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ARCHIVED - Public Notice CRTC 2001-100

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Public Notice CRTC 2001-100

Ottawa, 14 September 2001

Amendments to the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations to implement recommendations of the CRTC's Report on French-language broadcasting services in a minority environment

Summary

In Public Notice CRTC 2001-84, the Commission called for comments on proposed amendments to implement its new policy on French-language broadcasting services in a minority environment. Further to PN 2001-84, the Commission has adopted amendments to certain sections of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations, as set out in the appendix to this notice. The amendments came into effect on 1 September 2001.

1.

The Commission announces that it has amended sections of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations to implement certain recommendations set out in Public Notice CRTC 2001-25 entitled Achieving a better balance: Report on French-language broadcasting services in a minority environment and in PN 2001-26 entitled A policy to increase the availability to cable subscribers of specialty services in the minority official language.

2.

In PN 2001-84, the Commission invited comments on the proposed regulatory amendments. The deadline for comments was 17 August 2001, and the Commission received nine submissions by that date. Three parties commented on the proposed regulatory amendments. The other submissions focused on the policy and the Commission's report (PNs 2001-25 and 2001-26). The Commission notes, however that in PN 2001-84, it indicated that comments should not address any of the questions that had already been considered in the policy proceedings that led to the proposed amendments.

3.

The Canadian Association of Broadcasters (the CAB) proposed amendments to section 18(11.4) (b) to specify that only one French-language educational service is eligible in determining the minimum number of specialty services to be distributed in the official language of the minority. The Canadian Cable Television Association (CCTA) proposed amendments to sections 18(11.4) and 33.3(3) to include, within a single section, all services the Commission intended to authorize in order to determine the minimum number of Canadian specialty services to be distributed in the official language of the minority.

4.

The Commission is of the view that the CCTA's proposal more accurately reflects the Commission's decision than the wording proposed in PN 2001-84. It has, however, specified, in the regulatory amendment, that the eligible programming services must be Canadian services

5.

The CBC indicated the French version of section 32 (1) accurately describes the responsibilities of both "transport et réception" and recommended that the English version use the same wording, i.e. "transport and reception" instead of the proposed "carriage and reception."

6.

The Commission agrees that the CBC's proposal is reasonable, and will serve to ensure that the Corporation's obligations with respect to the distribution of its service on Class 3 cable distribution systems will be clearly defined in the wording set out in both official languages.

7.

The regulatory amendments proposed in PN 2001-84 have been adopted with the further amendments described above. The amendments, set out in the appendix to this notice, were published in the Canada Gazette, Part II on 12 September 2001 and came into effect on 1 September 2001.
Secretary General
This document is available in alternative format upon request and may also be examined at the following Internet site: http://www.crtc.gc.ca

(SOR/DORS)

 

 

REGULATIONS AMENDING THE BROADCASTING DISTRIBUTION REGULATIONS

 

amendments

  1. Subsection 6(2) of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations is replaced by the following:
  (2) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall ensure, in respect of each of analog and digital technology, that a majority of the video and audio channels received by a subscriber are devoted to the distribution of Canadian programming services, other than the programming distributed on program repeat channels.
  2. The Regulations are amended by adding the following after section 16:
 

Continued Distribution of French-language Canadian Programming Services in Anglophone Markets

  16.1 A licensee that is operating in a market that is an anglophone market within the meaning of paragraph 18(4)(b) shall distribute on an analog basis at least the same number of French-language Canadian programming services as it distributed on an analog basis on March 10, 2000.
  3. (1) Subsection 18(3) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:
  (3) For the purposes of this section, other than subsections (11) to (11.5), a licensee makes use of digital technology for the delivery of programming to subscribers when at least 15% of its subscribers receive one or more programming services on a digital basis.
  (2) Section 18 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following after subsection (11):
  (11.1) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee that has a nominal capacity of at least 750 MHz and that makes use of digital technology for the delivery of any programming service shall distribute
 

(a) at least one pay television service in each official language; and

 

(b) all French-language and English-language Canadian specialty services, other than Category 2 services distributed on a digital basis.

  (11.2) Subject to subsection (11.3) and except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee that has a nominal capacity that is less than that referred to in subsection (11.1) and that makes use of digital technology for the delivery of any programming service shall distribute
 

(a) at least one French-language Canadian specialty service for every 10 English-language programming services that it distributes, if the licensee is operating in an anglophone market; and

 

(b) at least one English-language Canadian specialty service for every 10 French-language programming services that it distributes, if the licensee is operating in a francophone market.

  (11.3) The requirements of subsection (11.2) do not apply to multipoint distribution system distribution undertakings.
  (11.4) For the purposes of paragraph (11.2)(a), any French-language programming service, other than a service that is required to be distributed pursuant to paragraph 9(1)(h) of the Act or section 17 of these Regulations, constitutes a French-language Canadian specialty service.
  (11.5) For the purposes of paragraph (11.2)(b), any English-language programming service, other than a service that is required to be distributed pursuant to paragraph 9(1)(h) of the Act or section 17 of these Regulations, constitutes an English-language Canadian specialty service.
  4. Subsection 32(1) of the Regulations is amended by striking out the word "and" at the end of paragraph (a), by adding the word "and" at the end of paragraph (b) and by adding the following after paragraph (b):
 

(c) if not included in the programming services distributed under paragraphs (a) or (b), a programming service in each of English and French of at least one television station owned and operated by the Corporation, if the Corporation makes its signals for the service available to the licensee and pays the costs associated with the transport and reception of the signals at the licensee's local head end.

  5. The Regulations are amended by adding the following after section 33.2:
 

Licensees Using Television Programming Services that Use Digital Technology

  33.3 (1) A licensee that has a nominal capacity of at least 550 MHz and that delivers any programming service on a digital basis shall distribute in the market
 

(a) at least one French-language Canadian specialty service for every 10 English-language programming services distributed by the licensee, if the licensee is operating in a market that is an anglophone market within the meaning of paragraph 18(4)(b); and

 

(b) at least one English-language Canadian specialty service for every 10 French-language programming services distributed by the licensee, if the licensee is operating in a market that is a francophone market within the meaning of paragraph 18(4)(a).

  (2) A licensee whose distribution system is totally interconnected with another system shall distribute the same number of programming services in the language of the official language minority as are distributed by the system with which it is interconnected, unless the licensee does not have the technological capacity to do so.
  (3) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(a), any French-language programming service, other than a service that is required to be distributed pursuant to paragraph 9(1)(h) of the Act or section 17 of these Regulations, constitutes a French-language Canadian specialty service.
  (4) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(b), any English-language programming service, other than a service that is required to be distributed pursuant to paragraph 9(1)(h) of the Act or section 17 of these Regulations, constitutes an English-language Canadian specialty service.
 

coming into force

  6. These Regulations come into force on September 1, 2001.

Date Modified: 2001-09-14

Date modified: