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Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2003-96
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Ottawa, 14 March 2003
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Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, on behalf of 3899071 Canada Inc.
Across Canada
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Application 2002-0724-2
Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2002-64
24 October 2002
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Country Canada - Licence amendment
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The application
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1.
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The Commission received an application by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), on behalf of 3899071 Canada Inc., to amend the broadcasting licence of the Category 1 national digital specialty television programming service known as Country Canada. The licensee proposed to add a condition of licence relating to the keeping of separate accounts and a condition of licence relating to the filing of these accounts, and to amend the conditions of licence pertaining to the broadcasting of Canadian programs.
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2.
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This application is a result of Transfer of effective control of 3899071 Canada Inc., Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2002-336, 24 October 2002 (Decision 2002-336), in which the Commission approved the transfer of effective control of Country Canada to the CBC.
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Interventions
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3.
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The Commission did not receive any interventions in connection with this application.
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The Commission's analysis and determination
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Keeping separate accounts
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4.
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In Decision 2002-336, the Commission noted the following:
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The Corporation [CBC] has agreed to conditions of licence being imposed on the Country Canada service, requiring it to maintain accounts for this service separate from its television networks, and to file an annual statement of accounts relating to its specific revenues and expenditures.
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5.
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The purpose of these conditions of licence is to ensure that Country Canada, which is funded largely through subscriber fees, is not underwritten by the CBC's parliamentary appropriations, which are intended to fund the over-the-air radio and television services.
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6.
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Consequently, the Commission approves the application by the CBC to amend the broadcasting licence of Country Canada, as of 31 August 2004, in order to add the following conditions of licence:
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- The licensee shall keep separate accounts, which set out for each fiscal year, ending 31 August,
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a) the gross revenues of its operations under this licence; and
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b) the amounts expended by it on the acquisition of and/or the investment in Canadian programs intended for distribution on the undertaking, including a breakout of the amount expended for closed captioning and/or signing for the deaf and hearing-impaired of programs distributed on the news and information service.
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- The licensee shall file with the Commission, on or before 30 November of each year, a statement of the accounts referred to in the preceding condition of licence.
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Canadian content
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7.
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In Decision 2002-336, the Commission also acknowledged the application by the CBC to amend Country Canada's condition of licence relating to the broadcasting of Canadian programs. The CBC proposed that, by the end of the licence period, Country Canada's Canadian content would increase to not less than 80% of the broadcast day and of the evening broadcast period.
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8.
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The current condition of licence reads as follows:
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2. In each broadcast year or portion thereof, the licensee shall devote to the distribution of Canadian programs the following percentages of the broadcast day and the evening broadcast period:
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Date Modified: 2003-03-14