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Ottawa, 29 June 1994
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Public Notice CRTC 1994-76
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AMENDMENTS TO THE CABLE TELEVISION REGULATIONS, 1986 REGARDING THE DISTRIBUTION OF PROGRAMMING ON COMMUNITY CHANNELS
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In Public Notice CRTC 1992-86 dated 21 December 1992, the Commission proposed amendments to the Cable Television Regulations, 1986 (the regulations). The proposed changes were necessary to accommodate and give effect to the revised policy governing the operation of the community channel as set out in Public Notice CRTC 1991-59 dated 5 June 1991. Earlier, in September 1992, the Commission had initiated the Structural Review of the industry and, as a result, significant amendments to the cable regulatory framework were introduced in January 1994.
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The Commission received 15 comments from members of the public, cable operators, the CBC, various industry associations and other interested parties in response to Public Notice CRTC 1992-86. These comments have been considered by the Commission in the context of other amendments, that came into force on 25 January 1994 following the Structural Review.
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In the following sections of this notice, the Commission sets out its findings and conclusions resulting from this public process.
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Advertising
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Since 1986, the Commission has allowed limited forms of sponsorship and contra advertising on the community channel. The Commission intends to retain its current restrictions on sponsorship and contra advertising. However, for the purposes of uniformity, the Commission has amended the regulations to permit the mention of both the address and telephone number of sponsors in contra and sponsorship messages.
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The Commission reiterates the expectation that all revenues generated from advertising activities be reinvested in the operation of the community channel. These reinvested advertising revenues should also be treated separately and apart from the minimum financial contributions expected of cable licensees under the Commission's community channel policy enunciated in Public Notice CRTC 1991-59. Accordingly, licensees will be expected to identify these advertising revenues and associated expenditures separately from their other expenditures on community channel operations.
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Audiovisual Recordings
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As a means to ensure that licensees are in compliance with the community channel policy, particularly with respect to advertising, citizen access and the overall orientation of the community channel, the Commission has also amended the regulations to require licensees to retain, for submission upon request, an audiovisual (as opposed to audio or audiovisual) recording of all their programming, inclusive of sponsorships and contra messages, for four weeks from the date of distribution.
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Logging Requirements
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In addition, the Commission proposed in Public Notice CRTC 1992-86 to amend the logging requirements to include the time of commencement of each commercial message, its duration and the name of the sponsor, as well as the time of commencement and duration of alphanumeric messages.
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After careful examination of the many comments received, the Commission has decided not to proceed with this amendment. The proposed measures were considered as being onerous, and in conflict with the Commission's stated objective of reducing regulatory burden. Instead, the Commission expects the Canadian Cable Television Association (CCTA), on behalf of its members, to develop logging standards for Class 1 systems, and Class 2 systems with 2,000 or more subscribers, for incorporation into the Cable Television Community Channel Standards.
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The Commission expects the proposed standards to be submitted for its acceptance within six months of the date of this notice.
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Complementary Programming on the Community Channel
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The amended regulations will now permit Class 1 licensees to include government and public service information material, as well as the pro-vincial or territorial Question Period proceedings on the community channel.
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The Commission reiterates that licensees will be expected to adhere to the principle that local programs be given scheduling priority. Also, in keeping with the Commission's policy of free and open access, licensees shall not require financial payment in exchange for the distribution of government or public service material.
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Class 2 Licensees with Fewer than 2,000 subscribers and Part III Licensees
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Pursuant to amendments to the regulations already announced in Public Notice CRTC 1994-7, Class 2 licensees with fewer than 2,000 subscribers are regulated in much the same manner as the licensees of Part III systems. As such, these undertakings are no longer required by regulation to provide community programming or a local alphanumeric service on the community channel.
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As an incentive to certain licensees of Part III undertakings and of Class 2 undertakings serving fewer than 2,000 subscribers, specifically those providing service to "unserved communities", the Commission has decided to amend the regulations to permit such licensees to air a maximum of 12 minutes of local advertising material per hour. The amended regulations define "unserved community" as one having no local AM or FM radio station and no local television station.
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However, since the definition of "local television station" in the regulations includes a rebroadcasting undertaking, licensees of cable undertakings located in communities served by a local television rebroadcasting undertaking would have to apply to the Commission for a condition of licence authorizing them to distribute up to 12 minutes of local advertising per hour on their community channel.
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An application by a cable licensee to distribute local advertising would not be necessary in the case of a community served only by a local rebroadcaster of an AM or FM station. Section 2 of the regulations make it clear that the definitions of "AM station" and "FM station" do not include a rebroadcasting undertaking.
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In addition, provisions have been included within the regulations to permit both Class 2 licensees with fewer than 2,000 subscribers and Part III licensees to distribute classified advertising and public announcements on the local alphanumeric service.
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Class 2 licensees with fewer than 2,000 subscribers and Part III licensees electing to provide community programming are reminded that, in accordance with section 24 of the regulations, as amended, they must now comply with the requirements of paragraphs 13 (1) (a) to (i), subsections 13 (2) and (3) and sections 15 and 15.1 of the regulations. In addition, these licensees will be expected to adhere to the CCTA's revised Cable Television Community Channel Standards, as amended from time to time and accepted by the Commission.
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In deciding upon the changes noted above, the Commission took into account the concerns expressed by the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) and the Central Canada Broadcasters Association (CCBA) with regard to the decrease in revenues of radio and television undertakings in recent years. Both associations were opposed to any changes to the regulations that would grant cable operators more flexibility with respect to advertising on the community channel, and stated that granting up to 12 minutes per hour of advertising to smaller Class 2 systems and Part III systems would be detrimental to the many smaller-market radio and television stations in Canada.
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On this subject, the Commission reiterates that the definition of unserved community is designed to exclude any community that is already served by a local AM, FM or local television station. Moreover, in the case of communities served by a local television rebroadcasting undertaking, television licensees will have the opportunity to express their particular concern with respect to specific applications for conditions of licence, as part of the public process described above.
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In conclusion, the Commission is of the opinion that the advantages of providing an incentive to small cable systems to produce community programming outweighs the concerns outlined by the CAB and the CCBA.
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Other Matters
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For the purposes of uniformity, the Commission has amended the regulations to include the provisions respecting "programming content" (eg. abusive comment, etc.) that are already found in the Commission's radio, television, pay television and specialty services regulations.
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The Commission has enacted the attached amendments. They were registered on 11 May 1994 (SOR/94-352) and came into force on that date. These amendments were published in the Canada Gazette Part II on 1 June 1994.
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Related Documents:
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"Complementary Programming on the Community Channel" Public Notice CRTC 1985-151 dated 18 July 1985; "Regulations Respecting Broadcasting Receiving Undertakings" Public Notice CRTC 1986-182 dated 1 August 1986; "Sponsorship Messages on the Community Channel" Circular No. 348 dated 27 July 1988; "Community Channel Policy Review" Public Notice CRTC 1990-57 dated 5 June 1990; "Community Channel Policy" Public Notice CRTC 1991-59 dated 5 June 1991; "Proposed Amendments to the Cable Television Regulations, 1986" Public Notice CRTC 1992-86 dated 21 December 1992; "Structural Public Hearing" Public Notice CRTC 1993-74 dated 3 June 1993; and "Amendments to the Cable Television Regulations, 1986" Public Notice CRTC 1994-7 dated 3 February 1994.
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Allan J. Darling
Secretary General
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JUS-94-148-02 (SOR/DORS)
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WHEREAS, pursuant to subsection 10(3) of the Broadcasting Act, a copy of proposed amendments to the Cable Television Regulations, 1986, substantially in the form set out in the schedule hereto, was published in the Canada Gazette Part I on January 2, 1993 and a reasonable opportunity was thereby given to licensees and other interested persons to make representations to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission with respect thereto;
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THEREFORE, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, pursuant to subsection 10(1) of the Broadcasting Act*, hereby amends the Cable Television Regulations, 1986, made on July 30, 1986**, in accordance with the schedule hereto. Hull, Quebec, May 11, 1994
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Allan J. Darling
Secretary General
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JUS-94-148-02 (SOR/DORS)
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SCHEDULE
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1. Section 2 of the Cable Television Regulations, 1986 is amended by adding the following in
alphabetical order:
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"clock hour" means a period of 60 minutes beginning on each hour and ending immediately before the next hour; (heure d'horloge)
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"unserved community" means the licensed area of an undertaking where there is no local A.M. station, no local F.M. station and no local television station. (collectivité non desservie)
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2. Paragraphs 13(1)(d) to (h) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:
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(d) an information program funded by and produced for a federal, provincial or municipal government or agency or a public service organization;
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(e) the question period portions of the proceedings of the legislature of the province in which the undertaking is located;
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(f) an announcement providing information about the programming to be distributed on the community channel;
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(g) a commercial message that mentions or displays the name of a person who sponsored a community event or the goods, services or activities sold or promoted by the person, where the mention or display of the name, goods, services or activities is in the course of, and incidental to the production of, community programming dealing with the event;
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(h) an oral or a written acknowledgement contained in community programming that mentions no more than the name of a person, the goods, services or activities that are being sold or promoted by the person and the address and telephone number of the person, where the person provided direct financial assistance for the community programming in which the acknowledgement is contained;
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(i) an oral or a written acknowledgement contained in community programming that mentions no more than the name of a person, the goods or services provided by the person and the address and telephone number of the person, where the person provided the goods or services free of charge to the licensee for use in connection with the production of the community programming in which the acknowledgement is contained; or
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(j) an alphanumeric service that is produced by the licensee or by members of the community served by the undertaking and that does not contain commercial messages, other than commercial messages contained within the programming service of a licensed A.M. station or licensed F.M. station.
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3. The portion of subsection 14(2) of the Regulations before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:
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(2) A licensee shall retain a clear and intelligible audiovisual recording of each program distributed, for a period of
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4. The Regulations are further amended by adding the following after section 15:
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Programming Content
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15.1 (1) No licensee shall distribute any programming service that the licensee originates and that contains
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(a) anything that contravenes any law;
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(b) any abusive comment or abusive pictorial representation that, when taken in context, tends to or is likely to expose an individual or group or class of individuals to hatred or contempt on the basis of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age or mental or physical disability;
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(c) any obscene or profane language or pictorial representation; or
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(d) any false or misleading news.
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(2) For the purpose of paragraph (1)(b), sexual orientation does not include the orientation towards a sexual act or activity that would constitute an offence under the Criminal Code.
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5. Subsection 24(2) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:
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(2) Where a Part III licensee or a licensee that holds a Class 2 licence and that has less than 2,000 subscribers
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(a) elects to distribute community programming pursuant to paragraph (1)(b), the licensee
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(i) shall comply with the requirements of paragraphs 13(1)(a) to (i), subsections 13(2) and (3) and sections 15 and 15.1, and
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(ii) may, unless otherwise provided for pursuant to a condition of its licence, distribute an alphanumeric service that is produced by the licensee or by members of the community served by the undertaking; and
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(b) provides service to an unserved community, the licensee may, unless otherwise provided for pursuant to a condition of its licence, distribute up to a maximum of 12 minutes of commercial messages during each clock hour of community programming.
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JUS-94-148-02 (SOR/DORS)
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EXPLANATORY NOTE
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(This note is not part of the Regulations.)
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These amendments modify the provisions pertaining to the distribution of programming on community channels by licensees.
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