Between 2019-20 and 2023-24, English-language minority film and television production in Canada fell by nearly 40 per cent, according to a report released Tuesday by the Quebec English-language Production Council (QEPC).
The QEPC commissioned Nordicity to undertake the research for the report, which was produced with the participation of the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA), Telefilm Canada, the Department of Canadian Heritage, the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) and ACTRA Montreal.
The Canadian Official Language Minority Audio-Visual Production Report 1996-97 to 2023-24 is a 28-year quantitative study that examines data on official language minority community (OLMC) Canadian content production,…
Continue Reading
By Ahmad Hathout
A paper published in the Canadian Bar Review last spring that called federal jurisdiction over online streamers “suspect” was studied by Canadian Heritage, according to heavily redacted briefing material obtained by Cartt, and the author believes the Online Streaming Act is “inevitably going to be challenged” on that basis.
Michael Ryan, a lawyer specializing in Canadian telecommunications and broadcasting law and regulation, told Cartt in an interview that he was “expecting, frankly, somebody to come forward and challenge this law before now they inevitably will.
“It’ll be an American streaming company or somebody else who feels that they’d…
Continue Reading
By Doug Barrett, adjunct professor in the Arts, Media & Entertainment MBA Program at the Schulich School of Business
On June 3, Culture Minister Marc Miller scored an own goal on Canadian cultural sovereignty by announcing that the government will develop new policy directions to the CRTC to “adjust” the implementation of the Online Streaming Act, presumably by scrapping the requirement that foreign online undertakings make financial contributions to the production of Canadian programming.
This move — just 21 days after the CRTC decided to increase their financial obligation to the system — constituted a…
Continue Reading
Eastlink announced Thursday the expansion of its internet services to communities in New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador using the wholesale fibre regime.
The communities in New Brunswick include Moncton, Fredericton, Saint John, Miramichi, Tracadie and Bathurst and the capital city St. John’s in Newfoundland.
Eastlink already has its own mobile network in these communities, which it plans to bundle with these new internet services.
“The current wholesale regulatory framework has caused us to consider different ways of expanding our service footprint where investing in building new networks is no longer viable,” CEO Jeff Gillham said in a press release. “This includes…
Continue Reading
The Quebec English-language Production Council (QEPC) announced last month the launch of its inaugural QEPC Market Access Program, a new initiative designed to help emerging English-language producers in Quebec gain access to Canada’s major film and television markets.
QEPC announced the first cohort selected for the program, which is supported by the Canada Media Fund’s Sector Development Support Program and the Bell Fund’s Industry Development Program. The initiative benefits from in-kind support from BANFF World Media Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival, who are supporting the cohort through discounted and free accreditation access for participants, respectively.
The program was created…
Continue Reading
By Howard Law, author of MediaPolicy.ca and Canada vs. California: How Ottawa took on Netflix and the streaming giants (Lorimer, 2024)
This week’s announcement by Culture Minister Marc Miller that the federal government is striking down the CRTC’s ruling on streamer contributions to Canadian content is perhaps more shocking in its timing than its substance.
After all, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government has an appetite for jettisoning government policy that he considers unwanted baggage. Recall the climb down from the Digital Services Tax, the carbon tax, and the suite of Trudeau-era environmental policies.
Miller will be sending…
Continue Reading
The Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) and award-winning film and TV producer Don Carmody announced Wednesday a new partnership to launch a co-production mentorship program, supported by a $100,000 commitment from Carmody.
The CMPA Don Carmody International Co-Production Mentorship Program will fund one producer annually over the next 10 years to participate in a 20-week paid mentorship placement. Designed specifically to provide hands-on, on-the-job training on international co-production projects, the initiative will help participants develop their business, creative and technical abilities under the guidance of seasoned Canadian producers, said a CMPA press release.
“International co-productions…
Continue Reading
Announces $600M in new money for broadcasting system
By Ahmad Hathout and Linda Stuart
Culture Minister Marc Miller announced Wednesday that he is directing the CRTC to review its recent decision to regulate online streamers and Canadian broadcasters, which sets out mandatory contributions toward the broadcasting system.
The CRTC’s new requirements, which raises to 15 per cent the financial obligation on foreign streamers, “would impose new costs on the companies providing these services, which could ultimately fall on Canadian consumers through higher prices,” said a Canadian Heritage press release Wednesday. The regulator…
Continue Reading
By Eric Smith, senior vice president of the Canadian Telecommunications Association
On May 20, the Canadian Telecommunications Association and GSMA co-hosted Connecting Canada, a one-day conference in Ottawa bringing together policymakers, industry leaders, investors, technology experts, and global stakeholders for an important discussion about the future of connectivity in Canada.
The timing of the event could not have been more significant.
As telecommunications networks become increasingly central to Canada’s economy, productivity, public safety, resilience, and digital sovereignty, an important question is emerging: how does Canada continue to sustain the large-scale private investment required to support growing connectivity demands in an increasingly challenging…
Continue Reading
The Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) announced Tuesday the appointment of Sean Porter to the position of senior vice president of national industrial relations and general counsel.
In his expanded role, Porter will advise on employment, privacy and policy matters at the CMPA as a member of its senior leadership team. He will also continue to lead the CMPA’s industrial relations strategy, overseeing negotiations, key relationships and the organization’s national industrial relations team while ensuring effective management of legal and reputational risk, the CMPA said in a press release announcing Porter’s promotion.
Porter joined the CMPA in 2018…
Continue Reading
