TV5 wants Canadian content spending tied to revenues: licence renewal application

A change in the calculation of how much should be spent on Canadian content is the only substantive change requested in the licence renewal application of the French-language international specialty channel TV5. Currently, the channel operated by the Consortium de Télévision Québec Canada pays a fixed amount on Canadian content. Licensed 14 years ago, the channel started with a commitment to spend $3.9 million on Canadian content. That amount increased by two per cent a year to account for inflation to reach $5.1 million last year. "What we’re suggesting is that rather than having a commitment of fixed dollars that Canadian content spending be based on a percentage of revenues," Charles Vallerand, TV5 director of communications and marketing, tells Canadian Communications Reports. "So if revenues are stagnant, so is our investment in Canadian content. There is no commitment to increase (spending on Canadian content) no matter what. Even inflation on $5 million is quite a bit of money," he adds. He states that the change would put TV5 on equal footing with other specialty services, most of whose Canadian content spending is tied to revenues, and it would ensure that the channel had the revenues to match its commitments. After receiving an administrative one-year extension of its licence until August 31, 2002 (CCR, Oct. 13/00), TV5 filed its licence renewal application, which was gazetted July 12 – Broadcasting Public Notice 2002-36. Comments on the application are due August 16. TV5 receives subscriber revenue and funding from the Quebec and Canadian governments. Vallerand says the channel’s total income was about $13 million last year. TV5’s proposal to spend 40 per cent of gross revenue earned the previous year would translate to about $5.2 million in Canadian content under the proposed revised calculation method – about the same as what it spent last year under the existing licence. TV5 also proposes to maintain a minimum 15 per cent Canadian content level during the broadcast day and between 6 p.m. and midnight, and to broadcast at least 104 hours of first-run original Canadian programs during each year of the new licence term. "It’s a fairly straightforward renewal. There’s nothing jazzy; there’s nothing out-of-this-world. It’s just a regular renewal. We have our position in the market and we’d be glad to maintain that position and just consolidate where we are," Vallerand says. No mention is made in the licence renewal application of any connection to the federal government’s proposed plan to establish a new network to be called TV5 Canada Quebec International, with the goal of showcasing French-Canadian productions at home and abroad (CCR, July 4/01). Despite an absence in the licence renewal application of an explanation of how the new channel might share facilities and some programming with the existing TV5 channel, the government says the project is still on the books. A Canadian Heritage spokesperson tells CCR that the government is proceeding with the establishment of the new channel, but that no information about the progress will be released until details have been finalized. Kerry Edmonds, press secretary to Canadian Heritage minister Sheila Copps, says the department remains "strongly committed" to the new TV5 Quebec Canada initiative. "She presented (the idea) to Cabinet in October and it’s going through the appropriate process," she adds.

TV5 wants Canadian content spending tied to revenues: licence renewal application

News | 07/18/2002 4:00 am EDT

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