CBC/Radio-Canada filed a submission to the CRTC in advance of public hearings slated for November that will decide the future viability of conventional broadcasters and the local television service they provide.
In its submission, CBC/Radio-Canada documents the failing model for conventional television broadcasting in Canada. It also provides the Commission with a regulatory framework that would permit the CRTC to correct the current inequity that prevents broadcasters from receiving fair compensation for their signals and permits cable and satellite companies to free-ride in distributing these programming services to Canadians. The economic model for conventional television is broken. CRTC filings indicate that the entire conventional private broadcast sector combined made profits of $8 million in 2008, a decline of 92% from the previous year. The Canadian cable and satellite sector, meanwhile, made approximately $2 billion in profits in 2008 (PBIT) and grew at a rate of 33% over the previous year. That $2 billion in profits is the same amount that all conventional private broadcasters made in revenue. Clearly, the system needs rebalancing if conventional broadcasters - and the Canadian programming they produce and air - are to survive. The group licensing framework that the Commission will be examining in the course of its hearings is not a solution to the fundamental issues facing the industry.
" 'Ensuring that CBC/Radio-Canada receives fair compensation for its signal is necessary to ensure that Canadians continue to see themselves, their stories and their news reflected on television both at a national and at a local level,' " said Hubert T. Lacroix, President and CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada. " 'In the absence of fair and proper compensation from cable and satellite companies, it will be impossible for us to continue to keep up with the evolving needs and expectations of Canadians, and to offer top quality Canadian programming.' "
Source: Broadcaster, 09/14/2009