ARCHIVED - Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2011-174

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Route reference: 2010-499

Ottawa, 11 March 2011

Call for comments on requirements related to Canadian content and volunteer participation for campus and community radio

The Commission calls for comments on:

• increasing the minimum level of Canadian musical selections that campus and community radio stations must play; and

• whether to impose requirements on such stations related to the involvement of volunteers in station operations and in the production of programming.

The deadline for the receipt of comments is 20 April 2011.

Background

1.      The Commission’s policy with respect to campus and community radio is set out in Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2010-499 (the Policy).

2.      In the Policy, the Commission emphasized that the campus and community radio sector is well positioned to exceed current levels for Canadian content as set out in the Radio Regulations, 1986 (the Regulations) given the place of campus and community stations in the communities they serve, their proximity to new and emerging Canadian talent, and their mandate to make maximum use of Canadian-produced programming through, in part, the promotion of local musical talent.

3.      Additionally, a principle objective for campus and community stations is to reflect the diversity of the communities they serve and to ensure community access. In this respect, the Commission placed particular emphasis on the importance of volunteers, noting that volunteer participation is a key factor that helps to distinguish campus and community radio from the commercial and public sectors.

Canadian content

4.      Campus and community radio stations are currently subject to section 2.2(8) of the Regulations. This section requires that such stations devote 35% or more of their musical selections from content category 2 (Popular Music) to Canadian selections broadcast in their entirety, during each broadcast week.

5.      Additionally, the Commission typically imposes a condition of licence on campus and community radio stations requiring them to devote 12% or more of their musical selections from content category 3 (Special Interest Music) to Canadian selections broadcast in their entirety. The definitions of category 2 and category 3 music are set out in the appendix to Public Notice 2000-14.

6.      In the Policy, the Commission stated its preliminary view that Canadian content for content category 2 music should increase to a minimum level of 40% for all campus and community stations. Additionally, the Commission stated its preliminary view that the Canadian content level for category 3 music should increase to a minimum level of 15% for all campus and community stations. Any increase to Canadian content for both category 2 and category 3 music would be imposed by regulation rather than by condition of licence.

7.      Accordingly, the Commission seeks comment on the following questions related to Canadian content for campus and community radio stations:

Q1. Should the minimum level of Canadian content for musical selections from category 2 increase to 40% from the current 35%?

Q2. Would it be appropriate to increase the minimum level of Canadian content for musical selections from category 2 to a level greater than 40%? If so, what level would be appropriate and why?

Q3. Should the minimum level of Canadian content for musical selections from category 3 increase to 15% from the current 12%?

Q4. Would it be appropriate to increase the minimum level of Canadian content for musical selections from category 3 to a level greater than 15%? If so, what level would be appropriate and why?

Q5. If the Commission were to increase the minimum levels of Canadian content for category 2 and category 3 musical selections, should the increases be the same for English- and French-language stations?

Q6. If the Commission were to increase the minimum levels of Canadian content for category 2 and category 3 selections, should the increases be the same for stations operating in official language minority communities as for those that do not operate in such communities?

Volunteer participation

8.      The Policy states that the campus and community radio sector has provided, and should continue to provide, distinctive programming opportunities and other means of access to the Canadian broadcasting system for volunteers in the communities they serve. The Commission therefore expects that programming produced by campus and community stations will be produced, in part, by volunteers and that volunteers will form a part of overall operations of campus and community stations.

9.      The Policy announced the Commission’s intention to initiate a process on the participation by volunteers in campus and community radio. To inform these proceedings, the Commission is releasing a report on the use of volunteers in the campus and community radio sector (the Report). The report was based on data collected by the Commission between July and November 2010. The Commission encourages parties to consider these findings in their submissions.

10.  In light of the findings of the Report and the long standing emphasis that the Commission has placed on the use of volunteers by campus and community radio stations, the Commission seeks comment on the following questions:

Q7. As noted in the Policy, volunteerism in the campus and community radio sector is an important factor that distinguishes such stations from those in the commercial and public sectors. The Commission’s preliminary understanding is that volunteerism for campus and community stations includes activities that include governance, fundraising, training, administration and programming, among others. Is this view appropriate? If not, why?

Q8. Currently, the Commission does not impose any requirements or conditions of licence on campus and community stations with respect to the participation of volunteers in station operations and the production of programming (volunteer requirements). Should the Commission change this approach?

Q9. If the Commission were to impose volunteer requirements, what should they be?

Q10. If the Commission were to impose volunteer requirements, should they be the same for campus and community stations?

Q11. If the Commission were to impose volunteer requirements, should they be the same for French-language and English-language stations? 

Q12. If the Commission were to impose volunteer requirements, should they be the same for stations operating in official language minority communities and those that do not operate in such communities?

Q13. If the Commission were to impose volunteer requirements, should the Commission take a station-by-station approach, or should volunteer requirements apply uniformly to all campus and community stations?

Q14.If the Commission were to impose volunteer requirements, should they be based on station revenues? If so, how?

11.  In the Report, markets for campus and community stations are divided into large, medium and small markets in the following way:

• large markets are those where the population, according to the most recent census, is equivalent to 1 million or more;

• medium markets are those where the population, according to the most recent census, is greater than 100,000 but less than 1 million; and

• small markets are those where the population, according to the most recent census, is less than 100,000.

12.  In light of the findings of the Report, and in addition to questions Q7 to Q14 above, the Commission also seeks comment on the following:

Q. 15 If the Commission were to impose volunteer requirements , should they be based on the size of the market, according to the most recent census, in which the station operates?

Q.16 Is the definition of market size noted above appropriate for the purpose of determining a station’s capacity to engage volunteers?

Other matters

13.  The Commission notes that consistent with its intentions set out in the Policy, it has also issued, today, Broadcasting Notice of Consultation 2011-173, which invites parties to provide comments on the wording of proposed amendments to implement the Policy including:

• amendments to simplify the approach to licensing campus and community stations;

• amendments to incorporate new programming requirements, including those related to category 2 and 3 musical selections; and

• amendments to implement the new approach to funding campus and community radio.

Call for comments

14.  The Commission invites comments on the questions above. The Commission will accept comments that it receives on or before 20 April 2011. The Commission cannot be held responsible for postal delays and will not notify a party whose comment is received after the deadline date. The comment will not be considered by the Commission and will not be part of the public file.

15.  The Commission will not formally acknowledge comments. It will, however, fully consider all comments, and they will form part of the public record of the proceeding, provided that the procedures for filing set out below have been followed.

Procedure for filing comments

16.  Interested parties can file their comments to the Secretary General of the Commission in only one of the following formats:

by using the
[Broadcasting interventions/comments form]

or

by mail to
CRTC, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N2

or

by fax at
819-994-0218

17.  Submissions longer than five pages should include a summary.

18.  Each paragraph of the submission should be numbered. In addition, where the comment is filed by electronic means, the line ***End of document*** should be entered following the last paragraph of the document, as an indication that the document has not been damaged during electronic transmission.

Important notice

19.  All information that parties provide as part of this public process, except information granted confidentiality, whether sent by postal mail, facsimile, email or through the Commission’s website at www.crtc.gc.ca, becomes part of a publicly accessible file and will be posted on the Commission’s website. This information includes personal information, such as full names, email addresses, postal/street addresses, telephone and facsimile numbers, and any other personal information parties provide.

20.  The personal information that parties provide will be used and may be disclosed for the purpose for which the information was obtained or compiled by the Commission, or for a use consistent with that purpose.

21.  Documents received electronically or otherwise will be put on the Commission’s website in their entirety exactly as received, including any personal information contained therein, in the official language and format in which they are received. Documents not received electronically will be available in PDF format.

22.  The information that parties provide to the Commission as part of this public process is entered into an unsearchable database dedicated to this specific public process. This database is accessible only from the web page of this particular public process. As a result, a general search of the Commission’s website with the help of either its own search engine or a third-party search engine will not provide access to the information that was provided as part of this public process.

23.  The Commission encourages interested parties to monitor the public examination file and the Commission’s website for additional information that they may find useful when preparing their comments.

Examination of documents

24.  A list of all comments will also be available on the Commission’s website. An electronic version of all comments submitted will be accessible from this list. To access the list, select “Lists of interventions/comments” under “Public Proceedings” from the Commission’s website.

25.  The public may examine public comments and related documents at the following Commission offices during normal business hours.

Location of Commission offices

Toll-free telephone: 1-877-249-2782
Toll-free TDD: 1-877-909-2782

Les Terrasses de la Chaudière
Central Building
1 Promenade du Portage, Room 206
Gatineau, Quebec
J8X 4B1
Tel.: 819-997-2429
Fax: 819-994-0218

Regional offices

Metropolitan Place
99 Wyse Road
Suite 1410
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
B3A 4S5
Tel.: 902-426-7997
Fax: 902-426-2721

205 Viger Avenue West
Suite 504
Montréal, Quebec
H2Z 1G2
Tel.: 514-283-6607

55 St. Clair Avenue East
Suite 624
Toronto, Ontario
M4T 1M2
Tel.: 416-952-9096

Kensington Building
275 Portage Avenue
Suite 1810
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3B 2B3
Tel.: 204-983-6306
Fax: 204-983-6317

2220 – 12^th Avenue
Suite 620
Regina, Saskatchewan
S4P 0M8
Tel.: 306-780-3422

10405 Jasper Avenue
Suite 520
Edmonton, Alberta
T5J 3N4
Tel.: 780-495-3224

858 Beatty Street
Suite 290
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6B 1C1
Tel.: 604-666-2111
Fax: 604-666-8322

Secretary General

Related Documents

• Call for comments on amendments to the Radio Regulations 1986, Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2011- 173, 11 March 2011

• Campus and Community Radio Policy, Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2010-499, 22 July 2010.

• Revised content categories and subcategories for radio, Public Notice CRTC 2000-14. 20 January 2000

Date modified:

2011-03-11