LONDON – Saying the Commission can not and will not tear down what’s working now in favour of what’s coming in the future, CRTC chairman Jean-Pierre Blais announced this morning that local TV stations have to keep running their OTA transmitters – and that simultaneous substitution is here to stay – with some tough new rules.
However, simsub will be eliminated for Super Bowls, beginning with the 2016 National Football League season. The local television decisions announced today by the chairman are part of the Regulator’s conclusions from the 15-month-long Let’s Talk TV policy review launched in the fall of 2013.
In a speech to the London Chamber of Commerce this morning, chairman Blais outlined five major roles played by TV stations:
- Their news and information programming “is a pillar that supports our democracy,” he said.
- By providing emergency alerts, TV “helps keep us safe and secure.”
- By delivering the world to our homes, “it connects us to our world.”
- By creating jobs and allowing businesses to advertise, “it contributes to economic growth.”
- Through its Canadian content, television “is a foundation for Canadian creative talent,” he said.
Blais noted that more and more Canadians are watching TV in a variety of ways on any number of devices, demanding their content be made available to them whenever and wherever they want, and he recognized the CRTC must adapt its regulations to the way electronic media is changing. “The regulatory framework – which we are transforming – must foster true innovation if Canadian broadcasters want to successfully compete for Canadian and international audiences over the long term,” he said.
However, a great number of Canadians still prefer the traditional way of watching video content and don’t want what they can get now to change (the chairman likened the new ways and old ways to bridges. Some will prefer to drive the brand new one, others will stick to the existing bridge).
“As these viewers change their habits – as providers innovate – traffic will migrate away from the old bridge and onto the new one. Eventually, it will stop flowing altogether over the old bridge, and we can tear that structure down. But for the next few years, we will need both,” he said.
Blais brought with him a small selection of digital OTA TV antennas calling them “magic devices” which will deliver a far better picture than any coming from a cable, satellite or IPTV provider, “for the low monthly rate of zero dollars.” In London, TV viewers there can pick up about eight signals (although just a single local one, Bell Media’s CFPL-TV.
“As we increasingly look to new television delivery models, we must be mindful not to forget about the essential public service provided by over-the-air television, the critical connection it forges with audiences. We should also keep in mind that 97% of Canadians live within range of a transmitter,” he said.
And, during the Let’s Talk TV proceedings, 95% of Canadians told the CRTC they did not want to see OTA TV shut down, even though some station owners, as well as the Commission itself, proposed it. “This is not surprising when you consider that over 40% of viewing between 7 and 11 p.m. in the English-language market and over 50% in the French-language market is to local television stations,” Blais said. “What’s more, news programming aired by local stations boasts a 40% viewing share. And the vast majority of Canadians that responded to our public opinion survey considered local news to be important.”
“The next few years could yield renewed interest for OTA broadcasting, especially in urban areas where eye-popping image quality, channel selection and, of course, the absence of cost, could convince more consumers that they need not be enslaved to cable and satellite service providers if they want to enjoy high-quality television programming.” – Jean-Pierre Blais, CRTC
So, in order to keep privileges like the fact subscription TV companies must carry all local signals in a market and the ability to demand simultaneous substitution, the transmitters must stay on for the foreseeable future.
Besides, Blais added, “The next few years could yield renewed interest for OTA broadcasting, especially in urban areas where eye-popping image quality, channel selection and, of course, the absence of cost, could convince more consumers that they need not be enslaved to cable and satellite service providers if they want to enjoy high-quality television programming.”
And speaking of that simsub privilege, it’s staying, save one big game, and with some new teeth. Viewers dislike the practice of simultaneously substituting the Canadian signal over the American one on the U.S. broadcast channels, and they especially hate it during the Super Bowl – since the famous and infamous American ads are not delivered to Canadian audiences – and during other live events where the simsub is still inexplicably botched, even after decades of practice, leading to missed plays and angry viewers.
“Why must our creators take second-class seats?” – Blais
And no one likes the fact that Canadian TV schedules are beholden to the changes made by those running Fox, CBS, ABC and NBC, since Global, CTV and Citytv all shuffle their schedules to make sure they are aligned for simsub. “Too often, Canadian programs are shuffled around the television grid – relegated to less attractive time slots or secondary networks – to accommodate the scheduling whims of American network executives. Why must our creators take second-class seats?” asked the chairman.
Before and after the Super Bowl is when the CRTC receives its most complaints – from Canadians angry they are not able to see the American commercials, which have become as anticipated as the game itself. So as of the 2016 NFL season, Canadian broadcasters will not be able to simsub the Super Bowl.
However, “whether you love simsub or hate it, it’s unfortunately here to stay,” he added. “At our hearing last fall, the evidence clearly showed that the revenue it generates helps broadcasters create jobs and develop Canadian creative talent. In other words, it’s too intertwined to remove entirely without upsetting the existing business model.” The revenue is estimated anywhere between $250 million and $400 million.
However, the CRTC is going to take a hard new approach to simsub mistakes. Blais called it the Commission’s new “zero tolerance policy” for big mistakes. If a Canadian “cuts back to an NFL game late and causes viewers to miss a play, it could be forced to pay rebates to viewers for its mistake,” he said. “If an OTA station makes the same error, it could lose the privilege to request simsub for future broadcasts of major live events, such as other football games, for a period of time.
“I cannot believe that every broadcaster does not have the wherewithal to execute simsub flawlessly.” – Blais
“We need Canadians to be ever vigilant about simsub errors. If you see a mistake, let us know. And if we are convinced over the long term that broadcasters are unable to execute simsub flawlessly, we will revoke that privilege,” he continued.
“It’s as simple as that. In this day and age when technology allows us to wear computers, put a Canadarm in space and land a satellite on a comet, I cannot believe that every broadcaster does not have the wherewithal to execute simsub flawlessly. There will be no more sleeping at the switch.”
Blais also fired what could be interpreted as a warning to those TV executives who wanted to shut off transmitters and create a new funding formula for local TV. Basically, he told them they have an obligation to the public good that supersedes profits.
“Media moguls are indeed allowed to be worried about profits, but both the public and private shareholders of broadcasting assets have a duty to ensure that news reporting and analysis continues to be properly funded,” warned the chairman. “This is to ensure that Canadians, as citizens, understand events occurring around them every day. An informed citizenry cannot be the sacrificial offering on the altar of corporate profits or deficit reduction.”
More decisions from the Commission’s Let’s Talk TV process will be announced in the coming weeks and months.
