TORONTO – ACTRA said that it is “concerned” by media reports that the government may offer financial support to local television programming, but not to the “struggling” CBC.
The Canadian Press and the Globe and Mail have reported that the federal government is considering a $150-million fund to help keep community TV in business, after national networks CTV and Global indicated recently that they were willing to walk away from money-losing TV stations in small markets rather than absorb further losses.
CTV has announced plans to close a station in Brandon and two outlets in Windsor and Wingham, ON, while…
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TORONTO – It’s a years-old Commission file that is over a pretty small amount of money when you consider the size of the companies involved, but Rogers Communications intends on going to court to resolve a six-year old battle over punctuation, contract rights, and paying a million dollars more for renting space on about 100,000 hydro poles in New Brunswick.
This week, the CRTC issued what will probably be its last decision on what’s become known as the “comma case”, effectively dismissing Rogers’ complaint yet again.
With the help of RCI’s EVP…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – The CRTC has announced that telecommunications service providers will no longer be asked to track or report certain data in order to lighten the reporting requirements.
"As part of our ongoing efforts to reduce the regulatory burden on the industry, we reviewed the value of the reports that are submitted to us," said Leonard Katz, the CRTC’s vice-chairman of telecommunications, in the announcement. "Today’s announcement is an example of how we continue to seek more efficient and proportionate ways of regulating the Canadian telecommunications industry."
Effective immediately, requirements such as reporting on pay telephone competition, telemarketing, and tracking…
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The 2009 Canadian Telecom Summit is fast approaching.
Held June 15 – 17 in Toronto, the event promises to cover all segments of the Canadian telecommunications and IT industries, and bring together leaders from all constituencies – service providers, manufacturers, applications providers, policy makers and regulators.
This year’s Summit will feature 17 keynote addresses, 70 speakers, three days of programming, plus networking opportunities with hundreds of industry leaders and customers.
Confirmed participants to date are Mike Lazaridis, president and co-CEO of Research In Motion, and Nadir Mohamed, president and CEO of Rogers Communications. The Chair of the CRTC, Konrad von…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC is asking for comments on the wording to its proposed amendments that range from allowing BDUs to use of new forms of targeted advertising, to who will contribute to the new Local Programming Improvement Fund.
The changes will impact present regulations contained in the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations, the Television Broadcasting Regulations (1987), the Pay Television Regulations (1990), and the Specialty Services Regulations (1990).
Comments are due by May 3, 2009, and all regulations are scheduled to come in to force on September 1, 2009.
To read the full notice, click here.
www.crtc.gc.ca
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OTTAWA – The CRTC is asking for comments on the exemption order for smaller broadcasting distribution undertakings (BDUs) serving fewer than 20,000 subscribers.
As set out in Broadcasting Public Notice 2008-100 last October, the CRTC has also asked for input on the information to be provided by exempt undertakings, and feedback on the specific criteria to be used in determining what constitutes a "discrete operation" for exemption purposes.
Comments are due by May 6, and the deadline for submitting replies is May 27 2009.
For more on the notice of consultation, click here.
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has released its review of the broadcasting services in English and French linguistic minority communities in Canada.
The hearing began on January 13, after receiving public comments last November as it requested in Broadcasting Notice of Public Hearing 2008-12.
At issue was the availability of English- and French-language broadcasting services across all broadcasting platforms and distribution systems, and assurance that the diversity of these communities is reflected throughout the Canadian broadcasting system.
The Commission further identified three issues relating to the specific communities involved:
– the availability and quality of English- and French-language broadcasting…
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OTTAWA and GATINEAU – The CRTC has launched an online consultation to gather views on Internet traffic management practices.
Referencing the popularity of video streaming and peer-to-peer networking, the Commission’s press release said that some Internet service providers (ISPs) maintain that this growth in traffic can cause congestion, especially during peak times, which has led to some ISPs managing the flow of traffic on their networks or adopting "new business models".
The CRTC said that it will examine “the current practices of ISPs operating in Canada”, plus those that could be adopted in the future. The proceeding’s main objective is to determine…
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OTTAWA – Quebecor Media’s Sun TV and TVA Group, and Canwest Television have received CRTC approval to be governed by the new Journalistic Independence Code established by the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC).
The code, which was approved by the Commission in Broadcasting Public Notice 2008-95 last October, ensures a diversity of editorial voices in companies where there could be issues around cross-media ownership.
The move means that the networks are no longer subject to the CRTC-imposed Statement of Principles and Practices which was included as a condition of license, so long they remain members in good standing of the CBSC.
The…
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TORONTO – Canwest Broadcasting interim president Peter Viner told staff in a memo today that while there has been interest in the company’s small chain of E!-branded TV stations, it will wait until after this summer to decide what it will do with the stations.
With employees reporting recent visits to some of the TV stations by several “anonymous suits,” one such employee told Cartt.ca Viner likely felt it was time to re-address the troops and provide an update. Canwest announced earlier this year that it is attempting to sell the stations [Hamilton (CHCH), Victoria (CHEK), Montreal (CJNT),…
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