ARCHIVED - Public Notice CRTC 1999-83
This page has been archived on the Web
Information identified as archived on the Web is for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. Archived Decisions, Notices and Orders (DNOs) remain in effect except to the extent they are amended or reversed by the Commission, a court, or the government. The text of archived information has not been altered or updated after the date of archiving. Changes to DNOs are published as “dashes” to the original DNO number. Web pages that are archived on the Web are not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards. As per the Communications Policy of the Government of Canada, you can request alternate formats by contacting us.
Public Notice |
|
Ottawa, 12 May 1999
|
|
Public Notice CRTC 1999-83
|
|
Call for comments on proposed amendments to the Pay Television Regulations
|
|
Summary
|
|
The Commission seeks public comments regarding a proposal to amend the Pay Television Regulations, 1990 to ensure that pay television licensees do not acquire rights to pay-per-view programs on an exclusive or other preferential basis.
|
|
1. In March 1998, ExpressVu, now Bell/ExpressVu, filed a complaint with the Commission against Rogers Communications Inc. and its subsidiary Rogers Cablesystems Ltd. The complaint alleged that Rogers had contravened section 9 of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations by purchasing the exclusive rights to distribute certain pay-per-view programs. Section 9 states that no licensee "shall give an undue preference to any person, including itself, or subject any person to an undue advantage." The Commission ultimately found that there had not been, in those circumstances, a breach of section 9 since it was not persuaded that any preference given had been undue.
|
|
2. Bell/ExpressVu, in a related proposal, requested that the Commission amend the Pay Television Regulations, 1990 to include a section comparable to section 9. The Commission, in its disposition of the complaint, stated that, while it had not imposed specific conditions of licence requiring that pay-per-view licensees not acquire programming on an exclusive basis, the circumstances of the complaint highlighted the absence of a regulation for pay television licensees that addresses this matter.
|
|
Call for comments
|
|
3. The Commission invites written comments on the proposed amendments set out in the appendix to this notice. The Commission will accept comments that it receives on or before 30 June 1999.
|
|
4. The Commission will not formally acknowledge written comments. It will, however, fully consider all comments and they will form part of the public record of the proceeding, provided that the procedures for filing set out below have been followed.
|
|
Procedures for filing comments
|
|
5. Interested parties should send their comments to the Secretary General, CRTC, Ottawa, K1A ON2.
|
|
· Parties must file all submissions in "hard copy format" (i.e. on paper).
|
|
· Comments longer than five pages should include a summary.
|
|
6. The Commission also encourages parties to file electronic versions of their comments by e-mail or on diskette. The Commission's e-mail address for electronically filed documents is procedure@crtc.gc.ca
|
|
· Electronic submissions should be in the HTML format. As an alternative, those making submissions may use "Microsoft Word" for text and "Microsoft Excel" for spreadsheets.
|
|
· Please number each paragraph of the comment. In addition, please enter the line ***End of Document*** following the last paragraph. This will help the Commission verify that the document has not been damaged during transmission.
|
|
7. The Commission will make comments filed in electronic form available on its web site at www.crtc.gc.ca in the official language and format in which they are submitted. This will make it easier for members of the public to consult the documents.
|
|
Examination of public comments and related documents at the following Commission offices during normal business hours
|
|
Central Building
Les Terrasses de la Chaudière 1 Promenade du Portage, Room G-5 Hull, Quebec K1A ON2 Tel: (819) 997-2429 - TDD: 994-0423 Telecopier: (819) 994-0218 |
|
Bank of Commerce Building
1809 Barrington Street Suite 1007 Halifax, Nova Scotia B3J 3K8 Tel: (902) 426-7997 - TDD: 426-6997 Telecopier: (902) 426-2721 |
|
Place Montréal Trust
1800 McGill College Avenue Suite 1920 Montréal, Quebec H3A 3J6 Tel: (514) 283-6607 - TDD: 283-8316 Telecopier: (514) 283-3689 |
|
Kensington Building
275 Portage Avenue Suite 1810 Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 2B3 Tel: (204) 983-6306 - TDD: 983-8274 Telecopier: (204) 983-6317 |
|
530-580 Hornby Street
Vancouver, British Columbia V6C 3B6 Tel: (604) 666-2111 - TDD: 666-0778 Telecopier: (604) 666-8322 |
|
CRTC Documentation Centre
55 St. Clair Avenue East Suite 624 Toronto, Ontario M4T 1M2 Telephone: (416) 952-9096 Telecopier: (416) 954-6343 |
|
CRTC Documentation Centre
Cornwall Professional Building 2125, 11th Avenue Room 103 Regina, Saskatchewan S4P 3X3 Telephone: (306) 780-3422 Telecopier: (306) 780-3319 |
|
Secretary General
|
|
This notice is available in alternative format upon request, and may also be viewed at the following Internet site: http://www.crtc.gc.ca
|
|
JUS-601110
(SOR/DORS) |
|
REGULATIONS AMENDING THE PAY TELEVISION REGULATIONS, 1990
|
|
AMENDMENTS
|
|
1. Subsection 2(1) of the Pay Television Regulations, 19901 is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:
|
|
"pay-per-view program" means a scheduled program that is provided by a licensee for distribution by a distribution undertaking on a pay-per-view basis; (émission à la carte)
|
|
2. The Regulations are amended by adding the following after section 6.
|
|
PROHIBITION
|
|
6.1 No licensee shall acquire exclusive or other preferential rights to the distribution of a pay-per-view program within Canada.
|
|
COMING INTO FORCE
|
|
3. These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.
|
|
|
- Date modified: