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Decision
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Ottawa, 3 September 1985
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Decision CRTC 85-720
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CFRB Limited
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St. Catharines, Ontario - 850187600 - 850173600
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Following a Public Hearing in Toronto on 17 June 1985, the Commission renews the broadcasting licence for CJQR-FM St. Catharines from 1 October 1985 to 30 September 1990, subject to the conditions of licence specified in this decision and in the licence to be issued. At the same time, it denies certain proposed amendments to its Promise of Performance, pursuant to which the station would have been operated in a "Group I" format, as defined in Public Notice CRTC 1984-151 on the Review of Radio.
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CFRB Limited (CFRB) currently operates the station in the "Group III" music format which encompasses its Country format. In its proposed Promise of Performance, CFRB requested a change in the music format of the station from Country to "Group I", featuring predominantly softer pop and rock music.
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At the same hearing the Commission considered a request by Redmond Communications Ltd. (Redmond), licensee of CHRE-FM St. Catharines, to change its current "Group I" format by increasing the vocal-to-instrumental ratio from 50:50 to 65:35. During the next five-year licence term, Redmond would gradually increase the level of vocal music in order to appeal to an audience as young as 18 years of age. CFRB proposed a vocal-to-instrumental ratio of 99:1. In effect, both licensees proposed, by the end of the next licence term, to provide the St. Catharines/Niagara Falls area with the "Group I" format, with an emphasis on contemporary vocal music.
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Following an extensive consultative process with the Canadian broadcasting and recording industries, the Commission adopted a new station group system that provides FM licensees with increased flexibility to respond to changing music styles without the necessity of obtaining prior approval from the Commission. In its Public Notice CRTC 1984-84, the Consultative Committee on FM Radio, it stated:
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In analyzing programming proposals for new stations, as well as the programming of existing stations, the Commission intends to continue to take into account a variety of factors, particularly the target audience of the station, in determining whether a station provides a diverse and comprehensive service to the area it is licensed to serve.
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CFRB explained its reasons for requesting a change in the station's music format at the hearing, stating that, despite increased FM tuning habits, especially among the 18 to 34 age group, CJQR-FM continues to experience an unacceptably-low audience level and revenue situation. The licensee described the St. Catharines market as "volatile", with numerous radio signals receivable from both Canada and the United States and intense competition for audience. Based on research undertaken on its behalf, the licensee had concluded that a "Group I" format with predominantly contemporary vocal music could achieve improved audience levels in the St. Catharines/Niagara Falls area. The target audience would be 18 to 34 years of age, with a secondary target of 40 years of age.
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The Commission recognizes that several large Canadian markets are served by more than one "Group I" station featuring predominantly vocal music and, where circumstances warrant, including financial and marketing considerations, it may consider the approval of similar arrangements in the future. In the case of St. Catharines/Niagara Falls, however, the Commission notes that CFRB and Redmond operate the only two Canadian commercial FM radio stations in the market. Based on its own analysis of the market, the licensees' proposals, and the information provided at the hearing, the Commission has concluded that to permit both stations to operate in the same group would seriously limit the diversity of local FM programming, and exacerbate the financial pressures which currently face both licensees.
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Under guidelines specified in Public Notice CRTC 1984-249 (Amendments to the Radio (F.M.) Broadcasting Regulations and the Radio (A.M.) Broadcasting Regulations - FM Renewal Applications) licensees are permitted the flexibility to increase or decrease the vocal:instrumental ratio without the prior approval of the Commission, provided it does not cross the 50:50 mark. In this case, at the suggestion of CFRB, the Commission considered the option of imposing specific conditions of licence on CFRB and Redmond with regard to their proposed vocal-to-instrumental ratios in an effort to ensure some degree of diversity. The Commission has concluded, however, that in the case of St. Catharines/Niagara Falls, a market fragmented by many strong radio signals, conditions of licence would not be sufficient to provide for variety in FM radio service to ensure the financial viability of both licensees, or to permit the flexibility necessary in such a difficult market. The Commission, therefore, determined that the imposition of licence conditions would not provide the satisfactory results necessary to justify the approval of both licensees to operate in Group I.
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The Commission has approved the Redmond request in a separate decision released today. While it accepts the validity of CFRB's assessment of the situation of CJQR-FM and the licensee's analysis of the St. Catharines/Niagara Falls market in terms of audience tuning patterns, it is not persuaded that both privately-owned FM stations in St. Catharines should be permitted to operate in Group I. The CommIssion, accordingly, denies the application by CFRB to amend its Promise of Performance by changing the music format of the station from Country to "Group I". The Commission, therefore, expects the licensee to submit a revised Promise of Performance which reflects its programming plans for the next licence term.
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The Commission acknowledges the various interventions received expressing views on the licensee's proposal to change the musical format of CJQR-FM. The Commission notes that, since CFRB acquired CJQR-FM in 1981, it has adhered to its commitments on behalf of Canadian talent. The licensee has recorded the performances of local and nationally-acclaimed artists for later broadcast on the station. It is also a financial contributor to the Canadian Talent Library (CTL) which has recently merged with FACTOR and is now known as FACTOR/CTL. In order to support and develop talent in the St. Catharines/Niagara Falls area further, the licensee stated that it is implementing a project called "Talent Search Niagara", which would provide opportunities for regional artists and musicians. At the hearing, CFRB stated that the search for talent would be open to all different types of musical expression.
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In keeping with the Commission's policy, the licensee is required, as a condition of licence, to provide 30 minutes per week of commercial-free community access time and promote, on air, the availability of such time.
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An intervention was submitted by the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) complaining that the licensee had refused to sell airtime for proposed advertisements in support of striking Eaton's workers. The OFL argued that the licensee, in failing to present the union's side of the labour dispute on its airwaves, had not satisfied the requirements of "balance and fairness in the use of public airwaves". In response, the licensee stated that it had indicated to the OFL that it would broadcast the commercials provided they were re-worded "in a legally defensible form", and that the intervener bad rejected this offer. Under the Broadcasting Act, all licensees have a responsibility for the programs that they broadcast. In this case, the Commission is satisfied that the licensee's decision to suggest alternate wording to the OFL was consistent with this responsibility. Accordingly, the Commission has decided not to intervene in the licensee's decision.
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Fernand Bélisle Secretary General
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