Sirius XM tells CRTC it needs to pay less to artists, longer license term, to survive

By Perry Hoffman

GATINEAU – It took some time, but the CRTC got into the meat of Sirius XM Canada’s licence renewal application on Thursday afternoon, quizzing the company about its proposal for a decreased Canadian talent contribution (CTD) charge and insistence that its licence be renewed for seven years. While the company wants a 90% reduction in its CTD charge, a renewed licence with a shorter term could have potentially damaging impacts on satellite radio in Canada, Sirius XM insisted during its appearance. “Why would continue to give them a North America wide platform for their content to be heard on,” said...