Decision
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Ottawa, 13 March 1984 |
Decision CRTC 84-259 |
CHUM Limited (formerly Channel SeventyNine Limited) |
Brantford, St. Thomas, Stratford, Woodstock, Ontario - 832291900 - 832292700 - 832290100 - 832293500 |
Following a Public Hearing in Hull, Quebec on 18 October 1983, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission denies the applications by CHUM Limited, licensee of CITY-TV Toronto for broadcasting licences for English-language television stations to rebroadcast the programs of CITY-TV Toronto at the following locations: Brantford, channel 34 with an effective radiated power of 4,379 watts; St. Thomas, channel 64 with an effective radiated power of 4,973 watts; Stratford, channel 44 with an effective radiated power of 4,832 watts; and Woodstock, channel 31 with an effective radiated power of 8,831 watts. |
These applications proposed the extension of CITY-TV's Toronto-oriented service to approximately 150,000 cabled households and, according to the applicant's estimates, to an additional 100,000 rural, non-cabled households in Southwestern Ontario. |
In its presentation, the applicant emphasized that the proposed extension was designed to allow all viewers in this region access to CITY-TV, not just those who are cable subscribers. It further stated that the four applications were to be considered as one inter-related proposal. |
In arriving at its decision, the Commission has taken into account that the applicant proposes to use the last available U.H.F. channels allotted to Brantford, St. Thomas, Stratford and Woodstock and would deprive these locations of suitable frequencies for the establishment of their own locally-oriented stations in the future. The issue of scarcity of frequencies is of particular concern in London in light of the future plans of the CBC in Southwestern Ontario. Furthermore, two of the applications envisaged an under-utilization of the potential of the Class B channels allotted to Brantford and Woodstock. |
The Commission also notes that these applications raise general policy issues in relation to the extension of Canadian broadcasting services into distant markets that could have broad implications for the Canadian broadcasting system. In Public Notice CRTC 1984-13 dated 16 January 1984, the Commission indicated its intention to review its policy regarding the carriage on cable of distant Canadian signals and noted that this "may be one of the means to ensure that the broadcasting system, as a whole, remains predominantly Canadian". Further, in Public Notice CRTC 1984-68 issued today, the Commission invites comments on the use of broadcasting transmitters to extend the coverage area of Canadian broadcast signals. The deadline date for the filing of comments in response to both notices is 1 May 1984. |
A number of interventions were also received, particularly from television broadcasters serving the London area, opposing the extension of the CITY-TV Toronto signal in Southwestern Ontario on grounds related to potential audience fragmentation and associated loss of revenue. |
J.G. Patenaude Secretary General |
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