The CRTC has written a letter to SaskTel president and CEO Charlene Gavel asking for help in finding a solution to the problem of the telecom’s set-top boxes allegedly not being accessible to those of its maxTV customers who are blind or partially sighted.
The commission received a complaint from a blind SaskTel customer who said the company’s set-top boxes are not accessible because they are not compatible with screen-reading technology. Based on the information filed with the commission, it appears “that SaskTel has no plans to provide a set-top box that is accessible to those customers…
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A group of 11 organizations supporting community radio and television production in Canada has asked the CRTC to streamline its broadcasting consultation processes to enable participants to devote more time to the issues raised in those proceedings.
Three streamlining measures proposed by the group include: an e-mail subscription list enabling participants and parties interested in CRTC broadcasting proceedings to receive automatic notifications when the public record changes in a given proceeding; zip files collating interventions/comments and replies in proceedings when 10 or more comments or replies are filed; and earlier notification of invitations to appear at CRTC hearings, so that…
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The CRTC on Friday rejected a WildBrain application alleging Bell is disadvantaging its children’s programming to the benefit of Corus in the English-language markets.
Both Bell and Corus rejected the notion that there was any preferential treatment that disadvantaged WildBrain, as it sought to negotiate carriage with the large broadcaster.
That’s despite the commission finding that WildBrain and Corus have similar services, an important component to establish in an undue preference complaint. As a result of this determination, the commission said it found no need to get into whether there was any undue preference or disadvantage.
The commission urged…
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Nearly half of focus group respondents said a program’s country of origin didn’t matter
By Ahmad Hathout
The majority of Canadians can identify Canadian programming when looking for something to watch on cable, satellite or online streaming services, a new survey-based report commissioned by the CRTC found, while a larger majority chooses to watch content based on entertainment value and quality.
The “Perceptions of Canadian Programming and News” study, delivered last month by Ottawa-based Phoenix Strategic Perspectives Inc., found 60 per cent of surveyed Canadians said they could identify Canadian programming, 25 per cent said they could not, and 16 per cent…
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Radio broadcasters outraged at CRTC’s support for airplay quotas
By Howard Law, author of MediaPolicy.ca and Canada vs California: How Ottawa took on Netflix and the streaming giants (2024)
This week, the Canadian Association of Broadcasters let howl a primal scream of protest against the CRTC’s recent notice of consultation on radio broadcasting and audio streaming. In an open letter the CAB says the commission’s notice, full of “preliminary views” on key regulatory points, “absolutely missed the mark” and is so bad it should be rescinded and the CRTC should go back to the…
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The CRTC on Tuesday approved an application by Joel Lagacé, on behalf of a not-for-profit corporation to be incorporated, for a broadcasting licence to operate a low-power, English-language developmental community FM radio station in Cochrane, Ont., which has a large francophone official language minority community (OLMC).
The licence for the station — which will operate at 104.7 MHz with an average and maximum effective radiated power of 5 watts — will expire Aug. 31, 2029.
The applicant has proposed that the new station will broadcast 126 hours of local programming per broadcast week,…
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The CRTC has approved Arsenal Media’s acquisition of seven radio stations and one transmitter in Quebec from Bell Media.
The stations involved in the transaction include CFEI-FM Saint-Hyacinthe, CFVM-FM Amqui, CFZZ-FM Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, CHRD-FM and CJDM-FM Drummondville, CJOI-FM Rimouski, and CIKI-FM Rimouski and its transmitter CIKI-FM-2 Sainte-Marguerite-Marie.
As a standard condition of service, Arsenal is expected to broadcast at least 42 hours of local programming on each station during each broadcast week.
The commission’s approval of the transaction, with a proposed value of $8.46 million, requires Arsenal to contribute to the Canadian broadcasting system by paying tangible benefits totalling $507,684,…
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Bell says it will withdraw court app challenging lack of action on rate-setting before new attach rules
By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC on Tuesday made interim the current wholesale rates competitors pay to attach to the poles owned by Bell and Telus, paving the way for the setting of final rates that will apply retroactively.
The decision, effective today, locks in Bell’s current charges of $1.04 per pole per month in Ontario and Quebec and Telus’s going rate of $1.61 to do so in British Columbia and Alberta as the commission evaluates the telcos’ request to bump up those aging rates.
More importantly…
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By Connie Thiessen
The Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) and 25 of its radio members – including Rogers Sports & Media, Bell Media, Cogeco, Stingray, Pattison Media and Corus Entertainment – have written to the CRTC asking the commission to tear up its recent notice of consultation on updated rules for the radio and audio sector and start over.
Released on Feb. 20, the consultation will inform work to update the definition of what constitutes Canadian content on radio and audio streaming services. It also outlines a financial contribution framework for broadcasters that the CAB says suggests that…
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Dissenting opinion says process to alert competitors must be better
By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC approved Monday a proposal by Northwestel to offer former customers discounts on certain internet packages to bring them back on board.
The promotion, proposed in August, would apply to 12 new internet packages with unlimited data and would run for six months in the far north. Eligible customers are those who had previously been a Northwestel customer for at least a month, who have been gone for at least the same amount of time, and who have been subscribed to another service provider in Northwestel’s operating territory.
The…
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