OTTAWA – Shaw Direct must either reinstate CBC Regina to its channel lineup, or drop a CTV station in order to comply with its conditions of licence, the CRTC ruled Friday.
The Commission denied a request by Star Choice Television Network Inc., made on behalf its DTH service now called Shaw Direct, to amend its licence relating to the distribution of CBC English-language conventional TV stations.
Its application followed a complaint from the CBC where it accused Shaw Direct (then Star Choice) of breaching its condition of licence number six after its removal of five conventional television stations, including CBC Regina.
In support of its application, Star Choice argued that it could not continue to distribute CBC Regina due to capacity constraints. It also said that viewers would not be denied local content from CBC Regina (CBKT Regina) because its local/regional news program is available daily on the Saskatchewan Communications Network (SCN), which is distributed by Shaw Direct.
But the Commission sided with the CBC that such an agreement may enhance access to local programming, but should not be a substitute for it.
Shaw Direct’s condition of licence number six reads that it must not distribute a number of English-language conventional television stations owned and operated by the CBC that is less than the number of English-language conventional television stations owned or operated by any other individual broadcasting group.
If its application was denied, Shaw Direct threatened that it would not reinstate CBC Regina, but would instead drop a CTV station, which “would negatively impact viewers in the locality and region of such a service”.
The CRTC has given Shaw Direct two weeks to advise it on how it will meet its condition of licence.
