BANFF – It’s not easy being a small fish in an ocean filled with predators new and old – and with unpredictable tides – but the strong, well-organized school of independent CCSA members consistently show they have advantages which can allow them to survive and thrive.
That’s the message CRTC vice-chair broadcasting Tom Pentefountas carried with him this morning to open the Canadian Cable Systems Alliance annual Connect conference at the Banff Springs Hotel.
He recognized that the transitions being made by the large companies in the media, cable and telecom spaces are exceedingly difficult and have certainly not been easy on the membership of the CCSA, whose 117 members together serve over 800,000 Canadians, largely in rural areas.
He praised the entrepreneurial “spirit” of the members, “unchanged from their earliest days” where they continue to place their customers (many of whom they see every day in the towns and villages they serve) at the top of their priorities list. CCSA members have close relationships with their customers “that your biggest competitors can only dream of.”
Pentefountas recalled one Quebec CCSA member who told him he gives all of his customers his cell phone number so that they can call, day or night, with any problems they may be having. “It made me wonder… if a Torontonian could call Guy Laurence on his cell phone, or if a Montrealer can call George Cope,” he added, referring to the Rogers Communications and Bell Canada CEOs. “I think not.”
The vice-chair acknowledged the work the CCSA members have done in delivering high-tech services to rural customers on par with, and sometimes better than, those in large urban centres can get from much larger companies. As well, while he was sure not to speak directly to what the Commission might be thinking when it comes to the outcome of the TV Policy Review hearing (the public portion of which just finished), he assured the members that the Commission was listening to them.
That the CCSA chose to bring its entire board to the hearing where each told short stories about what their community means to them and what they mean to their community, was not lost on the panel of commissioners. “It was a clear sign of how important these issues are to your membership,” said Pentefountas, echoing chairman Jean-Pierre Blais, who told the CCSA the same thing during its appearance.
“I’m not here to say we can wave some magic wand and make all your wishes come true." – Tom Pentefountas, CRTC
“I’m not here to say we can wave some magic wand and make all your wishes come true,” however, “it is thanks to people like you that rural residents all across this country can count on access to vital, 21st century communications services that enable them to participate in the information-based and digitally-driven economy,” he added, noting later that the needs and desires of the rural Canadian customer are no different than those living in big cities.
He also highlighted the CCSA’s I *heart* local cable campaign and the thousands of community programming hours produced by its members to serve and reflect their communities, and the fact that the Alliance can work this way on a national awards program – and work together in Ottawa with the Commission and other entities, gives its members “a powerful voice in the public arena.”
“Your organization illustrates that the whole really is greater than the sum of its parts. You not only recognize, but mobilize the power of partnerships, to produce benefits for all of your members, big and small – and I believe this all bodes well for your sector, despite the persistent pace of change,” said Pentefountas.
“If there’s a single message I can leave you with, it’s this: So long as you continue to provide choice and competition for rural customers… it seems safe to say that your future is secure because all Canadians should have access, equal access, to these services, and you have demonstrated repeatedly that it’s your raison d’etre.”
We'll have more to come from this excellent gathering we attend every year, later in the week.
