Disappointment expressed by multiple groups that the order does not mention Tandem
OTTAWA – Cabinet has referred the CBC’s licence renewal decision back to the CRTC.
The CRTC issued the decision renewing the licences for the Corporation’s English- and French-language audiovisual and audio services this past June. Following this, the Governor in Council received 16 petitions asking for the decision to be set aside or referred back to the Commission.
The petitioners raised concerns about the CRTC giving the CBC flexibility to transfer its programming requirements to online platforms, about the CBC’s commercial activities including Tandem, its branded content initiative,…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – Today and yesterday witnesses stressed the importance of getting Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Act, right to members of the Standing Senate Committee on Transport and Communications – right for both broadcasters navigating a changing media landscape and for content creators who have built careers around the way things work online now.
Brad Danks, CEO of OUTtv spoke about the difficulties they have faced negotiating carriage on some online platforms and specified what he believes is needed is for the CRTC to be a backstop in the online environment as it currently is for Canada’s traditional broadcasting system.
“We…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – The CRTC today released a notice of consultation for requests made last year by Nunavut Independent Television Network (NITV) and Natyf Inc. for mandatory distribution of their discretionary services, Uvagut TV and Natyf TV respectively, as part of the digital basic service.
The consultation will be held on Jan. 10, 2023, at 11 a.m.
NITV, which proposed a monthly persubscriber wholesale rate of $0.09 for five years, is applying for mandatory distribution across Canada while Natyf, which proposed a rate of $0.12 for five years, is asking for mandatory distribution in Quebec only.
Uvagut TV is an Indigenous-language discretionary service…
Continue Reading
Canadians don’t want government interference in our online experience. Simple surgery on Bill C-11 would help our creative economy keep flourishing.
By Irene Berkowitz
PUBLIC DEBATE ON Bill C-11, The Online Streaming Act, is nearing completion. In June, the bill passed the House of Commons. It’s being studied by the Standing Senate Committee on Transport and Communications; testimony concludes on Wednesday.
This bill impacts all Canadian content creators, both new and legacy media; the stakes are high to get this right. Some simple surgery on C-11 would go far toward allowing our burgeoning creative economy to continue flourishing.
At a C-11 conference last…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – The CRTC today announced it will hold a hearing Nov. 18, 2022, at 11 a.m. to consider applications from Stingray Group Inc. and Douglas Martin (on behalf of a corporation to be incorporated).
The Stingray application is for a broadcasting licence to operate Stingray HITS, its national English-language discretionary service devoted to music television programming with a focus on popular music videos from the past 20 years.
The CRTC’s notice of public hearing explains the service, which has been operating since July 2021, has had more than 210,000 subscribers for over three consecutive months, which makes it ineligible to…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – In a response last week to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage’s May 2022 report on the impact of the proposed merger of Rogers Communications and Shaw Communications on local news, heritage minister Pablo Rodriguez suggested there is enough being done already to mitigate the potential negative impacts highlighted in the report.
The minister acknowledged the Canadian broadcasting system is facing a time of “significant transformation”.
“Canadians’ viewing habits are shifting online, and service providers are adapting to compete within Canada and with service providers from around the world,” his response reads. “The proposed transaction is taking place against…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) last week refused an application for spectrum licences in Manitoba to be transferred from Xplore Mobile Inc. to Telus Communications.
The application included licences in the Broadband Radio Service (BRS), Advanced Wireless Services (AWS-1) and Mobile Broadband Services (MBS) bands.
“The proposed transfer raised substantial concerns that the resulting concentration of spectrum would impede the ability of future mobile competitors to provide wireless services and effectively compete in Manitoba,” reads the decision, which adds the “proposed transfer is contrary to ISED’s policy objective for spectrum management.”
Xplore Mobile announced this past July…
Continue Reading
By Denis Carmel
OTTAWA – In another session of the pre-study of Bill C-11 today, the Senate Transport and Communications Committee heard from some of the web giants and their issues with the Online Streaming Act seemed a little clearer.
Representatives from Spotify, The Walt Disney Company and the Digital Media Association (DiMA), which represents the interests of Amazon, Apple, Google, Pandora, Spotify and YouTube, made presentations and answered questions from the senators.
Three issues were underlined: discoverability, CanCon and, in a related fashion but more subtly, IP rights.
Don’t touch my algorithms!
While DiMA president and CEO Garrett Levin recognized the act does not…
Continue Reading
Privacy commissioner says there could be privacy concerns, other witnesses claim CRTC does not have capacity to implement bill
By Amanda Oye
OTTAWA – Bill C-11, which aims to update Canada’s broadcasting legislation, is consistent with Canada’s international trade obligations, Darren Smith, Global Affairs Canada executive director, technical barriers and regulations, told the senate’s transport and communications committee during the first of two meetings held today as part of its study on the subject matter of the bill.
This includes its commitments under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, Smith added.
Back in July, United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai met with Mary…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – Consolidation on the wholesale front in Canada’s telecom industry is not reducing competition, Bell’s executive vice-president and chief financial officer Glen LeBlanc (above, right) told BMO Capital Markets media and telecom analyst Tim Casey (above, left) at BMO’s 23rd annual Media and Telecom conference yesterday.
“There’s a very large reseller market… I think there’s 950 competitors in Canada,” LeBlanc said. “The barriers to entry are minimal, the largest is still in business – TekSavvy – and appears to have zero intention of selling.”
LeBlanc’s appearance at BMO’s conference comes not long after Bell announced it reached an agreement to…
Continue Reading
