ARCHIVED - Public Notice CRTC 1995-26
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Public Notice |
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Ottawa, 17 February 1995
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Public Notice CRTC 1995-26
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CABLE DISTRIBUTION OF THE U.S. SERVICE "THE WEATHER CHANNEL"
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In Public Notice CRTC 1994-125 dated 7 October 1994, the Commission called for comments on a request filed by Météomédia Inc. (Météomédia), the licensee of the Canadian specialty service undertaking known as "MétéoMédia/The Weather Network", that the Commission amend the lists of eligible satellite services by removing the non-Canadian satellite service, The Weather Channel (TWC). MétéoMédia is licensed to distribute local, regional and national weather information, and information of interest to Canadians concerning the weather in foreign locations. TWC is a 24-hour satellite service based in the United States that provides information pertaining primarily to the weather in that country.
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The Commission received a total of 14 comments on this request. The Canadian Association of Broadcasters, Maclean Hunter Limited, CHUM Limited, Association du disque et de l'industrie du spectacle du Québec (ADISQ) and one individual supported the request. The Commission received comments opposing the removal of the service from Program Source, the Canadian Cable Television Association, The Weather Channel and four individuals. Two additional comments were from indivi-
duals who appear to have interpreted the request as a proposal to restrict cable access to the Canadian service, MétéoMédia. |
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Under the Commission's policy, non-Canadian satellite services that are deemed to be either totally or partially competitive with Canadian pay or specialty services may be removed from the lists.
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In its request, MétéoMédia claimed that TWC provides programming that is competitive to its service. The licensee also noted that the distribution of a second weather channel in Canada would have an impact on its ability to develop an advertising base by fragmenting its
audience, thus prompting sponsors to buy time on TWC in order to reach both the Canadian and U.S. markets. |
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TWC argued that it does not compete with MétéoMédia, since its service is almost entirely focused on U.S. weather information while MétéoMédia focuses on Canadian weather information. In addition, TWC stated that, since it uses the same technology as MétéoMédia to gather regional weather data, and is precluded by a licensing agreement from using this technology in Canada, it could only offer a service in Canada that is complementary, rather than competitive, to MétéoMédia's service.
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Upon reviewing the description of the programming offered by TWC in its written comment, and taking into consideration the programming that MétéoMédia is currently authorized to distribute, the Commission is satisfied that these two services are not competitive to any significant degree. The Commission has therefore decided to deny MétéoMédia's request and will continue to include TWC on the lists of eligible satellite services.
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Allan J. Darling
Secretary General |
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