OTTAWA-GATINEAU – The Weather Network and MétéoMédia have had their broadcasting licences renewed for a full seven years after pledging to continue to work towards finalizing a national emergency alert system in Canada.
The CRTC said Friday that the two weather services must continue to be offered as part of the basic television package, including the digital basic service, through 2018 provided that parent company Pelmorex Communications:
– ensures that the appropriate federal, provincial and territorial organizations, including Environment Canada, are authorized to issue alerts through its system by January 1, 2012;
– takes all necessary steps to ensure the participation of broadcasters and broadcasting distributors in the provision of emergency alerts to Canadians, and;
– spends at least $1 million per year, over a two-year period, on a national campaign to increase public awareness of the alerting system.
At its public hearing in February, Pelmorex committed to improve the ability of The Weather Network and MétéoMédia to provide weather forecasts, road safety information and other important messages to viewers.
During this new licence term, the company said that it will create three new regional feeds by December 1, 2012; launch high-definition versions of the two services; increase the amount allocated to the production of Canadian programming to at least 44% of its annual gross revenues; and, ensure that its programming continues to be 100% Canadian.
The CRTC is backing the creation of a national system designed to quickly warn Canadians of severe storms and other events that could endanger lives. In 2009, it authorized Pelmorex to collect emergency alerts and distribute them to participating cable and satellite systems, television and radio broadcasters and other media outlets. Pelmorex created the National Alert Aggregation and Dissemination System (NAAD) in 2010 which gives authorized users the ability to disseminate emergency alerts to the public through various media outlets.
