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The Canadian Radio-television and
Telecommunications Commission has rejected requests from Rogers and CTV to
loosen and reduce the Canadian content requirements now regulating over
the air broadcasts in Canada.
The broadcasters wanted to lessen the minimum content requirements at some
35 OTA stations across the country from 60% to 55%.
Although more flexible regulations are set to come into effect within a
year, the Commission said "it does not consider that it would be
appropriate to implement ... on a piecemeal basis" the policy that
regulates Cancon, nor to apply it inconsistently across competitive
broadcasters.
In CTV's case, the Commission denied the application that covered what are
collectively referred to as the 'A' stations, CIVI-TV Victoria, CHWI-TV
Windsor, CFPL-TV London, CKVR-TV Barrie, CHRO-TV Pembroke and CHRO-TV-43
Ottawa.
CTV said that 'A' stations are facing difficult financial situations, and
so it was seeking relief similar to that which has been afforded to CHCH-TV
and CHEK-TV.
But the Commission denied the application by CTVglobemedia Inc., on behalf
of its subsidiary CTV Corp., to reduce the overall minimum level of
Canadian programming that must be broadcast by its 'A' stations from 60%
to 55%, to eliminate exhibition requirements relating to priority
programming, and to amend requirements related to the provision of
described video, which the CRTC found were inconsistent with its described
video policy.
Rogers had applied to amend the broadcasting licences of its television
programming undertakings known as the Citytv stations (CITY-TV Toronto and
its transmitters CITY-TV-2 Woodstock and CITY-TV-3 Ottawa, CITY-DT
Toronto, CHMI-TV Portage la Prairie/Winnipeg, CKAL-TV Calgary and its
transmitter CKAL-TV-1 Lethbridge, CKEM-TV Edmonton and its transmitter
CKEM-TV-1 Red Deer, and CKVU-TV Vancouver and its transmitter CKVU-TV-1
Courtney), and in a separate application, its OMNI stations (CFMT-DT
Toronto, CFMT-TV Toronto and its transmitters CFMT-TV-1 London and
CFMT-TV-2 Ottawa, CJMT-DT Toronto, CJMT-TV Toronto and its transmitters
CJMT-TV-1 London and CJMT-TV-2 Ottawa, CJCO-TV Calgary, CJEO-TV Edmonton,
CHNM-DT Vancouver, and CHNM-TV Vancouver and its transmitter CHNM-TV
Victoria).
Rogers indicated that it was submitting the applications in order to take
advantage of the additional flexibility with respect to Canadian
programming announced by the Commission.
But again, the Commission denied the application, noting that "Rogers has
not provided evidence of the financial necessity required to make the
proposed changes a year in advance of their anticipated effective date."
Several interveners from across the country had opposed the reduction in
Canadian content being sought; for example, the Writer's Guild of Canada
questioned why broadcasters like CTV would seek relief from Canadian
programming obligations rather than reducing expenditures on U.S.
programming.
Source: Broadcaster, 10/08/2010 |