #10,592)
- 38. Context with Lorna Dueck (int. #13,093)
- 39. Cardinal Thomas Collins (int. #10,522)
- Presentations in support of TV5 Québec Canada
- 40. Alliance des producteurs francophones du Canada (int. #12,938)
- 41. Société Nationale de l’Acadie (int. #13,066)
- 42. Association acadienne des artistes professionnels.le.s du Nouveau-Brunswick (int. #13,214)
- Presentations in support of Canadian Punjabi Network
- 43. Canadian South-Asians Supporting Independent Living (int. #4,607)
- 44. Lilly Singh (int. #10,649)
- 45. Daniel Kay (int. #13,067)
- Presentations in support of La corporation de la télévision francophonie canadienne (ACCENTS)
- 46. Fédération des communautés francophones et acadiennes du Canada (int. #9,834)
- 47. TFO, Groupe Média TFO (int. #12,672)
- 48. Association canadienne-française de l’Alberta (int. #11,889)
- Presentations in support of Starlight The Canadian Movie Channel (8094039 Canada Corp.)
- 50. Directors Guild of Canada (int. #12,915)
- 51. Canadian Film Institute (int. #13,235)
- 49. Reel Canada (int. #3,485)
- Presentations in support of Aboriginal Peoples Television Network
- 52. Alliance of Aboriginal Media Producers (int. #12,510)
- 53. Média Rendezvous (int. #5,385)
- 54. Indspire Foundation (int. #8,055)
- Presentations in support of Takten Gyurmey Foundation (EqualiTV)
- 55. Paul Babiak (int. #13,105)
- 56. Ravi Malhotra (int. #3,603)
Phase III – Reply by the applicants and licensees (moved to Thursday)
Thursday, 2 May 2013
Phase III – Reply by the applicants and licensees
- The Legislative Assemblies of Nunavut and the Northwest Territories
- All Points Bulletin Incorporated and Avis de recherche
- Stornoway Communications (FUSION)
- The Natural Resources Television Channel (IDRN-TV/IDNR-TV) Inc.
- Sun News Network (Presentation) (Coverage by Globe and Mail, CP)
- Education through Media
- CPAC
- Accessible Media
- Evan Kosiner (Described Video Guide)
- Takten Gyurmey Foundation (EqualiTV)
- Vues & Voix
- TV5 Québec Canada
- La corporation de la télévision francophonie canadienne – ACCENTS
ARTV- Canadian Punjabi Network Inc.
- Starlight : The Canadian Movie Channel
- Aboriginal Peoples Television Network
- On Purpose TV Inc.
- ZoomerMedia Limited (Vision TV)
There should be NO mandatory channels of any kind. I don’t watch any of them and I don’t think I should be held up to pay for them. One of the worst is the weather network. I doubt 10 people a day watch it anymore.
The whole concept needs to go.
Not even CPAC?
Was CPAC not set up as a “public service” by the cable companies. So it evolved into a pay channel. Sorry that is just bogus.
Yes, but not all of them. Bell has no stake in CPAC, for example.
Your best option woould be to get yourself a good antenna and watch stuff OTA. HDTV for free.
Which channel is RDS on again? What about HBO? Over-the-air TV might work for some people, but for anyone who really likes TV, and wants to watch sports, specialty channels or premium programming, they still need cable.
Then if one needs cable they shouldn’t whine about mandatory carriage. Not that there’s much of a choice with Videotron’s stranglehold of the cable market.
I hope Sun gets what they are asking for.
It will be wonderful to have the free marketers forever with egg on their face for relying on a government handout.
1. They don’t see it as a government handout per se
2. Hypocrisy hasn’t embarrassed them before
3. They’ve only requested mandatory carriage for five years
It matters little how they see it.
All that matters is what it is.
I want mandatory carriage to be denied. I cannot believe after that station blathered incessantly about CBC being subsidized, they have the balls to petition for a handout…regardless of how they spin it. Without the subsidy they crash and burn and that should tell them and any of their 30 supporters how successful and relevant they really are.
arrghhhh canadian content be damned …bring back hammy hamster, or the lil’st hobo it has more sociopolitical style than any pundit on that freakin station:)