ARCHIVED - Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2002-74

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Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2002-74

Ottawa, 19 November 2002

Amendments to the Exemption order for small cable undertakings

Background

1.

In this notice the Commission amends the Exemption order for small cable undertakings, appended to Exemption order respecting cable systems having fewer than 2,000 subscribers, Public Notice CRTC 2001-121, 7 December 2001.

2.

In Licence renewal for CPAC; and issuance of a distribution order, Decision CRTC 2002-377 of today's date (Decision 2002-377), the Commission approves the applications by Cable Public Affairs Channel Inc. (CPAC) for renewal of its licences to operate its English- and French-language satellite-to-cable programming undertakings. The proceeding to consider CPAC's renewal applications raised issues related to the Exemption order for small cable undertakings.

Exemption order for small cable undertakings

3.

In Decision 2002-377, the Commission approves CPAC's request that the Commission grant its licensed public affairs programming service mandatory national distribution on the basic service of most broadcasting distribution undertakings. The amendments to the Exemption order for small cable undertakings announced herein (see Appendix) set out the distribution requirements for small cable distribution undertakings operating pursuant to this Exemption Order. The amendments include an exemption criterion that any undertaking that has a nominal bandwidth capacity of at least 550 MHz and delivers any programming service on a digital basis must distribute the English and French language versions of CPAC's public affairs programming service. These undertakings are granted flexibility with respect to the technical means by which they distribute CPAC in both official languages.

4.

The Commission also harmonizes the exemption criterion that an undertaking distribute the English and French language versions of the House of Commons programming service with section 33.3(1)(c) of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations, published in Public Notice CRTC 2002-72, also of today's date.

Secretary General

This document is available in alternate format upon request and may also be examined at the following Internet site: http://www.crtc.gc.ca
 

Appendix to Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2002-74

 

Exemption order for small cable undertakings

 

The Commission, pursuant to section 9(4) of the Broadcasting Act (the Act), by this order, exempts from the requirements of Part II of the Act and any regulations, those persons carrying on broadcasting distribution undertakings of the class defined by the criteria outlined below.

 

I. Purpose

 

The purpose of these broadcasting distribution undertakings is to serve small and rural communities, and serve fewer than 2,000 subscribers.

 

II. Description

 

1. The Commission would not be prohibited from licensing the undertaking by virtue of any Act of Parliament or any direction to the Commission by the Governor in Council.

 

2. In total, the number of subscribers served by the individual undertaking is fewer than 2,000, the undertaking operates its own head end, and does not serve all or part of the same licensed area as a cable undertaking that is a Class 1 or Class 2 licensee, as defined in the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations.

 

Once it becomes exempt, the undertaking at no time has more than 2,200 subscribers.

 

3. (a) Subject to sections 3(c), 3(d) and 3(e), all services of local Canadian television stations and all services of regional television stations, other than affiliates or members of a network of which a local television station is an affiliate or member, are distributed over the undertaking, in each case with no degradation of received signal. In addition, the undertaking distributes the programming services referred to above beginning with the "basic band" (as defined in the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations, as amended) of its undertaking.

 

(b) If they are not distributed in accordance with section 3(a), the undertaking distributes the programming service of at least one television station owned and operated by the Corporation, in each of the official languages, where the Corporation makes its signals available and pays the costs associated with the transport and reception of its signals at the undertaking's local head end.

 

(c) If the undertaking receives programming services that are identical, the undertaking distributes at least one of them under section 3(a).

 

(d) If the programming services of the two or more regional television stations that are affiliates or members of the same network are received at the local head end, the undertaking distributes at least one of them.

 

(e) If the undertaking receives over the air an educational television programming service, the operation of which is the responsibility of an educational authority designated by a province other than the province in which the undertaking is located, the undertaking may distribute it as part of the basic service.

 

(f) For the purpose of section 3, the following definitions shall apply:

 

"Corporation" means the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

 

"Educational television programming service" means a television programming service that provides the programming described in the definition of "independent corporation" in section 2 of the Direction to the CRTC (Ineligibility to Hold Broadcasting Licences).

 

"Services of local Canadian television stations" in relation to the undertaking, means a television station licensed by the Commission a) that has a Grade A "official contour" (as defined in the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations, as amended) that includes any part of the area served by the undertaking; b) that has, if there is no Grade A official contour, a transmitting antenna that is located within 15 km of the area served by the undertaking.

 

"Services of regional television stations" means the services of all television broadcasting stations licensed by the Commission having a Grade B "official contour" (as defined in the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations, as amended) that includes any part of the area served by the undertaking.

 

4. (a) If the undertaking has a nominal bandwidth capacity of at least 550 MHz and delivers any programming service on a digital basis, the undertaking distributes in the market:

 

(i) at least one French-language Canadian specialty service for every 10 English-language programming services distributed by the undertaking, if the undertaking is operating in a market that is an anglophone market within the meaning of section 18(4)(b) of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations, as amended; and

 

(ii) at least one English-language Canadian specialty service for every 10 French-language programming services distributed by the undertaking, if the undertaking is operating in a market that is a francophone market within the meaning of section 18(4)(a) of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations, as amended.

 

(iii) the English and French language versions of the House of Commons programming service as defined in the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations.

 

(iv) the English and French language versions of the public affairs programming service of the Cable Public Affairs Channel Inc. (CPAC).

 

(b) For the purposes of section 4(a)(i), any French-language programming service, other than a service that is required to be distributed pursuant to section 9(1)(h) of the Broadcasting Act or section 3 of this Exemption Order, as amended, constitutes a French-language Canadian specialty service.

 

(c) For the purposes of section 4(a)(ii), any English-language programming service, other than a service that is required to be distributed pursuant to section 9(1)(h) of the Broadcasting Act or section 3 of the Exemption Order, as amended, constitutes an English-language Canadian specialty service.

 

5. The undertaking does not provide a subscriber with any programming services, other than licensed pay-per-view services, licensed video-on-demand services or the programming services of exempt programming undertakings, without also providing the basic service described in section 3.

 

6. The undertaking does not alter or delete a programming service in the course of its distribution except

 

(a) for the purpose of complying with section 328(1) of the Canada Elections Act;

 

(b) for the purpose of deleting a programming service to comply with an order of a court prohibiting the distribution of the service to any part of the licensed area;

 

(c) for the purpose of altering a programming service to insert an emergency alert message in accordance with an agreement entered into with the operator of the service or the network responsible for the service;

 

(d) for the purpose of preventing the breach of programming or underlying rights of a third party, in accordance with an agreement entered into with the operator of the service or the network responsible for the service; or

 

(e) for the purpose of deleting a subsidiary signal, unless the signal is, itself, a programming service or is related to the service being distributed.

 

7. (a) The undertaking does not distribute a programming service that the undertaking originates and that contains

 

(i) anything that contravenes any law;

 

(ii) any abusive comment or abusive pictorial representation that, when taken in context, tends to or is likely to expose an individual or group or class of individuals to hatred or contempt on the basis of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age or mental or physical disability;

 

(iii) any obscene or profane language or pictorial representation; or

 

(iv) any false or misleading news.

 

(b) For the purpose of section 7(a)(ii), sexual orientation does not include the orientation towards a sexual act or activity that would constitute an offence under the Criminal Code.

 

8. No service received over-the-air or by satellite or microwave or by optical fibre transmission is distributed over the undertaking, other than a service that the Commission, by regulation or otherwise, has authorized.

 

9. (a) In respect of each of analog and digital technology, a majority of the video and audio channels received by a subscriber are devoted to the distribution of Canadian programming services as defined in the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations.

 

(b) For the purpose of this section, each pay television service, television pay-per-view service, and video-on-demand service shall be counted as a single video channel.

 

(c) This section does not apply to a broadcasting distribution undertaking that distributes programming services only on the basic band.

Date Modified: 2002-11-19

Date modified: