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ARCHIVED - Decision CRTC 2000-328

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  Decision CRTC 2000-328
  Ottawa, 16 August 2000
  Astral Television Networks Inc.
Across Canada – 200005092
  27 June 2000 Public Hearing in Montréal
  Acquisition of the assets of Super Écran

1.

The Commission approves the application by Astral Television Networks Inc. to acquire the assets of the pay television programming undertaking Super Écran, currently owned by Les Chaînes Télé Astral inc., and for a broadcasting licence to continue the operation of this undertaking.

2.

Upon surrender of the current licence, the Commission will issue a licence to Astral Television Networks Inc., expiring 31 August 2001 (the current expiry date). The licence will be subject to the conditions listed in the Appendix to this decision.

3.

In approving this application, the Commission has taken into account that Les Chaînes Télé Astral inc. is wholly-owned by Astral Television Networks Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Astral Communications inc. This transaction thus represents an intra-corporate reorganization without any change occurring in the control, programming or management of the licence.
  Secretary General
  This decision is to be appended to the licence. It is available in alternative format upon request, and may also be examined at the following Internet site: www.crtc.gc.ca

APPENDIX

Conditions of licence for Super Écran
Nature of service
1. The licensee shall provide a national general interest pay television service in the French language with programming intended for all audiences. The licensee shall not distribute programming from categories 1 (news), 4 (religion), or 5 (education) of Item 6 of Schedule I to the Pay Television Regulations, 1990, and shall not devote more than 5% of its programming schedule during each semester to programming from category 6 (sports) of Item 6, with a maximum of 20 hours in any week. The licensee shall devote at least 50% of its programming schedule during each semester to dramatic programs.
Exhibition of Canadian programs
2. Commencing 1 March 1995 and during each semester of this licence term, the licensee shall devote to the distribution of Canadian programs not less than

(i) 30% of the time from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. (Eastern time) and

(ii) 25% of the remainder of the time during which the service is in operation.
For the purpose of this condition, a 150% credit will be given for time during which the licensee distributes a new Canadian production that commences between 6:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. (Eastern time) or, in the case of a new Canadian production intended for children, at an appropriate viewing time between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m., and the licensee will receive such a credit for each subsequent showing of such a production in the specified time periods within a two-year period from the date of first showing by this licensee.
3. In the period 1 March 1995 to 31 August 1995 and in each subsequent broadcast year of this licence term, the licensee shall devote to the distribution of Canadian dramatic programs not less than 50% of the time that it is required to devote to the distribution of Canadian programs.
Expenditures on Canadian programs
4. (a) During the period 1 March 1995 to 3 August 1995, subject to paragraph (c), the licensee shall expend on the acquisition of or investment in Canadian programs, a percentage of its revenues for the period 1 March 1994 to 31 August 1994 that is not less than the percentage shown in the table below. For the broadcast year beginning 1 September 1995, and in each subsequent broadcast year of this licence term, subject to paragraph (c), the licensee shall expend on the acquisition of or investment in Canadian programs, a percentage of its annual revenues from the operation of this service during the previous broadcast year that is not less than the percentage indicated in the table below:
Average number of residential, bulk and satellite master antenna television (SMATV) subscribers in the previous   broadcast year / Percentage of revenues

199,999 or less 20%
200,000 - 249 999 22%
250,000 or more 24%
(b) As of the month following that in which the licensee no longer has a cumulative deficit, it shall expend on the acquisition of or investment in Canadian programs, an additional 2% of its annual revenues from the operation of this service during the previous year for the balance of the broadcast year and for each subsequent broadcast year.
To establish the cumulative deficit for the purposes of expenditure on Canadian programming, "profit" means the licensee's net earnings after income tax in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
(c) In any broadcast year of this licence term, including the partial broadcast year ending 31 August 1995 but excluding the final broadcast year, the licensee may expend on Canadian programming up to 5% less than the minimum required expenditure for that broadcast year as set out and calculated in accordance with this condition of licence. Should the licensee avail itself of this flexibility in any broadcast year of the licence term, including the partial broadcast year ending 31 August 1995, it shall expend in the next broadcast year of the licence term, in addition to the minimum expenditure required for that broadcast year, the full amount of the previous year's underspending.
(d) In any broadcast year of this licence term, including the partial broadcast year ending 31 August 1995, the licensee may expend on Canadian programming an amount exceeding the minimum expenditure required for that year, set out and calculated in accordance with this condition of licence; in such case, the licensee may deduct:

(i) from the minimum required expenditure for the next broadcast year of the licence term, an amount not exceeding the amount of the previous broadcast year's overspending; and

(ii) from the minimum required expenditure for any subsequent broadcast year of this licence term an amount not exceeding the difference between the overspending and any amount deducted under paragraph (i) above.

(e) Notwithstanding the above, during this licence term, the licensee shall expend on Canadian programming, at a minimum, the total of the minimum required expenditures as set out and calculated in accordance with this condition.
5. In each broadcast year of this licence term, including the partial broadcast year ending 31 August 1995, the licensee shall devote to the acquisition of Canadian programs not less than 60% of the minimum required expenditure on the acquisition of or investment in Canadian programming, as calculated in condition 4 and irrespective of its cumulative deficit.
6. In each broadcast year of this licence term, the licensee shall expend on script and concept development, excluding overhead costs, the amounts indicated in the table below:
01-09-1994 to 31-08-1995 125,000 $
01-09-1995 to 31-08-1996 128,000 $
01-09-1996 to 31-08-1997 132,000 $
01-09-1997 to 31-08-1998 136,000 $
01-09-1998 to 31-08-1999 140,000 $
01-09-1999 to 31-08-2000 145,000 $
01-09-2000 to 31-08-2001 150,000 $
7. In each broadcast year of this licence term, including the partial broadcast year ending 31 August 1995, the licensee shall devote to Canadian dramatic programs not less than 60% of its expenditures on the acquisition of or investment in Canadian programming for that year.
8. For the purposes of conditions 4 to 7, only actual cash outlays shall be taken into account.
Distribution of film and video productions involving Astral Communications Inc. (Astral)
9. (a) The licensee shall not distribute any film or video production with respect to which Astral has carried on activities other than financing or distribution.
(b) Where Astral has carried on financing or distribution activities with respect to a film or video production, the licensee shall not distribute that film or video production unless all actual production and creative control, apart from financial approvals which the pay television licensees normally require, remain the full responsibility of an independent Canadian production company.
Gender portrayal
10. The licensee shall adhere to the guidelines on gender portrayal set out in the Canadian Association of Broadcasters' Sex-role portrayal code for television and radio programming, as amended from time to time and approved by the Commission.
Depiction of violence
11. The licensee shall adhere to the Pay television and pay-per-view programming code regarding violence, as amended from time to time and approved by the Commission.
Definitions
In these conditions:

"acquisition" means to acquire exhibition rights for the licensed territory, excluding overhead costs.

"broadcast year" means the period from 1 September to 31 August and each twelve-month period thereafter beginning on 1 September.

"script and concept development expenditures", mean those expenditures, excluding overhead costs, that are incurred prior to the commencement of pre-production and before the financing of the project is in place. Spending on programs that are assured of going to air at the time of the expenditure is not considered as script and development expenditures.

"expend" and "expenditure" mean actual cash outlay.

"expend on acquisition" includes to expend on program captioning for the hearing impaired.

"cumulative deficit" does not include deficits from Direct-to-Home-Satellite Services (DTH) operations.

"investment" means an equity investment or an advance on account of an equity investment, but does not include overhead costs or interim financing by way of a loan.
"new Canadian production" means:
(a) a Canadian dramatic program

(i) which exceeds 75 minutes in duration and in relation to which all financial expenditures made by the licensee were made prior to the commencement of principal photography or taping and in which principal photography or taping was completed after 1 January 1985, or

(ii) which is intended for children and exceeds 22:30 minutes in duration and in relation to which all financial expenditures made by the licensee were made prior to the completion of principal photography or taping
(b) and which is a program that has never been broadcast in French in the licensed territory.

"revenue" means revenue from residential, bulk and SMATV subscribers and does not include revenue from DTH subscriber fees or any return on an investment in programming.

"semester" means a period of six consecutive months beginning on 1 September or 1 March of each year.

 

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