OTTAWA – The success of independent producers under the CRTC’s group licensing regime (GLR) will be tied to that of the broadcasters, the Canadian Media Production Association’s Prime Time 2012 heard this morning.
Peter Grant, counsel at McCarthy Tetrault, presented findings of a short paper examining the impact of GLR on indie producers that show under this new regime a substantial increase in money will become available for Canadian programming. He said that money available will jump from $290 million in 2012 to approximately $329 million in 2016. What’s also evident is that programs of national interest (PNI) will make the independent production sector.
“It’s clear that the CRTC policy on programs of national interest (PNI) will be the underpinning of the independent production sector in Canada. Without that policy and the requirement it imposes on Canadian broadcasters, the independent production sector would be a fraction of its current size and diversity,” Grant argued.
Both Christine Shipton, VP of original content with Shaw Media, and Mirko Bibic, senior VP of regulatory and government affairs at BCE Inc. who appeared on the next panel, agreed that the success of indie producers and the broadcasters are linked. “More than ever the fortunes of the independent production community and the fortunes of the private broadcasters are tied,” said Bibic, adding if the broadcasters are successful, then so will be the producers.
“We’re all in this together. And that’s what this new policy has given us because from a content provider perspective if we make great shows you get more money in your pocket,” added Shipton. “Great shows produce ratings and in theory our revenues will go up.”
But Bibic questioned the numbers presented by Grant, noting that specialty services will require continued packaging and revenue stability to hit the projections. The risk is regulatory in nature, he said, “with the Commission asking the cable companies to explore further ways to provide with flexibility. That inevitability will have an impact.”
With respect to conventional TV, Bibic doesn’t see how it can reach those spending levels, particularly in a weaker advertising market. He said that where Grant projects rising revenue, Bell sees revenue about 10% below pre-2008 levels. The BCE executive also highlighted a few regulatory issues that will affect Canadian program spending under the group licensing regime.
It’s undeniable that “regulatory and public policy is a key driver to success in the industry. We are heavily regulated,” he said. GLR is great in concept, “but it’s not a panacea, it’s not the be all and end of all that’s going to ensure that we have mutual success because there are a whole bunch of other foundational regulatory issues that… have a direct bearing on that mutual success.”
There continues to be a lack of regulatory predictability, Bibic said, noting that some policies were reversed after Shaw purchased Canwest and BCE bought CTV. The CRTC has shown a penchant for getting involved in rights issues, just as it did on the Bell and NFL deal for the mobile platform. He noted there isn’t any regulatory symmetry between conventional and specialties and emerging platforms such as Netflix. As well, he pointed to value for signal as a requirement for revenue generation for conventional stations.
