OTTAWA – The phrase ‘you win some, you lose some’ rang true this week for Sun News Network after it won one application for final offer arbitration with Telus, but lost another such application with Rogers.
In final offer arbitration, the Commission examines the final offers submitted by the parties and selects one in its entirety. The Commission’s decision is binding on the parties, though in rare instances, where neither offer is in the public interest, the Commission may reject both offers.
In its decision between Sun News Network (SNN) and Telus, the Commission said that it considered rates paid by unaffiliated BDUs for the programming service; rates paid for programming services of similar value to consumers; and the number of subscribers who subscribe to a package in part or in whole due to the inclusion of the programming service in that package to be factors relevant to an assessment of the commercial reasonableness of the proposals. It selected SNN’s offer, which sets the wholesale rates for the distribution of SNN by Telus.
In its second decision, between SNN and Rogers, the Commission focussed on historical rates; rates paid by unaffiliated BDUs for the programming service; rates paid for programming services of similar value to consumers; and the number of subscribers who subscribe to a package in part or in whole due to the inclusion of the programming service in that package. It chose Rogers’ offer.
