ARCHIVED -  Decision CRTC 96-131

Decision

Ottawa, 8 May 1996

Decision CRTC 96-131

 Standard Radio Inc.

 Acquisition of assets

 Following a Public Hearing in Vancouver beginning on 27 February 1996, the Commission approves the applications by Standard Radio Inc. (Standard) for authority to acquire the assets of CISL and CKZZ-FM from 3173836 Canada Inc., and for broadcasting licences to continue the operation of these undertakings.

 The Commission will issue licences to Standard, expiring 31 August 1999, (the current expiry date), upon surrender of the current licences. The licences will be subject to the same conditions as those in effect under the current licences, as well as to any other condition specified in this decision and in the licences to be issued.

 The unadjusted purchase price relating to this transaction is $18 million. Based on the evidence filed with the applications, the Commission has no concerns with respect to the availability or the adequacy of the required financing.

 Through its parent, Standard Broadcasting Corporation Limited, and its parent, Slaight Communications Inc., the applicant, Standard, is beneficially owned and controlled by J. Allan Slaight.
 

 The Commission has assessed the benefits package identified by the applicant as flowing from this transaction and, in general, is satisfied that it is significant and unequivocal, and that approval of the transaction is in the public interest.

 According to Standard, the intangible benefits to result from these applications include the applicant's commitment to create, for each week over a six-year period commencing in 1998, 30-second commercials promoting current or newly-released Canadian albums.

 Among the proposed tangible benefits of Standard's application to acquire the assets of CKZZ-FM, the Commission notes in particular the applicant's commitment to spend $450,000, over seven years commencing in 1997, on "Z-Live Concerts", a three-phase live concert series featuring local, regional and national Canadian artists. The Commission also notes that, among Standard's proposed tangible benefits of its application to acquire the assets of CISL, the applicant made a commitment to spend $150,000, over six years commencing in 1998, in awards for campus/community radio stations, as well as another $150,000 over six years to Canadian Women in Communications.

 At the time the Commission originally licensed CKZZ-FM (Decision CRTC 90-534 dated 22 June 1990), the licensee made a commitment to allocate $315,000 in direct costs annually over the first five years of operation to Canadian talent development. Subsequently, in Decision CRTC 94-723 dated 31 August 1994, the Commission renewed CKZZ-FM's licence after the station had been on-air for three years.

 As stated in Decision CRTC 94-723, the licensee is required "to continue spending $315,000 each year in direct expenditures on Canadian talent development for an additional two years, specifically until August 1996 which would be the conclusion of the first five years of operation." In addition, the licensee has a continuing commitment, made in the context of its licence renewal application, to spend $56,000 each year on various Canadian talent development projects over the remaining three years of the licence term, i.e. until 31 August 1999.

 On 17 November 1995, the Commission issued Public Notice CRTC 1995-196 entitled "Contributions by Radio Stations to Canadian Talent Development - A New Approach". In that Public Notice, the Commission described a plan by the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) by which licensees of private, commercial radio stations would together contribute a minimum of $1.8 million annually for third parties involved in Canadian talent development. To participate in the CAB's plan, licensees of radio stations must submit applications to the Commission to be relieved of their current commitments to Canadian talent development made in the context of licence renewals and to amend their licences by adding a condition of licence requiring them to make payments in accordance with the CAB's Canadian talent development distribution guidelines. The Commission will process such applications expeditiously via public notice.

 As stated in Public Notice CRTC 1995-196, licensees will be expected, for the duration of their first licence term, to adhere to commitments related to Canadian talent development made in connection with applications for new licences, including a move from the AM to the FM band.

 Licensees will also be expected to adhere to those commitments proposed as benefits of applications to transfer the ownership or control of radio stations. Accordingly, while both CISL and CKZZ-FM applied for a new condition of licence and to participate in the CAB's plan outlined in Public Notice CRTC 1995-196, the Commission reminds Standard that it must fulfill the requirement set out in Decision CRTC 94-723 that CKZZ-FM contribute $315,000 each year in direct expenditures on Canadian talent development until 31 August 1996 because these commitments were made in the context of an application for a new licence. Furthermore, the licensee must fulfill all commitments related to Canadian talent development that were proposed as benefits of the applications approved in this decision.

 It is a condition of each licence that the applicant adhere to the guidelines on gender portrayal set out in the Canadian Association of Broadcasters' (CAB) "Sex-Role Portrayal Code for Television and Radio Programming", as amended from time to time and accepted by the Commission.

 It is also a condition of each licence that the applicant adhere to the provisions of the CAB's "Broadcast Code for Advertising to Children", as amended from time to time and accepted by the Commission.

 The Commission acknowledges the two interventions submitted in support of these applications.

 This decision is to be appended to each licence.

 Allan J. Darling
 Secretary General