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Canadian Satellite Communications Inc.
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Across Canada - 199707816
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Addition of Euronews - Denied
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1. Following Public Notice CRTC 1998-16 dated 20 February 1998, the Commission denies the application by Canadian Satellite Communications Inc. (Cancom) to amend the broadcasting licence of its national satellite relay distribution undertaking, by adding Euronews to the list of signals that Cancom is authorized to distribute, and to the list of Part 2 Eligible Satellite Services, Section A and to the list of Part 3 Eligible Satellite Services.
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2. Cancom filed this application prior to the Commission's announcement in Public Notice CRTC 1997-33-2 dated 11 December 1997 of a moratorium on the addition of any new foreign services to the lists of eligible satellite services. In the public notice, the Commission stated that the moratorium would not apply to applications before the Commission at that time.
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3. Euronews offers predominantly news and current affairs programming using a video track with voice-over commentary in five different languages: French, English, German, Italian and Spanish. A cable operator can elect to distribute Euronews in one or more languages, depending upon its technological capability and subscriber demand. A cable system distributing Euronews must use a separate channel for each language it carries.
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4. The Specialty and Premium Television Association (SPTV) and Telelatino Television Network (Telelatino) filed interventions opposing Cancom's application. SPTV represents the interests of Canadian specialty, pay and pay-per-view television services. Telelatino is a Canadian national ethnic specialty service that offers programming in Italian and Spanish.
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5. Both SPTV and Telelatino argued that, as a foreign service, Euronews is not obligated to make any contributions to the Canadian broadcasting system. Euronews would, therefore, be able to offer its service at a lower wholesale rate, thereby undercutting other Canadian specialty services.
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6. SPTV contended that the Commission should not authorize any new foreign services until it has clarified future channel capacity on distribution undertakings and until it has reviewed the access, priority and contributions of foreign services in the context of upcoming hearings on Canadian programming, ethnic broadcasting and applications for new Canadian specialty and premium services. Moreover, SPTV urged the Commission not to add any new foreign services until all licensed specialty services have been launched.
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7. For its part, Telelatino argued that its news and current affairs programming are crucial to its success. Noting that Euronews offers programming in Italian and Spanish and receives its programming from similar sources as Telelatino, for example RAI International Inc., the intervener claimed that this foreign service would be competitive with Telelatino. Specifically, Telelatino claimed that authorizing the carriage of Euronews on Canadian distribution undertakings would impede its efforts to gain carriage in markets where it is not distributed. The intervener added that the Commission should not authorize any non-Canadian services that are competitive with a Canadian specialty service until that Canadian service is distributed in all cable markets across Canada. In support of its arguments, Telelatino referred to Public Notice CRTC 1997-96 dated 22 July 1997 in which the Commission stated that "it will not authorize non-Canadian services that can be considered either totally or partially competitive with existing Canadian pay or specialty services".
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8. The Commission has noted Cancom's responses to these interventions.
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9. The Commission notes that Telelatino offers an Italian- and Spanish-language service and that news and current affairs programming account for 31% of its schedule. Euronews also offers news and current affairs programming in Italian and Spanish. The Commission's analysis, based on data from the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement's Fall 1996 Report, reveals that viewing to news programming comprises 19.2% of Telelatino's total viewing audience. Accordingly, the Commission considers that the Euronews service would be partially competitive with a Canadian specialty service. In accordance with its policy set out in Public Notice CRTC 1997-96, the Commission considers that it would be inappropriate to add Euronews to its lists of eligible satellite services. With similar concerns in mind, the Commission has also, therefore, decided not to add Euronews to the list of signals that Cancom is authorized to distribute.
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Laura M. Talbot-Allan
Secretary General
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This document is available in alternative format upon request.
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