As expected, Torstar Corp. has appealed the CRTC’s decision to award a licence for a conventional TV station in the crowded Toronto market to Craig Broadcast Systems Inc. Global Communications Ltd., a subsidiary of CanWest Global Communications Corp., also filed an appeal on May 21.

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The Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) is opposing an amendment to SaskTel’s broadcast distribution licence over concerns about simultaneous substitution. The CAB argues that if SaskTel is given a general condition of licence allowing it to distribute different U.S. 4+1 network signals in different locations of the province, it could potentially complicate program scheduling and the implementation of simultaneous substitution for broadcasters serving several markets in a region.

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Seven positions have been cut at the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB), with the workload being shifted and some employees picking up new titles. The downsizing comes after repeated requests by CAB members for the association to scale back its overhead. There are now 31 staff members at the association.

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CHUM Ltd. says it may have to cut local programming at its flagship CityTV station because of anticipated revenue losses resulting from the licensing of more over-the-air TV stations in the Toronto market. At the same time, CHUM told a CRTC panel looking at its licence renewal applications earlier this month that it was considering entering new markets to heighten its ability to produce more of its own programming.

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Canadian Heritage minister Sheila Copps is calling on her department and the agencies under it to review and possibly modify policies to encourage greater cultural diversity in broadcasting and other sectors. The review runs the gambit from who gets hired at Canadian Heritage to guidelines for the disbursement of production funds from Telefilm Canada and the National Film Board.

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Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. is now claiming the trial it announced last week of its digital television service isn’t a real test because there are no paying customers. The telco issued a media release May 16 stating that 200 participants in Winnipeg had begun testing the television service. The glitch is that although MTS, through its subsidiary MTS Communications Inc., has applied for a broadcast distribution licence, it has not yet been granted by the CRTC.

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A Montreal-based company is hoping to change the way spectators watch live sporting and other events by providing them with an on-site broadcast service that includes video, related statistics and event-related information via wireless devices. World Audio-Visual Entertainment Systems (W.A.V.E.S.) has applied to the CRTC for a broadcasting licence to offer the service, and is seeking similar approval in the United States as it negotiates with various sporting events to provide the innovative application.

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