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Public Notice
CRTC 1999-186
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Ottawa, 19 November 1999
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Amendment to section 7 of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations
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Summary
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The Commission has adopted the amendment to the alteration and deletion provisions of section 7 of the Broadcast Distribution Regulations which is attached to this public notice. This amendment was put forward for public comment in Public Notice CRTC 1999-95. It was published in part II of the Canada Gazette on 10 November 1999 and will come into effect on 1 March 2000. The amendments serve to narrow the circumstances under which a broadcasting distribution undertaking such as a cablesystem may alter or delete a programming service that it distributes.
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Further, in this Notice, licensees currently altering or deleting a programming service in accordance with channel-sharing agreements are invited to apply to the Commission as soon as possible, in order to seek authorization to continue to do so. The Commission expects to deal with all such requests by 1 March 2000.
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Background
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1. On 2 June 1999, the Commission issued Public Notice CRTC 1999-95 (PN 1999-95) calling for comments on a proposed amendment to section 7 of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations (the regulations). In particular, the Commission proposed to amend section 7(e) of the regulations in order to clarify the circumstances under which a broadcasting distribution undertaking (BDU) may alter or delete a programming service. Section 7(e) would no longer allow a BDU to alter or delete a programming service in accordance with any agreement entered into with the operator of the service (or the network responsible for the service). Instead, alteration or deletion would only be permitted in order to allow for compliance with blackout or programming rights protection requirements.
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2. In reply to this call for comments, the Commission received submissions from seven interested parties.
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The Commission's determination
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3. Having considered the comments received in response to PN 1999-95, the Commission has decided to amend paragraph 7(e) of the regulations as proposed, except that it is changing the date upon which the amendment will come into force.
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4. A number of parties raised the issue of channel sharing and submitted that the proposed amendment to section 7(e) of the regulations would not permit the continuance of existing channel-sharing arrangements. Accordingly, these parties suggested, among other things, that existing channel sharing agreements be grandfathered. They noted that there are a number of channel-sharing arrangements between distributors and programmers that subscribers are long accustomed to and that assist in making the most efficient use of limited channel capacity.
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5. The Commission has decided that, as indicated in the text of this amendment set out in the appendix to this public notice, the amendment will come into force on 1 March 2000. This delay will provide an opportunity for BDU licensees presently involved in channel-sharing agreements to apply to the Commission for authorization to continue these arrangements.
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6. Accordingly, BDUs seeking to continue existing channel-sharing arrangements are invited to apply to the Commission as soon as possible, in order to allow it to deal with such requests before 1 March 2000.
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7. The Canadian Cable Television Association and Rogers Cablesystems Ltd. also requested that the Commission continue to allow BDUs to enter into channel-sharing arrangements that involve some measure of deletion where the channel sharing arrangement is transparent to the customer, is permanent and is done pursuant to an agreement entered into with the operator of the service or network responsible for the service.
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8. The Commission considers that allowing BDUs to enter into curtailment arrangements on a going forward basis would allow BDUs to make deletions to services paid for by subscribers so that they could distribute different programming services on a limited basis. This is the very issue that the proposed amendment was designed to address. The Commission also considers that the matter of BDUs entering into channel-sharing arrangements should be a temporary, capacity-related matter. Accordingly, it is not in favour of a blanket approval in the regulations that would permit such curtailment arrangements in the future.
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9. However, the Commission points out that under the existing provisions of the regulations and BDUs’ conditions of licence, a licensee may be authorized to alter or delete a programming service. Existing mechanisms allow for approval, on a case by case basis where appropriate, of channel sharing agreements in the future.
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10. Bell Satellite Services Inc. requested that the Commission clarify that the proposed amendment will still allow BDUs to delete selected programming, at the request of rights holders, in order to reflect the local and/or regional programming rights purchased by the local broadcaster. The Commission points out that this kind of activity to protect programming rights will still be permitted under the amended section of the regulations.
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Secretary General
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This notice is available in alternative format upon request, and may also be viewed at the following Internet site: : http://www.crtc.gc.ca
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