ARCHIVED - Public Notice CRTC 84-275

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Public Notice

Ottawa, 8 November 1984
Public Notice CRTC 1984-275
Regulations Respecting Pay Television Broadcasting Undertakings
For related documents: see Decision CRTC 82-240 dated 18 March 1982 (Appendix A) and Public Notices CRTC 1982-123, CRTC 1984-3 and CRTC 1984-165 dated 4 November 1982, 5 January 1984 and 3 July 1984 respectively.
The Commission announces that the Regulations Respecting Pay Television Broadcasting Undertakings were enacted on 5 October 1984 (SOR/84-797). The Regulations, which are set out in Appendix A to this notice, are substantially the same as those proposed in Public Notice CRTC 1984-165.
These Regulations establish the terms and conditions for the operation of pay television networks in respect of the financial and other information to be reported to the Commission, as well as the requirement for keeping logs, and stipulate certain prohibitions as to the program material to be distributed by pay television network licensees.
The Commission also announces that, pursuant to paragraph 16(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act, it has prescribed three classes of pay television licences: a general interest pay television licence, a specialty (performing arts) pay television licence, and a multilingual pay television licence. These classes are described in Appendix B to this notice.
Fernand Bélisle
Secretary General
APPENDIX
17/10/84 Canada Gazette Part II, Vol. 118, No 21 SOR/DORS/84 797
Registration SOR/84-797 5 October, 1984
BROADCASTING ACT
Pay Television Regulations
Whereas a copy of the proposed regulations substantially in the form set out in the schedule hereto was published in the Canada Gazette Part I on July 14, 1984 and a reasonable opportunity was afforded to licensees and other interested parties to make representations with respect thereto.
Now therefore, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, on the recommendation of the Executive Committee, pursuant to section 16 of the Broadcasting Act, hereby makes the annexed Regulations Respecting Pay Television Broadcasting Undertakings in accordance with the schedule hereto.
Hull, Quebec, October 2, 1984
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; (Loi) "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 to the extent that it is recognized by the Commission to be a Canadian program in accordance with the criteria established in the notice published by the Commission dated 15 April. 1984 entitled "Recognition for Canadian Programs";
(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. Or
  (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 or 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)
"semester" means a period of six consecutive months ending on the last day of June and December in each year; (semestre)
"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;
  (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 dated 15 April, 1984 and entitled "Recognition for Canadian Programs".
(3) A licensee shall present to the Commission, within seven 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 per cent 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 that, 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 thereon,
   (ii) investment in such programs,
   (iii) loans and loan-related losses for the financing or 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) subscriptions 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
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Regulation, but is intended only for information purposes.)
These Regulations establish the terms and conditions for the carrying on of pay television network operations in respect of the keeping of program logs, the nature of program content and reporting requirements.
APPENDIX B
Prescription of Classes of Licence
There are hereby prescribed to be three classes of pay television network licences: A licence issued to carry on a pay television network operation in respect of which the programming is of general interest, and consists predominantly of feature films, variety, and dramatic programs, is a general interest pay television licence;
A licence issued to carry on a pay television network operation in respect of which the programming is substantially comprised of the presentation of the performing arts, including programming in relation to the performing arts, is a specialty (performing arts) pay television licence; and
A licence issued to carry on a pay television network operation in respect of which not less than 60% of the total programming time is devoted to programming in one or more languages other than English, French or a native Canadian language is a multilingual pay television licence.
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