GATINEAU – “The CTF is gratified that the great majority of interveners strongly support the Canadian Television Fund and emphasize that one of the Fund’s greatest strengths is its adaptability to new challenges faced by the industry,” said Douglas Barrett, chairman of the board of the Canadian Television Fund, in closing the week-long hearing on the future of the fund today.
“When considering changes to the industry’s funding system, the most critical objective is ensuring that, given that the competing demands of stakeholders in the production, broadcast, and distribution system, the interests of the Canadian public, including both taxpayers and subscribers, remain at the forefront,” he added.
One of the fund’s principle successes, says its backers, is its ability to manage the competing demands of an extensive number and variety of stakeholders to deliver a balanced and effective model that meets its cultural and commercial mandate.
“We demonstrated that we are genuinely open to meaningful change, but change should not be driven by the desire of individual parties to reduce their contributions to the CTF, nor to increase their relative share of the fund’s limited financial resources,” said Valerie Creighton, president of the CTF.
As Cartt.ca has reported all week, there are those who want the fund abolished (see Shaw, Jim) those who want more say, or their own fund (Quebecor), those who want it split in two (Rogers), those who want more of the fund’s money (CBC) and those who want it to stay the same.
Creighton cautioned against splitting the CTF into separate commercial and cultural streams, stating that it is already a “market-driven, culturally focused, and results-based organization.” She referenced programs such as The Guard; Degrassi: The Next Generation; Les Lavigueur, la vraie histoire; The Rick Mercer Report; The Trailer Park Boys; and Les hauts et les bas de Sophie Paquin, which have been attracting solid Canadian audiences.
In response to detailed questions about the Broadcaster Performance Envelope (BPE) stream, the CTF said that the BPE system is the right model for the Canadian television industry, and the fund committed to further refining the model.
“We will work together with all our contributors to determine the most appropriate way to report to them on the performance of the envelope system in achieving audience success,” said Creighton.
“The continued success of the television industry in Canada is a delicate balance that requires the contribution of all players to ensure its cultural and commercial success,” concluded Mr. Barrett. “Structural adjustments allowing contributors an alternative to opt-out of the system would cause a chain reaction that would disrupt that balance.”
