MONTREAL – A coalition of cultural organizations have banded together in “an urgent appeal” to press the federal government to shore up and protect Canada’s cultural and media industries in the digital era.
In a declaration entitled Continuity, Fairness, Support, the groups lay out three principles that they say should guide any new policy development, referencing Heritage Minister Joly’s pending CanCon policy review decisions as well as the Quebec government’s review of its cultural policy and digital strategy.
The emergence of Internet giants such as Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Spotify have further disrupted the culture and communications sectors that…
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Feds underscore support for CanCon ahead of fall’s ‘Canadian Content in a Digital World’ announcement
GATINEAU – Heeding the outcry from Canada’s creative community, the Governor in Council has ordered the CRTC to reconsider its group licence renewal decisions for large television broadcasters that, among other changes, lowered the amount that major broadcasters must spend on Programs of National Interest (PNI).
The rare move came late Monday, followed by a statement by Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly who said that the federal government wants the Commission to review its May decisions to renew the licenses for the television services of…
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Free preview during September
TORONTO — Canadian designer Sarah Richardson undertakes her most ambitious project yet in her latest series for HGTV Canada, premiering this fall. Sarah Off The Grid will follow Richardson and her family as they design and build an off-the-grid, sustainable dream home in Creemore, Ont.
Premiering Sunday, September 10 at 10 p.m. ET/PT during HGTV Canada’s free preview month, the six-part Sarah Off The Grid series offers an unvarnished look at Richardson’s day-to-day as she juggles being a business owner, a mother to her two young daughters Robin and Fiona, and now, the challenges of sharing the…
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OTTAWA – The Canadian Media Producers Association, Film Ontario, the Directors Guild of Canada, the Writers Guild of Canada, Unifor and 14 other trade groups and unions have banded together to continue to push Heritage Minster Mélanie Joly to overturn a recent CRTC decision which set spending on programs of national interest (PNI) at 5% of broadcaster revenues.
In an open letter to the minister printed this morning in The Hill Times newspaper, the creative groups and unions (some of which have already officially appealed to cabinet) amped up the pressure on the minster using the same…
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Creator community shares deep concerns about “devastating effects” of decisions
OTTAWA – Canada’s independent producers, performers and directors have petitioned Heritage Minister Joly to either set aside, or refer back, the CRTC’s group licence renewal decisions for large television broadcasters released last month.
The Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA), the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA), and the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) submitted a joint petition to the Minister Thursday, underscoring their shared concerns about the Commission’s decision to lower the amount that Bell Media, Rogers Media and Corus Entertainment must spend on Programs of National Interest…
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TORONTO – The Writers Guild of Canada is appealing to Cabinet to reject the CRTC’s “potentially disastrous” broadcast policy changes and licence renewals announced last month.
WGC said Tuesday that that the Commission’s decision to reduce Bell Media’s and Corus Entertainment’s minimum spending requirements on programs of national interest (PNI) have “created deep concern in the Canadian screenwriting community” because they cut private broadcaster funding to Canadian programs by 40% which the Guild says could lead to over $200 million in reduced broadcaster spending on Canadian shows over a five-year licence term.
“We appeal to Heritage Minister Mélanie…
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TORONTO – The Canadian Media Guild (CMG) not only applauded Heritage Minister Joly’s announcement of an independent advisory committee for appointments to the CBC/Radio-Canada Board of Directors, it offered a helping hand.
CMG, which represents a number of CBC staffers, wants a Board that includes employee representatives chosen by the public broadcaster's unions, a practice that it says has “proven invaluable” in other sectors and other countries.
“A committed and skilled Board of Directors, together with workers at CBC/Radio-Canada and all levels of management, owe the Canadian public nothing less – strong value in return for public investments including the…
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AS OF THIS WRITING, it appears the next CRTC chair will be an interim one – someone who will keep the lights on and the bills paid through the summer, at least.
It could be vice-chair telecom Peter Menzies (although according to sources he’s made it known to associates and others he does not want the job), one of the other four remaining commissioners (Yves Dupras, Stephen Simpson, Chris MacDonald and Linda Vennard) or perhaps the recently departed interim vice-chair broadcasting Judith LaRocque will be asked to return for another six-month stint, except this time as interim chair.
This was not…
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THE SUBSCRIPTION TELEVISION industry likes to say that outright cord-cutting (defined as when a consumer abandons a TV subscription altogether) is still a pretty small phenomenon.
So far, overall, that remains technically true. The latest numbers show about two percent of Canadian households with a TV subscription have chosen to cut the cord and stop subscribing to traditional TV. Generally, it’s been a story of “flat is the new up”, while inside of the likes of Rogers, Shaw, Cogeco, Bell and others, hardworking employees are doing their best to swallow hard every day and manage substantial…
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New FUN portal aims to revive its spirit
TORONTO – Ed the Sock creator Steven Kerzner and former MuchMusic staffers have created a new online channel aimed at reviving the energy of the old MuchMusic, which they say has been murdered.
(Ed note: Hmmm… That hilarious video to which the above link was supposed to take you was live earlier Wednesday but has now been taken down due to "a copyright claim by CTVglobemedia Inc.", which is odd because that company no longer exists, having long ago been replaced by Bell Media. In that video's place is a…
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