By Ahmad Hathout
The Canada Media Fund (CMF) says it is committing to expanding funding eligibility to online streamers and international distributors in what it calls a “meaningful evolution in who gets a seat at the table.”
The fund says it wants to “remove barriers” to the money “for a wider range of creators, platforms, and partners,” which also includes indigenous and equity-deserving communities. This comes as the CRTC works to integrate streamers into the broadcasting system and having them get more involved in Canadian productions.
The CMF goal falls under the “maximize” portion of a four-part, three-year strategic plan, released Thursday.
“The…
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MP Champoux says CBC head still needs to explain the strategy for the channel’s distribution
By Ahmad Hathout
Following backlash, Radio-Canada said Friday it has asked Amazon to stop taking subscriptions for its ICI RDI on Prime Video until it can offer the 24-hour French-language news channel on its own ICI Tou.TV service.
“Sensitive to public concerns expressed following its announcement of the distribution agreement for ICI RDI on Prime Video, Radio-Canada has asked Prime Video to pause the channel’s signal for new subscriptions,” the public broadcaster said in a press release Friday afternoon. “This will allow the public broadcaster to…
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CBC says it’s listening to concerns, but expounds on why it did the deal
By Ahmad Hathout
The Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage will call the president and CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada to explain the public broadcaster’s decision to make its news products available on Amazon Prime Video as add-on subscriptions.
A motion, introduced by Bloc Quebecois MP Martin Champoux, to bring Marie-Philippe Bouchard before the committee was received favourably by the Liberals and Conservatives and passed at the end of the committee’s study session Tuesday on the state of journalism and media.
A date for Bouchard’s appearance will be determined later. The committee…
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By Ahmad Hathout
A coalition of independent television stations has submitted an application to the CRTC requesting the regulator compel Meta to come to the bargaining table after alleging the social media giant has been hosting news programming without paying.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, said it had banned Canadian news on its platforms after the Online News Act, which requires technology platforms to pay to link that content, became law in 2023. Late last year, the CRTC said it acknowledged measures taken by the company to comply with the law Continue Reading
Since its launch in May 2019, the Local Journalism Initiative (LJI) has provided nearly $111.7 million in funding to support the creation of original local journalism in underserved Canadian communities, according to information provided Monday in the House of Commons by the Department of Canadian Heritage in response to a question from Conservative MP Andrew Scheer in November.
LJI funding recipients include the Canadian Association of Community Television Users and Stations (CACTUS), Community Radio Fund of Canada, National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada, News Media Canada, Quebec Community Newspapers Association, Réseau.Presse, Consortium…
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The Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (CDCE) announced last week it will hold a one-day event on artificial intelligence and the creative industries, taking place on Feb. 11 at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa.
Titled “Valuing Human Creativity in the Age of AI”, the gathering will bring together Canadian, Indigenous and international perspectives to explore the impact of artificial intelligence on the creative industries and to foster collective reflection on the transformations currently underway, a CDCE press release said.
“Designed as a space for dialogue and the sharing of expertise, the day…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Apple has filed a letter to the Federal Court of Appeal requesting that the panel of justices review a recent CRTC decision that it believes could bolster its challenge to the commission’s own base contribution ruling.
In the letter dated December 11, the tech giant alleges that the CRTC has handicapped the attorney general – its legal counsel at the court – by stating in paragraph 4 of its November decision on the definition of Canadian content that the commission believes defining such programs is “a necessary step before establishing financial or…
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The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) announced Wednesday it has joined the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF), a global community of organizations dedicated to preserving and sharing the world’s film heritage.
Founded in 1938, FIAF brings together major non-profit film archives to collaborate and share knowledge.
“Membership in this prestigious federation reflects the NFB’s expertise in digitization, restoration and conservation — work that lies at the heart of its mission as Canada’s public film producer and distributor for more than 80 years,” an NFB press release said.
“We are extremely…
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Creative group highlights Guilbeault’s impact on culture
By Ahmad Hathout
Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault announced Thursday night that he resigned from cabinet over his government’s deal with Alberta to build a pipeline project that he says will fall short of climate change goals and that disturb initiatives he put forward as environment and climate change minister.
The memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the federal government and Alberta, announced earlier that day, stipulates that the province will build one or more private sector-constructed and financed pipelines “with at least one million barrels a day of low emission Alberta bitumen with a route that…
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By Howard Law, author of MediaPolicy.ca and Canada vs. California: How Ottawa took on Netflix and the streaming giants (Lorimer, 2024)
In October 2022, Netflix appeared at the Senate committee reviewing the proposed Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Act, when the Conservative senator Fabian Manning pitched a softball question: What was the Hollywood giant’s “main priority” in amending a bill it didn’t welcome?
The Canadian spokesperson for the streamer was succinct in his answer: “If I had to choose just one, it would be the issue of copyright ownership.”
Last week, Netflix got what it wanted.
The CRTC’s Continue Reading
