|
|
|
Ottawa, 26 October 1994
|
|
Public Notice CRTC 1994-133
|
|
Exemption Criteria for Master Antenna Television Systems
|
|
Amendments to exemption criteria 2 and 5 regarding the use of optical fibre.
|
In Public Notice CRTC 1993-145 dated 21 October 1993, the Commission proposed to amend exemption criteria 2 and 5 respecting MATV systems by making the textual additions highlighted below:
|
|
Criteria 2
|
|
The undertaking is not connected by any form or means of transmission, apart from the direct over-the-air reception of conventional broadcast signals or the direct reception of services by satellite, microwave or optical fibre ...
|
|
Criteria 5
|
|
No service received over-the-air or by satellite or microwave or optical fibre transmission is distributed over the undertaking,...
|
Comments submitted by the representatives of MATV interests in response to Public Notice CRTC 1993-145 strongly supported the addition of optical fibre to the permissible methods of receiving signals by an exempt MATV system. They considered such a change to reflect the realities of technological change (including the move towards increased utilization of optical fibre in place of microwave), and suggested that it would bring an end to what they perceived as inequities in the existing exemption criteria.
|
|
The cable industry strongly opposed the addition of optical fibre to the permissible methods of receiving signals by an exempt MATV system. Among other things, it was argued that permitting an exempt MATV undertaking to receive service through optical fibre connected to land not owned or leased by the person carrying on the undertaking would allow any person with access to public rights of way to establish an un-regulated "cable" system feeding residential buildings with television signals through optical fibre.
|
|
The Commission considered that the comments submitted with regard to the proposed amendment raised substantive issues requiring additional consideration. It decided to initiate a further public process to consider revisions to the text of criterion 2 that would continue to allow the use of optical fibre, but for more limited purposes.
|
Accordingly, in Public Notice CRTC 1994-18 dated 2 March 1994, the Commission called for comments on a revised amendment to criterion 2 as follows:
|
|
The undertaking is not connected by any form of transmission, apart from (i) the direct over-the-air reception, or the reception by microwave or optical fibre, of conventional broadcast signals (ie. terrestrial radiocommunications, including distant Canadian and foreign signals), or (ii) the satellite reception of services...
|
|
The proposed amendment to criterion 5, as previously set out, remained unchanged:
|
|
No service received over-the-air or by satellite or microwave or optical fibre transmission is distributed over the undertaking,...
|
The Commission received a total of twelve submissions following its second call for comments. For the most part, these again came from representatives of the cable industry and MATV interests. MATV interests opposed the proposed amendment to criterion 2 on the grounds that it would unduly limit the use of optical fibre. They were generally of the view that the Commission should adopt the amendment, as initially proposed in Public Notice CRTC 1993-145, which would have allowed optical fibre for the reception of any signals distributed by an exempt MATV system.
|
Cable interests continued to strongly oppose any use of optical fibre as a permissible method of receiving signals by an exempt MATV system, even on the restricted basis proposed in Public Notice CRTC 1994-18.
|
|
The Commission has carefully reviewed the comments and the implications of adopting the proposed amendment against the background of the policy governing its treatment of MATV systems since the mid-1970s. Under this policy, to the extent that an MATV system remains analogous to a homeowner's roof-top antenna or satellite dish, in both its configuration and range of services, it may be exempted from Commission licensing requirements without adverse impact on the Canadian broadcasting system. However, when a system goes beyond that point, by expanding its territorial reach or by operating for direct commercial gain for example, then it must, for the benefit of the broadcasting system as a whole, become subject to Commission licensing requirements.
|
|
The Commission has thus concluded that, while it is prepared to permit exempt MATV undertakings to take advantage of the benefits of optical fibre, it is not prepared, at this time, to do so in a manner that could fundamentally alter the role of exempt MATV undertakings within the Canadian broadcasting system. Accordingly, the Commission has decided to permit the use of optical fibre only for connection of the building portion of an MATV undertaking to a remote head end portion solely and exclusively owned or leased by the person carrying on the undertaking. This restriction reflects the Commission's determination that to allow joint use facilities could lead to a "de facto" cable system serving many MATVs. The Commission notes that these amendments preclude the use of optical fibre to distribute signals from any remote head end to more than one MATV undertaking.
|
|
With regard to the use of leased property for the establishment of a remote head end, the Commission notes that, as would be the case in any comparable situation, only bona fide arm's length leases would qualify under the terms of the exemption order. Criteria 2 and 5 have been further amended to reflect this principle. Additionally, the amendments specify that use of microwave to deliver signals from a remote head end will now be subject to the same limitations as those that are applied to the use of optical fibre.
|
The revised exemption order for MATV undertakings, including the amendments adopted pursuant to Public Notices CRTC 1993-145 and CRTC 1994-18, are attached as an appendix to this notice.
|
Related Documents: "Exemption Order Respecting Master Antenna Television Systems" (Public Notice CRTC 1993-54 dated 30 April 1993); "Proposed Amendments to Exemption Criteria 2 and 5 Respecting Master Antenna Television Systems" (Public Notice CRTC 1993-145 dated 21 October 1993); and "Exemption Criteria for Master Antenna Television Systems"
(Public Notice CRTC 1994-18 dated 2 March 1994)
|
|
Allan J. Darling
Secretary General
|
|
|
|
EXEMPTION ORDER RESPECTING MASTER ANTENNA TELEVISION SYSTEMS
|
|
The Commission, pursuant to subsection 9(4) of the Broadcasting Act, by this order, exempts from the requirements of Part II of the Act and any regulations, those persons carrying on broadcasting undertakings of the class defined by the following criteria:
|
|
Purpose
|
|
These radiocommunication distribu-tion undertakings, commonly referred to as Satellite Master Antenna Television (SMATV) systems, or more simply as Master Antenna Television (MATV) systems, have as their general purpose the distribution to the temporary or permanent residents of multiple unit dwellings such as hotels, apartment buildings, condominiums and row houses, of services generally accessible by residents of single unit dwellings.
|
|
Description
|
|
1. The entire undertaking:
|
|
a) is situated exclusively on land owned or leased by the person carrying on the undertaking, or, in the case of an undertaking carried on by a condominium corporation, by such corporation or any of its members; or
|
|
b) is effectively controlled by and provides service only to an educational institution, including residential buildings owned by and forming a part of such institution.
|
|
2. The undertaking is not connected by any form or means of transmission, apart from i) the direct over-the-air reception of conventional broadcast signals, ii) the direct satellite reception of services, or iii) the use of microwave or optical fibre to connect the building portion* of an MATV undertaking to its remote head end portion, which is solely and exclusively owned or leased by the person carrying on the undertaking, and which serves that building portion only,
|
|
a) to any land not owned or leased by the person or persons described above, or
|
|
b) crossing over or under any public street or highway (or in the case of any MATV system fully built before 2 March 1994, over any public street or highway), except in the case of an undertaking carried on by a condominium corporation, or by a registered cooperative society, all of whose members reside on the land on which the undertaking is situated, or by an educational institution described in 1 b).
|
|
3. a) No separate charge is levied, or direct commercial gain obtained, for the use of any part of the undertaking or for any service provided thereover, except for a charge levied in proportionate amount on subscribers to recover:
|
|
i) interest on money borrowed and depreciation, maintenance and administration expenses as reasonably incurred by the operator of the undertaking in connection with the establishment and maintenance of the undertaking, and
|
|
ii) the reasonable charge or fee payable by the operator of the undertaking to the distributor of a service or to an agent appointed by the operator of the undertaking to act on its behalf in arranging and administering agreements with service distributors.
|
|
b) No operator of an undertaking shall have any legal or beneficial ownership interest in any third party providing to the operator, for that undertaking, any services for which separate charges are levied with respect to the matters authorized under paragraphs 3(a) (i) and (ii), unless a contract was entered into on or before 18 May 1989, in which case the application of this subsection to that relationship will only become effective upon the expiration of the term of the said contract.
|
|
4. All signals of local Canadian television stations are distributed over the undertaking, in each case with no degradation of received signal.
|
|
"Signals of local Canadian television stations" means the signals of all television broadcasting stations licensed by the Commission having Grade A "official contours" (as defined in the Cable Television Regulations, 1986, as amended) enclosing the area in which the undertaking in question is carried on.
|
|
5. No service received over-the-air or by satellite or microwave or optical fibre transmission is distributed over the undertaking, other than a service that the Commission by regulation, condition of licence, or otherwise has authorized the licensee of a cable distribution undertaking serving the area within which the undertaking is situated to distribute on its undertaking, whether or not the licensee is actually distributing the service.
|
|
Subject to paragraph 4 above, the signals distributed by the exempt undertaking need not be identical to those signals distributed by the licensed cable distribution undertaking serving the area, so long as they are signals of affiliates of the same network.
|
|
6. A greater number of the video channels of the undertaking is devoted to the distribution of Canadian programming services than to the distribution of non-Canadian programming services.
|
|
7. No feature motion picture locally originated is distributed over the undertaking.
|
8. Notwithstanding paragraphs 5 and 7 above, an undertaking serving the temporary residents of hotels, motels and hospitals or the inmates of prisons may distribute the programming authorized for distribution by Closed Circuit Video Programming Undertakings, as set out in Public Notice CRTC 1993-50 dated 30 April 1993.
|
|
* Where the building portion consists of more than one building, these buildings may not be connected by crossing over or under any public street or highway (or in the case of any MATV system fully built before 2 March 1994, over any public street or highway), except in the case of an undertaking carried on by a condominium corporation, or by a registered cooperative society, all of whose members reside on the land on which the undertaking is situated, or by an educational institution described in 1 b).
|
|
Revised 26 October 1994
|
|
|