CRTC retains policy on avails, alters VOD rules

OTTAWA – The avails are still not for sale and while ads will be allowed in the video on demand stream, there are to be new rules, the CRTC announced Monday in releasing its policy decisions on commercial advertising in the local availabilities of non-Canadian services and video-on-demand. As Cartt.ca readers will recall, the Commission originally called for comments on the sale of local avails back in October, 2008. In doing so, it predicted that revenues from the sale of advertising for insertion in local availabilities could provide a net benefit to the Canadian broadcasting system by, for example, encouraging...