By Denis Carmel
GATINEAU – a 14-day hearing is rather long in normal circumstances but in a virtual context it is a Guinness-like feat and it did go smoothly. Kudos to the CRTC hearings team, and everyone’s local internet connections.
Thursday morning was Phase IV, the final reply portion of the CRTC hearing into the renewal of the CBC’s broadcasting licences. This is where the CBC had its opportunity to reply to the concerns raised by the 70 intervenors who appeared in front of the Commission in the last two weeks.
It’s usually used to celebrate successes with a little dash of atonement. Catherine Tait, CBC’s CEO (pictured in a screen cap), commented on the potential for new reporting requirements which might be placed on the corporation as new conditions of licence. “We suspect that part of the problem is that Canadians have trouble just finding and understanding the available data and reports. They are in multiple places,” she said.
“There’s also a practical problem of having two different reporting year-ends and sets of requirements—one for Parliament, the other for the Regulator. We can certainly help—and work with the Commission—to make all of our reporting more accessible and more clearly understood.” Putting a much fuller dataset on the CRTC website might be a solution but that might not be enough.
The theme of the hearing, as we’ve noted, seems to have been “What gets measured gets done,” which was perhaps more aptly rephrased by commissioner Claire Anderson who said “What doesn’t get measured, doesn’t get done.”
Most importantly, you cannot regulate what you cannot measure. Whether it is historic levels of exhibition or spending; improvements in representativeness of the workforce and so on. After 14 days, it seems the CBC can expect more regulations not just more reporting and measuring.
The reply phase is sometimes an opportunity to settle scores, too. On Schitt’s Creek, for example: “Finally, someone noted that Schitt’s Creek may have won many international awards, but because it was set in ‘Nowheresville USA,’ it somehow didn’t contribute to the cultural life of the country in the same way as some other shows do. We cannot let that stand,” said Barbara Williams, EVP. “Schitt’s Creek may not have had a Canadian postal code (even though the “Rosebud Motel”, where it was filmed, is in Mono, Ont.), but it was dreamed and developed here, speaks so clearly to Canadian values of tolerance and diversity, to our long-standing tradition of comedy, and featured an all-star Canadian creative team, cast, and crew. If we aim to limit, to chisel down the definition of ‘Canadian,’ we will be poorer for it. Schitt’s Creek is 100% Canadian. Let’s embrace its incredible power to tell the world what we stand for.”
“And speaking of Schitt’s Creek, I’d like to address the producers’ demand for a Terms of Trade agreement,” Williams continued.
“Let us be clear, 95% of what we commission is governed by CMF rules which clearly restrict us from taking foreign rights.” – Barbara Williams, CBC
“This enormous hit series — which CBC developed and greenlit — has generated significant revenues worldwide. But the CBC, which invested public dollars in the original series, does not participate in any ancillary returns linked to this property.
“When asked what their core issue is, the producers pointed to the ‘control of rights.’ Let us be clear, 95% of what we commission is governed by CMF rules which clearly restrict us from taking foreign rights. In a handful of lower-budget shows, where we finance close to 75% of the budget, we do retain some international rights in order to recoup some of our investment.
“Quite frankly, the bigger concern for our Canadian producers should be the all-rights deals that are the ‘cost of entry’ to any deal with all foreign streamers,” she went on.
What’s next?
The CBC has to file many documents on February 3, and perhaps February 8 if the Commission agrees to a request made today to delay – and intervenors will then have the ability to comment by February 24, with one final reply by CBC due on March 10.
This is a complex process, and the Commission will need a few months before rendering its decision, which should come before the end of its licence term of August 31, 2021.
Before the Commission issues the licence, the Broadcasting Act requires the CRTC to consult the CBC on the conditions of licence. If the corporation is of the view that these conditions “would unreasonably impede the corporation in providing the programming” it can refer the issue to the Minister within 30 days. The Minister then has 90 days to render a decision. This procedure only applies to conditions of licences imposed on the corporation.
Like we said. It’s complicated.
At the close of the hearing, the CBC issued a news release where Tait is quoted saying: “I want to thank all of the intervenors who participated in the licence renewal process. Their candour and passion underline the essential role CBC/Radio-Canada continues to play across so many sectors of news, information and entertainment programming.
“The question remains how does the public broadcaster maintain flexibility, innovation and its independence in order to respond to the rapid transformation of our industry, while continuing to serve all Canadians within the limits of our current funding. We are confident that as a result of this public hearing, with the Commission and the input of stakeholders, we can find a regulatory path forward that will permit CBC/Radio-Canada to continue to deliver on its mandate, to remain audience-centric and to serve Canadians where they consume content, while leaving no one behind.”
