Pirate broadcaster Star Ray TV finally off air

Pirate broadcaster Jan Pachul has finally pulled off the air the video stream of his low-powered television station Star Ray TV, which he has been operating in Toronto on UHF channel 15 for more than two years without a broadcast licence. But under an agreement he says he reached with the CRTC, he is continuing to air his alphanumeric signal. "We made a deal with the CRTC. We suspended all programming as of noon yesterday (October 20) and in return they will accept an application (for a low-powered licence) from us and allow us to run text on the air," Pachul tells Canadian Communications Reports. "I’ve been fighting with them for years (over the messaging channel)…but they refused to acknowledge that this was a service that should not be considered broadcasting. They have actually done that now." Pachul says that in a few weeks when the forms are available, he will apply for a low-powered TV licence that, if granted, will enable him to resume broadcasting a video signal. That’s a possibility now that the CRTC has at long last adopted a framework for a new class of licence called the community-based television programming undertaking. A sub-category of that new licence class is the community-based low-powered television channel (CCR Update, Oct. 17/02). The deal between the CRTC and Star Ray comes after the regulator sent a letter to Pachul on September 18 that gave him 10 days to reply before it went ahead with asking a court to find him in contempt of court for ignoring a mandatory order it issued. After a public hearing on his broadcast activities in 2001 (CCR, Sept. 27/01), the CRTC issued a mandatory order telling Pachul to shut down his operation by November 15, 2001 (CCR Update, Oct. 26/01). But despite the mandatory order, Pachul continued to broadcast the station without a licence until October 20 of this year (CCR, Nov. 22/01). A constant thorn in the side of the CRTC, Pachul is adamant that the deal doesn’t represent an easing off of pressure against the regulator, nor is he optimistic that he will be granted a low-powered television licence. "We’re not cutting back the pressure on them either. We’ve got a few tricks up our sleeve," says Pachul. "Even though we’ve made an accommodation with them, they are in no way, shape or form forgiven for their past sins. And we’re exploring various legal actions based on our previous experience with them." Pachul notes that the CRTC has issued licences for two more TV stations in the Toronto market – a second ethnic station to Rogers and a new conventional station to Craig Broadcast Systems Inc. (CCR, June 7/02, April 12/02) – after he was told that there was no room left for any new services in that market when he applied.

Pirate broadcaster Star Ray TV finally off air

Broadcast | October 24, 2002

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Pirate broadcaster Star Ray TV finally off air

Broadcast | October 24, 2002

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