CCR Update

Hindery Jr. praises CRTC’s five-to-one rule, Robertson has little to sayLeo Hindery Jr., the chairman and CEO of the Yankees Entertainment and Sports (YES) Network, praised the CRTC for coming up with the five-to-one carriage rule for Category 2 digital channels. He made the observation in a question-and-answer session following his keynote address on April 15 at the annual convention of the Canadian Cable Television Association in Vancouver. U.S. cableco Cablevision has refused to sign a deal to carry the 130 baseball games offered by the YES Network. Cablevision’s Madison Square Garden Network had the rights to Yankees games until this year, when the Yankee-controlled YES took over the rights and then began negotiating carriage deals. Paul Robertson, president of television at Corus Entertainment Inc., had little to say when asked in a session on the diginets on April 16 if he was pressuring Shaw Communications Inc. CEO Jim Shaw to carry more non-affiliated Category 2s so that more of Corus’ diginets could be distributed on Shaw-owned systems. "It’s really a decision for Jim Shaw," Robertson said. The CRTC recently ruled that it was premature to reconsider its five-to-one rule following a request by Corus, an affiliate of Shaw, that the regulator undertake a review (CCR, March 28/02). Shaw Cablesystems is unable to carry either Corus’ Scream or Edge TV digital channels because of the rule. But if it were to carry some of the non-affiliated channels programmed by CHUM Limited or Stornoway Communications, for example, it would be able to carry more affiliated channels. For more coverage of the CCTA’s convention, see the upcoming edition of CCR. Trade show will probably be nixed from next year’s CCTA conventionDeclining participation and the high cost of running a large-scale exhibit could result in the CableExpo trade show being dropped from the annual convention of the Canadian Cable Television Association (CCTA). CCTA president and CEO Janet Yale tells CCR that the viability of the trade show will be re-evaluated and could be dropped in the future. No date or place has been set yet for next year’s convention, although an overhaul of the event is expected. 2002 Galaxi award winners announced at CCTA conventionBritish Columbia-based Delta Cable Communications Ltd. was a big winner at the 2002 Galaxi Awards – for the best that cable has to offer – given out in Vancouver at the annual convention of the Canadian Cable Television Association. Delta’s Canadian Outdoor Life TV program won for best lifestyle show on a community channel, and talent Zack Spencer and Jeff Aldus won for their on-camera performance in the community channel show Street Test. Canadian Outdoor Life also won in the category of best information program or series, and Delta’s Tour de Delta won for best entertainment program or series.For a complete list of Galaxi award winners, click here. Canadian producers oppose SAG’s Global Rule OneThe Canadian Film and Television Production Association (CFTPA) is challenging the right of the U.S.-based Screen Actors Guild (SAG) to reprimand any members who sign non-SAG contracts while working overseas, including in Canada. Under what is known as its Global Rule One, which comes into effect on May 1, the U.S. actors union says it would sanction renegade actors with fines, suspension, or expulsion. The CFTPA says that if foreign actors filming in Canada were forced to use a SAG contract, production costs would increase, ultimately driving production out of the country. Most actors performing in Canada do so under agreements worked out between Canadian producers and the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA). The CFTPA is working with producers in other countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and the United Kingdom to challenge SAG’s right to implement Global Rule One. The CFTPA also denounces ACTRA for aligning itself with SAG. ACTRA notes that English-language recorded production in Canada falls under ACTRA’s jurisdiction. However, it adds that it would let U.S. residents work in Canada under ACTRA rules, or on an individual basis under contracts incorporating SAG terms and conditions. CRTC approves less structural separation between Shaw’s cable, satellite operationsThe CRTC is prepared to lessen structural separation conditions currently imposed on Shaw Communications Inc., Canadian Satellite Communications Inc., and Star Choice Communications Inc. However, the commission ruled April 12 that each of the undertakings must maintain independent sales, marketing, and customer service functions as well as staff, and must adhere to confidentiality procedures. The parties must submit new confidentiality procedures to the CRTC within 30 days before the commission’s approval will come into effect – Broadcasting Decision 2002-84. The decision follows a request by Shaw to be allowed to merge its cable and satellite units, while keeping customer service, sales, and marketing functions separate. It wants to be able to take advantage of synergies in merging its human resources, legal, administrative, investor relations, accounting and technical operations (CCR, Sept. 27/01; Aug. 30/01). CRTC approves ROBTv ownership restructuringThe CRTC has approved a restructuring that will see CTV Television Inc. become the licensee of specialty channel ROBTv. The channel will continue to be held by CTV Television parent Bell Globemedia Inc. – Broadcasting Decision 2002-87. Quebec associations push quality, diversified Canadian content before Heritage committeeThe creation and broadcast of Canadian programming and the retention of a Canadian-owned and controlled broadcasting system are essential, seven groups dealing with French-Canadian programming told the Parliamentary committee studying the Broadcasting Act. Appearing before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage on April 16, the groups also called for CRTC regulation of new media broadcasting, particularly with regard to Canadian content (for more details, see the upcoming edition of CCR affiliate publication Canadian NEW MEDIA). The groups also noted that Canadian content must be diversified, of high quality, and rely to a high degree on independent Canadian producers. The seven groups represented were the Canadian Association of Film Distributors and Exporters (CAFDE); Association québécoise de l’industrie du disque, du spectacle et de la vidéo (ADISQ); Association des producteurs de films et de télévision du Québec (APFTQ); Association des réalisateurs et réalisatrices du Québec (ARRQ); Société des auteurs de radio, télévision et cinéma (SARTEC); Société professionnelle des auteurs et compositeurs du Québec (SPACQ); and Union des artistes (Uda). Canadian artists, politicians call for examination of media concentrationSome prominent Canadian artists, politicians, and historians are calling for the federal government to commission a public inquiry into the effects of media ownership concentration. The artists include writers Margaret Atwood and Pierre Berton, former federal NDP leader Ed Broadbent, and former CRTC chairs John Meisel and Keith Spicer. Liberal Senator Laurier LaPierre has proposed a Senate committee study of ownership concentration (CCR, Jan. 31/02). More details. Telesat launches high-speed service across Canada and U.S.Telesat Canada has joined with Spacenet Inc. of McLean VA to provide two-way high-speed Internet service in all parts of Canada and the United States. Resellers of the service include Infosat Communications of Burnaby BC and Ottawa's RamTelecom. More details. INTERNATIONAL NEWS And the Emmy for interactive television programming goes to ... The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences began accepting nominations April 15 for a new Emmy category recognizing achievement in interactive television programming. The establishment of the award indicates that iTV and its role in enhancing the television viewing experience is becoming increasingly important even though few customers have the equipment to receive iTV content, industry experts note. Original iTV content deployed on a national technological platform between July 1, 2001 and May 31, 2002 will be eligible for the inaugural award. The iTV award winner will be announced August 21 in Los Angeles. More details. Two FCC commissioners say Media Bureau decision doesn’t protect consumersFederal Communications Commission (FCC) commissioners Kevin Martin and Michael Copps say the FCC Media Bureau’s decision rejecting Echostar’s two-dish plan gives the satellite TV distributor an easy loophole to continue its two-dish policy. The decision, say the two commissioners, thus fails to adequately protect consumers. The Media Bureau guided Echostar to provide consumers with notice that they will not receive local channels without a second dish. However, Martin and Copps argue that this could easily allow Echostar to continue its two-dish policy and make some local broadcast channels inaccessible to consumers. More details. FCC chair proposes top networks provide HD or other value-added programming to speed digital TV transitionFederal Communications Commission chair Michael Powell has proposed that the top four U.S. networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox) as well as HBO and Showtime provide high-definition and/or other value-added digital television programming during at least 50 per cent of prime time beginning with the 2002-03 season. He argues that giving customers something significantly different from what they receive in analog could speed the transition to digital television. More details.

CCR Update

News | 04/17/2002 4:00 am EDT

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