ARCHIVED - Broadcasting Notice of Consultation 2011-523

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Additional reference: 2011-523-1

Ottawa, 24 August 2011

Call for comments on the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund

The Commission calls for written comments on the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (the Accessibility Fund) proposed by BCE Inc. (BCE). The proposal addresses, among other things, accountability measures, a funding structure and the governance of the Accessibility Fund.

The deadline for submitting comments in regard to the proposal and related documents is 24 October 2011. BCE may file a reply to the comments by 3 November 2011.

Background

1.      In Change in effective control of CTVglobemedia Inc.’s licensed broadcasting subsidiaries, Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2011-163, 7 March 2011 (Broadcasting Decision 2011-163), the Commission approved an application by BCE Inc. (BCE), on behalf of CTVglobemedia Inc. (CTVgm), for authority to change the effective control of CTVgm’s licensed broadcasting subsidiaries to BCE, subject to the fulfillment of certain prescribed conditions of approval. The conditions of approval included requirements that BCE make specific commitments to benefit the broadcasting system, including the funding of an independent Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (the Accessibility Fund) to improve the accessibility of the Canadian broadcasting system.

2.      In the above decision, the Commission expressed the view that the mandate of the Accessibility Fund should be to focus on innovation that provides platform-neutral solutions to ensure accessibility of all broadcasting content.

3.      Further, the Commission provided guidelines with respect to governance and accountability in Appendix 2 to Broadcasting Decision 2011-163, including that at least two thirds of the directors should be persons with disabilities, representatives of disability organizations or other parties with relevant expertise in developing or implementing accessibility solutions.

The proposal

4.      BCE submitted a proposal for the Accessibility Fund on 6 May 2011. On 29 July 2011, BCE provided the following related documents:

• a draft application for incorporation, including proposed objects of the Corporation;

• a draft by-law, including a proposed board of directors selection process and governance structure;

• a draft stakeholder agreement, including proposed wording for the mandate of the Accessibility Fund; and

• a draft funding officer services agreement, including proposed services such as the drafting of policies and funding criteria for the board of directors’ consideration.

5.      The proposal and all related documents can be found on the Commission’s website at www.crtc.gc.ca under “Public Proceedings.”

Call for comments

6.      The Commission calls for comments on the Accessibility Fund proposal and all related documents, in particular, on the mandate of the fund, its funding and governance structure, as well as its reporting mechanism. The Commission will accept interventions that it receives on or before 24 October 2011.

Procedure

7.      The new Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission Rules of Practice and Procedure, SOR/2010-277 (the Rules of Procedure), set out, among other things, the rules for content, format, filing and service of interventions, the procedure for filing confidential information and requesting its disclosure, and the conduct of the public hearing. Accordingly, the procedure set out below must be read in conjunction with the Rules of Procedure and its accompanying documents, which can be found on the Commission’s website under “CRTC Rules of Practice and Procedure.”

8.      The Commission invites interventions that address the issues and questions set out above. The deadline for filing interventions is 24 October 2011. BCE may file a reply on or before 3 November 2011, copying those interveners to whom it is replying.

9.      In accordance with the Rules of Procedure, a document must be filed with, not merely sent to, the Commission by 5 p.m. Vancouver time (8 p.m. Ottawa time) on the date it is due. The Commission takes no responsibility for postal delays and will not notify a party whose submission is received after the deadline date. Late submissions will not be considered by the Commission and will not be made part of the public file.

10.  Submissions must be filed by sending them to the Secretary General of the Commission by only one of the following means:

by using the
[Intervention/comment/answer form]

or

by mail to
CRTC, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N2

or

by fax at
819-994-0218

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

12.  Each paragraph of the submission should be numbered. In addition, where the intervention 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 altered during electronic transmission.

Important notice

13.  All information that parties provide as part of this public process, except information designated confidential, 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.

14.  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.

15.  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.

16.  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.

17.  The Commission encourages parties and interested persons to monitor the record of the proceeding, available on the Commission’s website, for additional information that they may find useful when preparing their submissions.

Examination of documents

18.  A list of all interventions will also be available on the Commission’s website. The list is accessible by selecting “View all proceedings open for comment” from the “Public Proceedings” section of the Commission’s website and clicking on the “Interventions/Answers” link associated with this notice.

19.  The public may examine public interventions 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

360 Main Street
Suite 970
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C 3Z3
Tel.: 204-983-6306
Fax: 204-983-6317

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

403 – 4^th Avenue South-West
Suite 100
Calgary, Alberta
T2P 3N2
Tel.: 403-292-6660
Fax: 403-292-6686

858 Beatty Street
Suite 290
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6B 1C1
Tel.: 604-666-2111
Fax: 604-666-8322

Secretary General

Date modified:

2011-08-24