ARCHIVED - Public Notice CRTC 84-165

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Public Notice

Ottawa, 3 July 1984

Public Notice CRTC 1984-165
Proposed Regulations Respecting Pay Television Broadcasting Undertakings
Proposed regulations for licensed Canadian pay television networks were first issued by the Commission for public comment in November 1982 (Public Notice CRTC 1982-123), pursuant to subsection 16(2) of the Broadcasting Act. Subsequently, in January 1984 (Public Notice CRTC 1984-3), a second version of the proposed pay television regulations, incorporating several significant changes that had been recommended in response to the Commission's original proposals, was issued for public comment. The second version, however, has also generated a number of important suggestions for further changes. In view of the comments that have been received in response to Public Notice CRTC 1984-3, as well as significant developments in the evolution of pay television in Canada, the Commission has determined that several substantial changes should be made to the proposed regulations.
Accordingly, pursuant to subsection 16(2) of the Broadcasting Act, the Commission hereby issues proposed Regulations Respecting Pay Television Broadcasting Undertakings for the purpose of obtaining comments and representations from interested persons.
The proposed regulations, set out in the appendix attached to this Public Notice, incorporate two important changes from the earlier versions. A new section, section 6, has been included prohibiting the distribution of programming containing any abusive comment or pictorial representation which, when taken in context, would be offensive on the basis of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, age, or mental or physical disability. In the Commission's view, this provision is both necessary and desirable to ensure that pay television network operators respect the public trust they hold as licensees by avoiding the distribution of programming which may be patently offensive to large and diverse groups of the Canadian population.
This obligation also falls upon licensees of conventional television and radio stations and networks. In a separate notice published today (Public Notice CRTC 1984-164), the Commission proposes changes to the Radio (A.M.), Radio (F.M.) Broadcasting Regulations and the Television Broadcasting Regulations, which will amend the current provisions concerning abusive programming so that all Commission regulations on this matter are similar in nature.
A second important change included in the pay television regulations now being proposed is in respect of the requirement on the part of the pay licensees to keep and file financial accounts and reports, set out in section 8. These new requirements are more specifically directed to expenditures and revenues in respect of programming that will appear on the pay service to enable both the licensees and the Commission better to ensure that the stipulated Canadian content expenditures, required of all licensees by condition of licence, are satisfied.
The other requirements of the proposed regulations which deal with the keeping of program logs, the prohibition of advertising and the distribution of programming produced in-house or by associates of licensees, and the requirement to provide suitable warnings in respect of programs not suitable for children or youth, remain unchanged.
The Commission reiterates that the proposals set out herein would impose the minimum regulatory environment necessary to ensure that pay television serves the objectives for which it was licensed.
All interested persons wishing to comment on the proposed regulations should submit their views in writing to the Secretary General, C.R.T.C., Ottawa, le 1 August 1984 .
Fernand Bélisle Secretary General
DRAFT
REGULATIONS RESPECTING PAY TELEVISION BROADCASTING UNDERTAKINGS
Short Title
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Pay Television Regulations.
Interpretation
2. In these Regulations, "Act" means the Broadcasting Act
"associate", where it pertains to a person, includes
(a) a partner of that person whether or not the partner is acting on behalf of the partnership,
(b) a trust or estate in which that person has a substantial beneficial interest or in respect of which that person serves as a trustee or in a similar capacity,
(c) a spouse, son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law of that person, or other relative of that person or of his spouse who resides with that person,
(d) a person with whom that person has entered into an arrangement, understanding or agreement as to the voting of securities of a corporation that is an associate of that person,
(e) a corporation of which that person, either alone or together with one or more associates as described in any of paragraphs (a) to (d) and (f), has, directly or indirectly, control of not less than 20 per cent of the issued voting securities thereof, and
(f) a corporation of which one or more associates as described in any of paragraphs (a) to (e) has, directly or indirectly, control of not less than 50 per cent of the issued voting securities thereof; (associé)
"Canadian program" means a program that qualifies as a Canadian program in accordance with the criteria established by the Commission, in the appendix to a notice entitled "Recognition for Canadian Programs", dated 15 April 1984 and published in the Canada Gazette Part I on April 28, 1984; (émission canadienne)"
"commercial message" means any commercial announcement that mentions an advertiser or any product or service of an advertiser, including any such mention in a list of prizes, but does not include any
(a) public service announcement,
(b) advertisement for programs distributed by a Canadian pay television undertaking,
(c) identification of a pay television undertaking, or
(d) production credit; (message commercial)
"Commission" means the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission; (Conseil)
"control", means with reference to any securities
(a) ownership or beneficial ownership thereof, and
(b) an arrangement, understanding or agreement as to the manner in which such securities are to be voted; (contrôle)
"date of authorization" means the date of publication in the Canada Gazette of the decision of the Commission granting a licence; (date d'autorisation)
"filler programming" means programming, in no case longer than 15 minutes in duration, the purpose of which is to fill in the time between the presentation of the major programs distributed by the licensee, and includes material that promotes the programs or services provided by the licensee; (matériel d'intermède)
"licence" means a licence issued by the Commission to carry on a pay television network; (licence)
"licensee" means the person who holds a licence; (titulaire d'une licence ou titulaire)
"production credit" means a display or an announcement, or a display and an announcement, appearing at the commencement or end of a program and included as an integral part of the program as supplied to a licensee which
(a) where it appears at the commencement of the program, identifies a person who has contributed to the production of the program without indication of any product or service of that person; or
(b) where it appears at the end of the program, identifies a person who has contributed to the production of the program with or without a specification of the nature of such contribution; (générique)
"program" means the presentation of sound or visual matter, or sound and visual matter designed to inform, enlighten or entertain but does not include network identification or public service announcements; (émission)
"programming" means everything distributed by a licensee on its undertaking; (programmation)
"undertaking" means the network operation licensed by the Commission on which programming is distributed and for which programming a fee is payable to the licensee thereof. (entreprise)
Application
3. These Regulations apply to every licensee and to all programming distributed on the undertaking operated by a licensee.
Program Logs
4.(1) Every licensee shall maintain a program log in a form acceptable to the Commission.
(2) Every licensee shall enter in the log referred to in subsection (1), on a daily basis, the following information:
(a) the date;
(b) identification of its undertaking or service thereupon; and
(c) the title and a brief description of each program distributed, the time at which each program began and ended and a designation indicating Canadian content classification determined in accordance with the criteria established in the notice published by the Commission and dated 15 April 1984 and entitled Recognition for Canadian Programs".
(3) A licensee shall present to the Commission, within 7 days after the end of each month, its program log for that month carrying an attestation by or on behalf of the licensee certifying the accuracy of its content.
Programming
5.(1) A licensee shall not distribute in its programming any commercial message.
(2) Subject to subsection (4), a licensee shall not distribute any programming, other than filler programming, produced after the date of authorization either by itself or by any associate.
(3) For the purposes of subsection (2), "produced" does not include
(a) the furnishing, on a commercial basis, of facilities or technical personnel associated with such facilities necessary for the production or post-production processing of a program; or
(b) editing or formatting or other similar measures necessary to enable proper and effective distribution of programming by the licensee.
(4) Subsection (2) does not apply in respect of a licensee authorized to provide programming of which not less than 60 percent of the total programming time in each semester is devoted to programming other than in English, French or a native Canadian language.
6. A licensee shall not distribute in its programming any abusive comment or abusive pictorial representation which, when taken in context, tends or is likely to expose an individual or a group or class of individuals to hatred or contempt on the basis of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability.
7. Where a program to be distributed by a licensee is not suitable for an audience other than an adult audience by reason of its subject matter or treatment thereof, or any characteristic thereof, including its depiction of violence, nudity or explicit sexual conduct, or by reason of coarse language or other content likely to be offensive to some viewers, the licensee shall so advise by providing an appropriate indication thereof at the beginning, and in all promotion, of the program.
Returns
8. On or before November 30 in each year, a licensee shall file with the Commission a statement of accounts for the financial year ending August 31 of that year that sets out separately,
(a) with regard to Canadian programs distributed or intended for distribution on its undertaking, the amounts, if any, expended by it in respect of
(i) the rights to distribute such programs,
(ii) investment in such programs,
(iii) loans and loan-related losses for the financing of such programs, and
(iv) script and concept development of such programs;
(b) the amounts, if any, expended by it in respect of the distribution on its undertaking of non-Canadian programs; and
(c) the amounts, if any, received or receivable by it in respect of
(i) subscription to its pay television service,
(ii) investments made in Canadian programs for distribution on its undertaking, whether received or receivable directly or indirectly,
(iii) repayment of loans, including interest thereupon, made for financing of Canadian programs for distribution on its undertaking, and
(iv) repayment of advancements made for script and concept development of Canadian programs for distribution on its undertaking.

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