Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2017-428-1

PDF version

References: 2016-225 and 2017-428

Ottawa, 20 April 2018

Public record: 1011-NOC2017-0428

Notice of applications received

Reconsideration of the decisions relating to the licence renewals for the television services of large French-language private ownership groups – Second phase of comments

Deadline for submission of interventions in the second phase: 10 May 2018
Deadline for submission of the applicants’ replies: 17 May 2018

1. On 5 December 2017, the Commission published Broadcasting Notice of Consultation 2017-428 (the Notice), which invited written comments on the issues raised in Order in Council P.C. 2017-1060 and the documents filed by the applicants to update their renewal application. 
2. The parties had until 23 January 2018 to submit their comments, following which the applicants submitted replies.
3. In the Notice, the Commission indicated that the details concerning the next steps in the process would be announced at a later date. In light of the public record to date, the Commission considers that the positions of the applicants and the interveners are sufficiently clear and detailed to allow the process to continue without the appearance of the parties. The next step in this proceeding will therefore be a second phase of written comments.
4. On 26 March 2018, Commission staff sent a letter to the applicants requesting additional information in response to certain concerns raised in the interventions received during the first phase of comments in this proceeding. The applicants had until 6 April 2018 to respond to this request. The documents submitted in response to this request have been added to the public record for this proceeding.
5. The Commission now invites comments on the applicants’ responses to the follow-up questions. The Commission requests that parties limit their comments to the issues raised in these responses. With regard to the other issues raised by the parties, the Commission considers that the public record is sufficiently complete to enable it to make an informed decision.
6. Interventions that were submitted as part of the proceeding announced in Broadcasting Notice of Consultation 2018-95 concerning Bell Media Inc.’s application to acquire Historia and Séries+ owned by Corus Entertainment Inc. and that are relevant to the reconsideration of the renewal decisions for the large French-language groups will be added to the public record for this proceeding.
7. Only the parties that have filed comments in the first phase of comments will be allowed to take part in the second phase of comments. Wherever possible, parties should submit empirical evidence to support their views.
8. Parties wishing to participate in this second phase of comments must submit their interventions by 10 May 2018, following which the applicants will have until 17 May 2018 to submit their replies. This intervention period differs from the Commission’s usual practice in that it is shorter than the 30-day period normally provided, given the nature of the items that remain to be clarified. This will also enable the Commission to make a timely decision given that the licence terms for the licensees are already underway. For these reasons, the Commission does not intend to accept any procedural requests seeking to extend these deadlines.

9. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission Rules of Practice and Procedure (the Rules of Procedure) apply to the present proceeding. The Rules of Procedure set out, among other things, the rules for content, format, filing and service of interventions, answers, replies and requests for information; the procedure for filing confidential information and requesting its disclosure; and the conduct of public hearings. Accordingly, the procedure set out below must be read in conjunction with the Rules of Procedure and related documents, which can be found on the Commission’s website under “Statutes and Regulations.” Guidelines on the CRTC Rules of Practice and Procedure, Broadcasting and Telecom Information Bulletin CRTC 2010-959, 23 December 2010, provides information to help interested persons and parties understand the Rules of Procedure so that they can more effectively participate in Commission proceedings.
10. An intervention or answer from a respondent must be received by the Commission and by the applicant on or before the above-mentioned date. An answer from a respondent must also be served on any other respondent.
11. Interventions and answers should clearly identify the application referred to and indicate whether parties support or oppose the application, or, if they propose changes to it, include the facts and grounds for their proposal.
12. Submissions longer than five pages should include a summary. Each paragraph of all submissions should be numbered, and the line ***End of document*** should follow the last paragraph. This will help the Commission verify that the document has not been damaged during electronic transmission.
13. Pursuant to Filing submissions for Commission proceedings in accessible formats, Broadcasting and Telecom Information Bulletin CRTC 2015-242, 8 June 2015, the Commission expects incorporated entities and associations, and encourages all Canadians, to file submissions for Commission proceedings in accessible formats (for example, text-based file formats that allow text to be enlarged or modified, or read by screen readers). To provide assistance in this regard, the Commission has posted on its website guidelines for preparing documents in accessible formats.
14. Submissions must be filed by sending them to the Secretary General of the Commission using only one of the following means:

15. A true copy of each intervention or answer from a respondent must be sent to the applicant and, in the case of a respondent to an application, to any other respondent.
16. Parties who send documents electronically must ensure that they will be able to prove, upon Commission request, that service/filing of a particular document was completed. Accordingly, parties must keep proof of the sending and receipt of each document for 180 days after the date on which the document is filed. The Commission advises parties who file and serve documents by electronic means to exercise caution when using email for the service of documents, as it may be difficult to establish that service has occurred.
17. In accordance with the Rules of Procedure, a document must be received by the Commission and all relevant parties by 5 p.m. Vancouver time (8 p.m. Ottawa time) on the date it is due. Parties are responsible for ensuring the timely delivery of their submissions and will not be notified if their submissions are received after the deadline. Late submissions, including those due to postal delays, will not be considered by the Commission and will not be made part of the public record.
18. The Commission will not formally acknowledge submissions. It will, however, fully consider all submissions, which will form part of the public record of the proceeding, provided that the procedure for filing set out above has been followed.

Important notice

19. All information that parties provide as part of this public process, except information designated confidential, whether sent by postal mail, facsimile, email 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, email addresses, postal/street addresses, telephone and facsimile numbers, etc.
20. 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.
21. 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.
22. 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.

Availability of documents

23. Electronic versions of the applications are available on the Commission’s website at www.crtc.gc.ca by selecting the application number within this notice. They are also available from the applicants, either on their websites or upon request by contacting the applicants at their email addresses, provided above.
24. Electronic versions of the interventions and answers, as well as of other documents referred to in this notice, are available on the Commission’s website at www.crtc.gc.ca by visiting the “Participate” section, selecting “Submit Ideas and Comments,” and then selecting “our open processes.” Documents can then be accessed by clicking on the links in the “Subject” and “Related Documents” columns associated with this particular notice.
25. Documents are also available at the following address, upon request, during normal business hours.

Secretary General

Related documents

• Notice of application received, Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2018-95, 20 March 2018
• Reconsideration of the decisions relating to the licence renewals for the television services of large French-language private ownership groups, Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2017-428, 5 December 2017
• Filing submissions for Commission proceedings in accessible formats, Broadcasting and Telecom Information Bulletin CRTC 2015-242, 8 June 2015
• Guidelines on the CRTC Rules of Practice and Procedure, Broadcasting and Telecom Information Bulletin CRTC 2010-959, 23 December 2010

Date modified:

2018-04-20