Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2012-304

Route reference: 2010-499

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Ottawa, 22 May 2012

Standard conditions of licence for campus and community radio stations

1. In Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2010-499 (the Campus and Community Radio Policy), the Commission set out a new policy for campus and community radio stations, which included changes to the standard conditions of licence for licensees of  such stations.

2. Prior to that policy, the standard conditions of licence for campus and community stations were set out in separate documents, namely Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2009-63 and Public Notice 2000-157. In the Campus and Community Radio Policy, the Commission revised its approach to regulating campus and community radio stations under separate policies, noting, among other things, the similarity of their roles in the communities they serve. The Commission therefore determined that it would be appropriate to regulate both campus and community stations by means of a single policy, while allowing for variations in their respective mandates.

3. In order to facilitate the implementation of the Campus and Community Radio Policy, the Commission has set out the standard conditions of licence that resulted from that policy in the appendix to this document. These conditions of licence will apply upon the issuance of new licences for campus and community radio stations.

Secretary General

Related documents

Appendix to Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2012-304

Standard conditions of licence for campus and community radio stations

Conditions for all campus and community radio stations

1. If the licensee originates 42 or more hours of programming in any broadcast week, the licensee shall adhere to the Equitable Portrayal Code, as amended from time to time and approved by the Commission.

2. The licensee shall adhere to the provisions of the Canadian Association of Broadcaster’s Broadcast code for advertising to children, as amended from time to time and approved by the Commission.

3. The licensee shall not affiliate with or disaffiliate from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation without the prior written approval of the Commission.

4. The licensee shall not use its Subsidiary Communications Multiplex Operation channel without the prior written approval of the Commission in order to distribute ethnic programs, where the time devoted to these programs represents more than 15% of the broadcast week and the licensee’s service area overlaps an area already served by an ethnic station, as outlined in Services Using the Vertical Blanking Interval (Television) or Subsidiary Communications Multiplex Operation (FM), Public Notice CRTC 1989-23, 23 March 1989.

5. In each broadcast week, the licensee shall devote no less than 5% of its musical selections to selections drawn from content category 3 (Special Interest Music), as defined in Revised content categories and subcategories for radio, Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2010-819, 5 November 2010, as amended from time to time.

6. In each broadcast week, the licensee shall devote no less than 15% of its programming to programming drawn from content category 1 (Spoken Word), which is comprised of content subcategories 11 (News) and 12 (Spoken word – other), as defined in Revised content categories and subcategories for radio, Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2010-819, 5 November 2010, as amended from time to time. All of this spoken word programming shall be locally produced (that is, produced by or exclusively for the licensee).

Additional condition for campus radio stations

7. The licensee shall broadcast no more than 504 minutes of advertising per broadcast week. When determining a station’s compliance with this condition, the Commission will not consider material drawn from content subcategory 52 (Sponsor identification) and content subcategory 53 (Promotion with sponsor mention), as defined in Revised content categories and subcategories for radio, Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2010-819, 5 November 2010, as amended from time to time.

Additional condition for English-language campus radio stations

8. The licensee shall devote no more than 10% of all musical selections broadcast in each broadcast week to musical selections that qualify as hits, as defined in Policy regarding the broadcast of hits by English-language FM radio stations, Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2009-61, 11 February 2009, as amended from time to time.

Additional condition for community radio stations

9. In each broadcast week, the licensee shall devote no less than 20% of its musical selections to musical selections from content subcategories other than content subcategory 21 (Pop, rock and dance), as defined in Revised content categories and subcategories for radio, Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2010-819, 5 November 2010, as amended from time to time.

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