OTTAWA – Tom Pentefountas, the recently appointed vice-chair of broadcasting at the CRTC, stood firm as opposition MPs on the Standing Committee of Canadian Heritage questioned his ability to fulfill the responsibilities of the position.
He said all the right words in his opening remarks, highlighting the challenges facing the CRTC in the face of convergence and the new realities on online viewing. “Convergence is on the verge of erasing the dividing line between broadcasting and telecommunications,” he said. “That is one of our greatest challenges.
“Moreover, to face this new reality, the CRTC must implement 25 year old legislation….
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OTTAWA – The CRTC will hold a proceeding to review the local, wireless, and toll network interconnection regulatory regimes.
In a notice of hearing issued on Wednesday, the Commission said that the principle objectives of this proceeding are to determine to what extent:
– existing interconnection regimes can be simplified and consolidated;– changes are necessary to enhance competition and, thus, benefit consumers; and– changes are necessary to ensure technological neutrality.
The proceeding will include a public hearing in Gatineau beginning on October 24 and is expected to last approximately five days. Should additional time be required, the hearing…
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OTTAWA – Granted, it’s just another in the thousands of oft-ignored parliamentary committee reports, but a new one released today by the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage wants the CRTC to hold a public hearing about whether or not the likes of Netflix, Google TV, Apple TV, etc., should be contributing funds to the Canadian television industry.
The report, “Impacts Of Private Television Ownership Changes And The Move Towards New Viewing Platforms,” was informed by five fall 2010 meeting days which heard from 21 witnesses representing Canadian media companies (big and small), carriers, producers, Continue Reading
OTTAWA-GATINEAU – Canadians wishing to switch providers for their television, home telephone, wireless or Internet services will find the process a little easier thanks to a change in CRTC policy on Friday.
Consumers will now be able to switch service providers simply by calling the new provider, who can then make all arrangements to have the services transferred over on behalf of the customer. The Commission said that all customer transfers be completed within two business days, except for wireless service where transfers must be completed within 2.5 hours.
Consumers may also cancel their services by contacting their current service provider…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – Conventional television stations must kick off their national awareness campaign on the pending digital transition by May 1, 2011, the CRTC said Friday.
Broadcasters that are required to make the transition must air public service announcements at least six times per day, and at least 25% must be shown in prime time, between 7:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. The announcements must be at least 30 seconds long, be closed captioned, contain audio descriptions of on-screen information and include the following elements:
– a statement to the effect that the Canadian television system is in the process of converting its over-the-air transmitters…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC is asking for comments on whether to remove the expiry date contained in its general authorization to down-convert digital-only television signals beyond the digital transition.
The Commission said Tuesday that the original motive for the introduction of the down-conversion rules was to avoid disruption among analog and standard definition BDU subscribers as a result of the U.S. conversion to digital over-the-air transmission in June 2009. However, the Commission noted that after the over-the-air digital transition occurs in Canada, a large number of BDUs will continue to distribute signals in analog, SD and high definition, and that continuing…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has called for comments on amendments to the current radio regulations.
The Commission said Friday that the amendments, which would come into effect on September 1st, reflect determinations made in its proceeding on the regulatory framework for campus and community radio. In that policy, the Commission noted that its objective was to establish a single policy for campus and community radio that takes into account the differences in the two types of stations where appropriate.
Comments are due April 11, 2011.
www.crtc.gc.ca
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – The CRTC has decided to open its review of wholesale Internet access services to the public.
In an annoucement on Friday, the Commission said that Canadians will have an opportunity to share their views at a public hearing starting on July 11 in Gatineau, or through an on-line consultation. It will release more details on both the hearing and consultation shortly.
The scope of the proceeding will not be limited to reviewing usage-based billing proposals, as the CRTC said that it intends to focus on issues such as:– usage-based charges, whether aggregated between the small Internet service providers (small ISPs)…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has asked for comments over a review of the regulatory measure associated with the provision of detailed monthly billing statements to customers.
Parties interested in participating in this proceeding must notify the Commission by March 21 and all comments are due by April 18, 2011. The CRTC said that it expects to publish a decision on the issues raised in this notice within 120 days of the close of record.
www.crtc.gc.ca
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has agreed with a decision made by the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) over a complaint about the broadcast of a show called Bully Beatdown on MTV Canada.
Bully Beatdown is a reality program hosted by Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) champion Jason “Mayhem” Miller that allows victims of bullying to get even with their bullies by inviting those bullies to compete against a real MMA fighter. After receiving a complaint about the show from a viewer, the CBSC issued a decision last July which determined that the show did not breach the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ violence code.
But…
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