TORONTO – The Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) issued a strongly-worded letter
Thursday, calling upon Canadian Heritage Minister Josée Verner to revoke part of an
omnibus bill now before the Senate that would only allow tax credit support for a film or
television production if the production is not “contrary to public policy”.
“This provision is open to such a wide array of interpretations that it would have a
dampening effect on artistic expression and, of equal if not greater importance, would
discourage investment in an already under-resourced Canadian Film and television
production sector,” said Brian Anthony, the Guild’s…
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TORONTO – ACTRA has blasted the Conservative government over amendments to the omnibus bill C-10 which it says would allow the Canadian Heritage Minister to deny tax credits to film and television products it doesn’t like.
ACTRA National Executive Director Stephen Waddell suggested the Conservative government wants to set itself up “as the country’s morality police” through the proposed measures that would allow it to pull financial aid for any film or television show it believes is not in the public interest. The bill is now before the Senate.
“The government is overstepping its bounds and interfering in an…
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OTTAWA – Linda Black, Mary McNeil, and Brian Mitchell have been added to the board of directors of CBC/Radio-Canada announced Josee Verner, Minister of Canadian Heritage, Status of Women and Official Languages.
"The varied backgrounds and experiences of these three individuals will be great assets," said Minister Verner in a release. None of the new board members are broadcasters.
Black has worked in various senior executive government roles and served as the founding general counsel at the University of Calgary. She is currently a member of the Alberta Secretariat for Action on Homelessness, a member of the Law Enforcement…
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OTTAWA – CRTC chair Konrad von Finckenstein didn’t touch much on the Canadian Television Fund (CTF), but did announce Thursday morning that the Commission would hold a hearing on new media in the fall or winter.
“I have nothing to say on that subject today, except that our decision and recommendations will be released in a timely manner,” von Finckenstein told a room of producers and other delegates at the Canadian Film and Television Production Association (CFTPA)’s Prime Time annual conference in Ottawa.
Canadian Heritage minister Josee Verner in a speech Friday night that kicked off the conference…
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OTTAWA – The answer to the question of what’s going to happen to the Canadian Television Fund won’t be coming from the CRTC after all.
Less than two weeks after hearings into the fund and a CRTC task force report written on it late last year, the federal government announced late Wednesday it will decide what to do.
In her speech marking the opening of the Canadian Film and Television Producers Association 2008 Conference, “Prime Time” Minister of Canadian Heritage, Status of Women and Official Languages, Josee Verner said that while it wants recommendations from the CRTC, which took…
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OTTAWA – Minister of Industry Jim Prentice has been “about to” introduce new copyright legislation for about three months now at least, according to Ottawa sources.
Perhaps March will be the month it happens…
In the meantime, the Business Coalition for Balanced Copyright has submitted a position paper to the minister “urging the government to strike a balance in copyright reform that reflects the needs of users and creators,” says its letter.
Besides the members in the headline, the BCBC also includes smaller stakeholders like EastLink, Cogeco Cable, SaskTel, the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association and the Retail Council of…
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OTTAWA – Marc Patrone has been hired as a full-time member of the CRTC announced Josée Verner, Minister of Canadian Heritage, Status of Women and Official Languages, today.
“I’m delighted to welcome Mr. Patrone to the CRTC," said Minister Verner, in a release. "During his career, he has been involved in numerous aspects of television news-gathering and production. His experience will greatly benefit the CRTC."
Patrone has been involved in the broadcasting industry for a number of years, says the release. His professional experience includes service as a producer-writer with the Atlantic Television System; a writer-broadcaster with Broadcast News/Canadian…
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OTTAWA – Tara Rajan will join the CAB February 25 to oversee Canadian Association of Broadcasters research and intelligence gathering, to provide economic analysis in support of regulatory and policy proposals, and to work with the CAB Board and committees on the development of policy and positioning, the association has announced.
Rajan’s background in the broadcasting and media industries includes serving as the first executive director of the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council, as vice-chair and public adjudicator on the CBSC’s Québec and National Specialty Services panels, and on the CBSC’s National Executive. She has held research and policy positions…
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GATINEAU – The Canadian Television Fund should be split in two: one with public money to meet government policy objectives, and the other with private money to support hit shows, Rogers Communications told the CRTC on Tuesday morning.
During day two of the week-long hearing into the CTF’s revenue and governance models, executives told commissioners that increasingly the CTF—originally the Cable Production Fund supported entirely by the cable industry—“is viewed as a public policy instrument for the Canadian government” instead of a way to encourage broadcasters to air popular shows, said Rogers’ Vice Chairman Phil Lind.
To qualify for…
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A coalition of creators wants the Copyright Act to be changed so that Internet Service Providers share in the responsibility of the content that customers circulate on their networks. The coalition in a paper released earlier this week called for ISPs to share in the liability for copyright infringement when it neglects to withdraw illegal content after being advised of its presence by the copyright holder.
Specifically, the coalition wants the law changed so that ISPs aren’t allowed to sanction or encourage the public to use telecommunication services to distribute content without the appropriate compensation to creators and copyright owners….
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