ARCHIVED - Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2010-903

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Ottawa, 3 December 2010

Call for comments on an amendment to the Television Broadcasting Regulations, 1987

The Commission calls for comments on a proposed amendment to the Canadian content requirements set out in the Television Broadcasting Regulations, 1987. The deadline for the receipt of comments is 6 January 2011.

Introduction

1.      The Commission proposes to amend the Television Broadcasting Regulations, 1987, (the Regulations) to implement a determination set out in A group-based approach to the licensing of private television services, Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2010-167, 22 March 2010 (the Policy).

2.      In the Policy, the Commission noted that its objective was to establish an overall regulatory framework that would provide all television broadcasting groups with the flexibility to adapt to the rapidly changing communications environment while ensuring that the Canadian broadcasting system is distinctly Canadian in its content. Accordingly, the Commission announced that it would amend the Regulations so that a television licensee would be required to devote not less than 55% of the broadcast year to the broadcast of Canadian programs. The proposed amendment would replace the existing requirement to devote not less than 60% of the broadcast year to the broadcast of Canadian programs.

3.      The Commission intends to have the Regulations come into force on 1 September 2011, which coincides with the beginning of the next licence term of many television stations.

Call for comments

4.      The proposed amendment is appended to this notice. The Commission invites comments on the wording of the proposed amendment. The Commission will accept comments that it receives on or before 6 January 2011. The Commission cannot be held responsible for postal delays and will not notify a party whose comment is received after the deadline date. The comment will not be considered by the Commission and will not be part of the public file.

5.      The Commission will not formally acknowledge 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.

Procedure for filing comments

6.      Interested parties can file their comments to the Secretary General of the Commission in only one of the following formats:

by using the
[Broadcasting interventions/comments form]

by mail to
CRTC, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N2

or

by fax at
819-994-0218p>

7.      Submissions longer than five pages should include a summary.

8.      Each paragraph of the submission should be numbered. In addition, where the comment is filed by electronic means, the line ***End of document*** should be entered following the last paragraph of the document, as an indication that the document has not been damaged during electronic transmission.

Important notice 

9.      All information that parties provide as part of this public process, except information granted confidentiality, whether sent by postal mail, facsimile, e-mail or through the Commission's website at www.crtc.gc.ca, becomes part of a publicly accessible file and will be posted on the Commission’s website. This information includes personal information, such as full names, e-mail addresses, postal/street addresses, telephone and facsimile numbers, and any other personal information parties provide. 

10.  The personal information that parties provide will be used and may be disclosed for the purpose for which the information was obtained or compiled by the Commission, or for a use consistent with that purpose. 

11.  Documents received electronically or otherwise will be put on the Commission's website in their entirety exactly as received, including any personal information contained therein, in the official language and format in which they are received. Documents not received electronically will be available in PDF format. 

12.  The information that parties provide to the Commission as part of this public process is entered into an unsearchable database dedicated to this specific public process. This database is accessible only from the web page of this particular public process. As a result, a general search of the Commission's website with the help of either its own search engine or a third-party search engine will not provide access to the information that was provided as part of this public process. 

13.  The Commission encourages interested parties to monitor the public examination file and the Commission's website for additional information that they may find useful when preparing their comments. 

Examination of documents 

14.  A list of all comments will be available on the Commission’s website. An electronic version of all comments submitted will be accessible from this list. To access the list, select “Lists of interventions/comments” under “Public Proceedings” from the Commission's website. 

15.  The public may examine public comments and related documents at the following Commission offices during normal business hours.

Location of Commission offices

Toll-free telephone: 1-877-249-2782
Toll-free TDD: 1-877-909-2782 

Les Terrasses de la Chaudière
Central Building> 1 Promenade du Portage, Room 206
Gatineau, Quebec
J8X 4B1
Tel.: 819-997-2429
Fax: 819-994-0218 

Regional offices

Metropolitan Place
99 Wyse Road
Suite 1410
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
B3A 4S5
Tel.: 902-426-7997
Fax: 902-426-2721 

205 Viger Avenue West
Suite 504> Montréal, Quebec
H2Z 1G2
Tel.: 514-283-6607 

55 St. Clair Avenue East
Suite 624> Toronto, Ontario
M4T 1M2
Tel.: 416-952-9096 

Kensington Building
275 Portage Avenuer> Suite 1810
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3B 2B3
Tel.: 204-983-6306
TDD: 204-983-8274
Fax: 204-983-6317 

2220 – 12th Avenue
Suite 620r> Regina, Saskatchewan
S4P 0M8
Tel.: 306-780-3422 

10405 Jasper Avenue
Suite 520
Edmonton, Alberta
T5J 3N4
Tel.: 780-495-3224 

858 Beatty Street
Suite 290r> Vancouver, British Columbia
V6C 3B6
Tel.: 604-666-2111
Fax: 604-666-8322 

Secretary General

Appendix to Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2010-903

REGULATIONS AMENDING THE TELEVISION BROADCASTING REGULATIONS, 1987

AMENDMENT

1. Subsection 4(6) of the Television Broadcasting Regulations, 1987[1] is replaced by the following:

(6) Subject to subsection (9), a licensee shall devote not less than 55 per cent of the broadcast year and of any six-month period specified in a condition of licence to the broadcasting of Canadian programs.

COMING INTO FORCE

2. These Regulations come into force on September 1, 2011.

Date modified:

2010-12-03