ARCHIVED - Public Notice CRTC 1999-95
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Public Notice |
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Ottawa, 2 June 1999
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Public Notice CRTC 1999-95
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Call for comments on proposed amendments to the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations regarding the alteration or deletion of a programming service
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Summary
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The Commission is calling for public comments on a proposal to permit a broadcasting distribution undertaking (BDU) to alter or delete a programming service in order to comply with blackout or programming rights protection requirements.
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The notice also clarifies that BDUs are not permitted to delete portions of programming services paid for by subscribers simply to enable a distributor to have the capacity to distribute a different programming service, on a limited pay-per-view basis.
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Background
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1. The Commission received a number of complaints, beginning in September 1998, from cable subscribers. The complaints alleged that some of the services offered as part of their discretionary package were deleted on Sunday afternoons and replaced with pay-per-view coverage of NFL football games, in scrambled form.
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2. Section 7 of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations (the regulations) prohibits a licensee from altering or deleting a programming service in the course of its distribution except as provided in paragraphs (a) to (f) of section 7. Paragraph 7(e), which is particularly relevant to this situation, allows a licensee to alter or delete a programming service "for the purpose of deleting a programming service in accordance with an agreement entered into with the operator of the service or the network responsible for the service."
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3. In the course of dealing with these complaints, the Commission noted that the prohibition against alteration or deletion of programming services in section 7 of the regulations applies to all programming services, including exempt programming services.
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4. In its determination, issued on 24 December 1998 and sent to the concerned parties, the Commission noted that the intention of paragraph 7(e) was to allow licensees to delete a programming service in order to comply with blackout or programming rights protection requirements. It was never intended to permit distributors to delete portions of programming services paid for by subscribers - even where the programmers involved have consented to such deletion - simply to enable a distributor to have the capacity to distribute a different programming service, such as NFL Sunday Ticket, on a limited pay-per-view basis.
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5. The Commission stated that the deletion of certain programming services in order to distribute NFL Sunday Ticket was unfair to subscribers who have paid to view the programming services that are being deleted. The Commission added that it intended to propose an amendment to paragraph 7(e) of the regulations to clarify explicitly that the exception stated therein is restricted to compliance with blackout or programming rights protection requirements.
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6. Accordingly, the Commission proposes to amend paragraph 7(e) of the regulations. The proposed text of this amendment is set out in the attachment to this public notice.
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Call for comments
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7. The Commission invites written comments that address the issues set out in this notice. The Commission will accept comments that it receives on or before 16 July 1999.
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8. 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.
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Procedures for filing comments
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9. Interested parties should send their comments to the Secretary General, CRTC, Ottawa, K1A ON2.
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· Parties must file all submissions in "hard copy format" (i.e. on paper).
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· Comments longer than five pages should include a summary.
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10. 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.broadcasting@crtc.gc.ca
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· 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.
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· 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.
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11. 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.
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Examination of public comments and related documents at the following Commission offices during normal business hours
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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 |
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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 |
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Place Montréal Trust
1800 McGill College Avenue Suite 1920 Montréal, Quebec H3A 3J6 Tel: (514) 283-6607 - TDD: 283-8316 Telecopier: (514) 283-3689 |
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Kensington Building
275 Portage Avenue Suite 1810 Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 2B3 Tel: (204) 983-6306 - TDD: 983-8274 Telecopier: (204) 983-6317 |
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530-580 Hornby Street
Vancouver, British Columbia V6C 3B6 Tel: (604) 666-2111 - TDD: 666-0778 Telecopier: (604) 666-8322 |
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CRTC Documentation Centre
55 St. Clair Avenue East Suite 624 Toronto, Ontario M4T 1M2 Telephone: (416) 952-9096 Telecopier: (416) 954-6343 |
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CRTC Documentation Centre
Cornwall Professional Building 2125, 11th Avenue Room 103 Regina, Saskatchewan S4P 3X3 Telephone: (306) 780-3422 Telecopier: (306) 780-3319 |
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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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Secrétaire général
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JUS-600935
(SOR/DORS) |
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REGULATIONS AMENDING THE BROADCASTING DISTRIBUTION REGULATIONS
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AMENDMENT
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1. Paragraph 7(e) of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations1 is replaced by the following:
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(e) for the purpose of preventing the breach of programming or underlying rights of a third party, in accordance with an agreement entered into with the operator of the service or the network responsible for the service; or
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COMING INTO FORCE
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2. These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.
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- Date modified: