In a rare move, Ottawa has referred a number of TV licence renewals back to the federal broadcast regulator, asking it to reconsider how the licences affect investments in Canadian TV production.
The decision comes in response to appeals from creative groups and others who raised concerns that the regulator’s decisions would decrease some of the broadcasters’ spending requirements for original Canadian programs.
In May, as part of the most recent renewals of TV licences, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) reduced the required spending on “programs of national interest,” or PNI. Corus Entertainment Inc. and BCE Inc.’s Bell Media had their PNI requirements set at 5 per cent of annual revenue, down from 8 per cent and 9 per cent, respectively. The requirements for Rogers Communications Inc.’s division Rogers Media remained unchanged, also at 5 per cent. Creative groups have estimated the decision could reduce spending on Canadian productions by roughly $141-million over the five-year licence terms.
In addition to objecting to changes in investment requirements, some groups also raised concerns about whether the licences contained sufficient requirements for the production of original scripted programming in French, rather than English-language productions aired in translation.
Susan Krashinsky Robertson – Globe and Mail – Aug 14, 2017.
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