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Ottawa, 13 August 1992
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Decision CRTC 92-544
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Le Réseau de télévision TVA Inc.
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Télé-Métropole Inc.Montréal, Quebec - 912197100- 912190600
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Following a public hearing in Montréal and Quebec City beginning on 23 March 1992, the Commission renews the broadcasting licence of the TVA television network and the licence of its mother station, CFTM-TV Montréal, from 1 September 1992 to 31 August 1997, subject to the conditions specified in the licences to be issued.
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As outlined in the preamble to this decision, the Commission has granted this five-year renewal term in view of the generally poor financial results of the past few years and the uncertain economic climate. This term will allow for an early review of the situation.
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Télé-Métropole and its Montréal station CFTM-TV have a dominant influence over the ownership, advertising revenue and programming of all the stations affiliated with the TVA network. In 1990 the Commission authorized the transfer of control of the stations of Pathonic Network Inc. (Pathonic) to Télé-Métropole (Decision CRTC 90-631). These stations serve the major markets in Quebec and are now operated by one of Télé-Métropole's subsidiaries, TM Multi-Régions Inc. In addition, pursuant to the approval in Decision CRTC 92-567 dated today, Le Réseau de télévision TVA Inc. becomes a wholly-owned subsidiary of Télé-Métropole. The Commission also notes that in the licence renewal application for the TVA network, the licensee proposed to extend the network structure, in compliance with the Commission's policy respecting television networks (Public Notice CRTC 1989-2), to include all the programming common to TVA network affiliates.
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Against this background of greater integration, there have been growing concerns about excessive centralization of programming in larger centres and the consequent weakening of local programming at regional stations. Such concerns emerged clearly from many of the interventions filed with the Commission at both the Montréal and the Quebec City sessions of this hearing, in particular the interventions submitted by the Canadian Institute of Adult Education, Rural Solidarity, and Mgrs Jean-Claude Turcotte and Maurice Couture, the archbishops of Montréal and Quebec City respectively.
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In his reply to these interventions, the president and CEO of Télé-Métropole, Mr. Mario Bertrand, denied that the intent was purely to centralize and added that the objective was to achieve [TRANSLATION] "a balance, still undefined", between a strong mother station in the TVA network and regional affiliates fully capable of performing their responsibilities.
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In keeping with the spirit of its policy for local programming, and the emphasis it places on local reflection, the Commission expects Télé-Métropole to define the balance it seeks, with a view to ensuring the greater involvement of its regional stations in reflecting the cultural, economic, political and social reality of their respective regions, thus enabling the TVA network to benefit from a greater regional presence of the stations of TM Multi-Régions Inc. and the other affiliates. The Commission notes in this regard that CFCM-TV Quebec City, which serves the provincial capital and the second largest French-language market, is the second largest station in the TVA network. In its policy for local programming, the Commission stated that, with respect to programming commitments accepted as benefits in an ownership transaction, licensees will be required to fully honour their obligations within the prescribed time frame. Accordingly, the Commission expects Télé-Métropole to honour the commitments made when it purchased the stations from Pathonic, particularly the commitment to "significantly enhance the role of CFCM-TV", and to make the proposed expenditures included in the benefit package in accordance with the schedule outlined in the applications in question.
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The Commission wishes to acknowledge the licensee's efforts in recent years to improve the quality of its news and public affairs programming. Such programs currently account for 23 hours per week of air time, representing approximately 20% of the broadcast schedule. The Commission also notes the licensee's confirmation at the hearing that it plans to maintain at least 60% Canadian content during peak viewing hours.
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The Broadcasting Act stipulates that the Canadian broadcasting system should provide programming that offers a balance of information, enlightenment and entertainment for men, women and children of all ages, interests and tastes. The Commission notes the lack of any commitments by the licensee for the production of programs specifically for children, despite the licensee's statement at the hearing that such programs are non-perishable, exportable and easy to finance.
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Notwithstanding the restrictions that Quebec legislation places on advertising to children, the Commission expects Télé-Métropole to revise its programming policy as it pertains to Canadian children's programming, particularly in light of the need for programs of this type that reflect the concerns and aspirations of young "Québécois". The Commission expects the licensee to present Canadian programs for children on a regular basis. To that end, it may wish to consider pooling its resources with other Canadian broadcasters in collaborative projects, co-productions or other innovative partnership arrangements.
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The Commission notes the licensee's commitment to spend a total of $150,000 to develop new Canadian programs in the first year of its new licence term, and to increase this amount to $190,000 in the seventh year. It also made a commitment to give priority to dramas.
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Moreover, the Commission notes that the licensee has recently focussed primarily on developing its interactive programs, which are offered to cable subscribers with a Videoway equipment. The licensee spent more than $800,000 on such programs in 1990-1991. Although the Commission notes the benefits that the licensee claimed could result from its current experiments with interactive programs, it wishes to ensure that the licensee, through this activity, is not operating a parallel programming service. Further, the Commission notes Télé-Métropole's use, on an experimental basis, of four cable channels for the broadcast of certain programs. It therefore expects the licensee to submit annual reports on the status of its experiments, stating the quantities (number of hours per year) of programs and interactive segments that are distributed on other cable channels, the expenditures on such programs and segments and the revenues they generate. The Commission also reminds the licensee that its main responsibility is to its over-the-air audience.
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The Commission notes that independent productions accounted for nearly 20 hours of air time per week in 1990-1991, representing 16% of the broadcast schedule of CFTM-TV. The licensee indicated in its licence renewal application its intention to maintain its involvement with the independent production sector in the years to come, subject to economic and financial realities. Since the Broadcasting Act stipulates that programming of Canadian broadcasting undertakings should include a significant contribution from the Canadian independent production sector, the Commission expects the licensee to invest in the independent production sector at a level at least equal to its previous achievements, insofar as the financial projections in its application are realized. The Commission acknowledges the interventions in this regard presented at the hearing by the Association des producteurs de films et de télévision du Québec and the Association des professionnels(les) de la vidéo du Québec.
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In the context of the renewal applications by French-language television networks and stations in Quebec, the Commission received a number of interventions concerning the quantity and quality of the captioning provided by Quebec television broadcasters. The Commission acknowledges in particular the brief submitted jointly by the Quebec Centre for the Hearing Impaired, the Canadian Captioning Development Agency and the Regroupement québécois pour le sous-titrage.
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In light of these interventions, the Commission considers it necessary to set the following expectations:
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- that Télé-Métropole take the necessary measures to ensure constant monitoring of captioning activities during all broadcasting periods;
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- that Télé-Métropole increase the number of hours of captioning from year to year;
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- that Télé-Métropole submit a report, within six months of the date of this decision, on consultations with groups of hearing impaired persons. The report should describe any improvements in captioning quality, special measures taken to publicize scheduling changes for captioned programs or the addition of new ones to the schedule, and technical improvements in the transmission and reception of captioned signals.
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The Commission also received a joint brief from La Magnétothèque, the Canadian Captioning Development Agency and the Regroupement des aveugles and amblyopes du Québec which underlined the importance of providing the visually impaired with the Audiovision service on French-language television.
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The Commission therefore expects Télé-Métropole to file an annual report, beginning in September 1993, on the increase in captioned program time over the previous year and the measures it has taken to improve its service to the visually or hearing impaired, such as live captioning and implementation of a descriptive video system.
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In a letter dated 15 June 1992, Télé-Métropole notified the Commission that, in line with a commitment made during the Public Hearing, it has now acquired a telephone device for the deaf (TDD). The Commission reminds the licensee that the TDD should be installed in an appropriate location, such as the master control room, to ensure that hearing impaired persons can contact the station at any time during the broadcast day. The Commission further expects that the telephone number be widely publicized and listed in the local telephone directory.
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The Commission has also taken into consideration the many other interventions filed in relation to these applications. In response to the suggestions made by the Association nationale des téléspectateurs and the archbishops of Montréal and Quebec City, the Commission notes Télé-Métropole's intention, as stated at the hearing, to co-operate with a view to improving communication with television viewers and representative organizations.
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Allan J. Darling
Secretary General
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