ARCHIVED - Broadcasting Commission Letter addressed to Naomi Zener (VICE Media Inc.)
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Ottawa, 23 December 2015
BY E-MAIL
Naomi Zener
Vice President, Business and Legal Affairs
VICE Media Inc.
Invitation to the 25 January 2016 public hearing on local and community television programming
On 14 September 2015, the Commission formally launched a review of the policy framework for local and community television programming (the Hearing) through Notice of Consultation 2015-421 (the Notice). In the Notice, the Commission stated it would be examining the overall state and funding of locally relevant and locally reflective television programming, including community access programming.
As described in the Notice, section 3 of the Broadcasting Act (the Act) serves as a guide for this review. This section of the Act sets policy goals, amongst others, related to the provision of information programming within Canada’s broadcasting system. Canadians perceive value in this programming such that a poll conducted as a part of the Commission’s Let’s Talk TV process indicated 81% of all respondents considered local news programming to be important. Moreover, local evening newscasts garner an approximate 20% share in some markets.
Traditional local stations must continue to play an important public service in achieving the goals of the Act through the provision of local news and local information programming. However, these local stations operate as a part of a larger news and information ecosystem that includes specialty services and other traditional media sources, the retransmission of news and information content onto the web, as well as some new and emerging sources for this programming.
As a player in the larger news and information ecosystem, VICE Media Inc. (VICE) is well positioned as a multiplatform provider of news and information content to provide additional background, commentary and analysis on the overall news ecosystem which may be of assistance to the Commission in developing a forward looking policy. Representatives from VICE are therefore invited to appear at the Hearing being held at the Conference Centre, Phase IV, Outaouais Room, 140 Promenade du Portage, in Gatineau, Quebec on 25 January 2016. The hearing commences on 25 January 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and is expected to last eight (8) days. Please see the Appendix for a discussion about hearing procedures and for the current Agenda.
The Commission may wish to discuss VICE’s business and content development models as a way of understanding the lessons learned from a company that has evolved from a small locally circulated print magazine to a much larger international multi-media organization. In so doing, the Commission may choose to focus, but not necessarily limit its discussion to the following topic areas:
- Strategies for maintaining relevance in a world of unfettered consumer choice;
- The discoverability of news and information programming;
- The monetization of news and information programming;
- Strategies for producing in-depth and investigative news and information content with a national and international focus;
- The potential for the application of these strategies to local news and information
- Tools, such as part-time employment, press agencies and news releases to supplement news and information gathering and the assembly of programming;
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Michael Craig at 819-997-9394 or by e-mail at michael.craig@crtc.gc.ca . A copy of this letter will be placed on the public record of the above noted proceeding.
Yours truly,
Scott Hutton
Executive Director,
Broadcasting.
Appendix 1 - Procedural matters and Agenda
Please confirm your presence to the Hearing Secretary (jade.roy@crtc.gc.ca) by no later than 5 January 2016. At that time, please indicate the following:
- Whether you will appear at the hearing location in Gatineau, by SKYPE or by videoconference from a CRTC regional office (http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/offices.htm);
- Your full name, mobile telephone number and email address (or your representative’s information) to be used to contact you immediately preceding and during the hearing, if necessary, to obtain information or to inform you of matters relating to the hearing;
- The names and titles of any representatives who will appear with you at the hearing. Upon arrival at the hearing, please confirm these names with the Hearing Secretary;
- The language in which you intend to make your presentation
The order and estimated date of appearance for participants at the Hearing are set out in the agenda below. Please monitor the progress of the hearing. Please note that an audio link will be made available during the Hearing on the Commission’s website at www.crtc.gc.ca .
You are encouraged to file written material for the public record. If you wish to do so, your written material should be filed by no later than 11 January 2016. These submissions will be placed on the Commission’s website and form a part of the public record of the Hearing. At the hearing, you will be given 10 minutes for your presentation to the Commission following which the Commission may wish to ask questions.
We must be advised in advance of any audio-visual presentation and you will be required to make arrangements to rent technical equipment if necessary. To facilitate the interpretation of these audio-visual presentations, the Commission requests that you provide a transcript (2 copies) for the interpreters at the hearing. Please note that this transcript will not be added to the public record, it is solely for the use of the interpreters.
For ease of translation and transcription, and to assist the Commission panel members and Commission staff, participants are requested to bring 40 copies of:
- your oral presentation as well as any tables, etc., which you intend to use; and
- the seating plan of your presentation panel (view from CRTC panel) .Participants are requested to provide an electronic version of their prepared remarks to the Hearing Secretary and the stenographer prior to their oral presentation.
For specific procedural questions relating to your appearance, please contact the Hearing Secretary by e-mail. If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact Michael Craig at 819-997-9394 or by e-mail at michael.craig@crtc.gc.ca . A copy of this letter will be placed on the public record of the above noted proceeding.
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