Canadian broadcasters protest carriage of rebranded TNN channel in Canada

The Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) is trying to block another "back door" entry by Viacom International Inc. into the Canadian broadcasting system of a TV channel genre that it isn't authorized to broadcast in Canada. The association is asking the CRTC to "immediately initiate a public proceeding to determine whether it should remove TNN/SpikeTV from the lists of eligible satellite services." The CAB is concerned that a format change to TNN: The National Network (formerly The Nashville Network) would make it competitive with a number of existing Canadian specialty and pay services against CRTC policy. Viacom wants to rename the channel Spike TV, which it dubs "the first network for men," although it has run into problems over the name from U.S. film director Spike Lee, and more recently Spike Jones Jr. The rebranded TNN could be considered competitive with a number of licensed Canadian channels, including CanWest Global Communications Corp.'s Category 1 digital channel Men TV. "The bottom line is that we have faith in the process that the CAB is using to address this issue with respect to American services competing directly with Category 1 services and doing so as a result of changing their programming without going through due process from a regulatory perspective," Bill Hunt, VP and general manager for Global Television Specialty Television, tells Canadian Communications Reports. The CAB declined to comment further on its CRTC filing. A U.S.-Canada trade war almost erupted the last time the CRTC bumped a U.S. channel - Country Music Television (CMT) - off the cable dial (CCR, Jan. 24/96, June 28/95). The last U.S. channel to leave Canada's airwaves was CourtTV U.S. but that was a decision made by distributor Shaw Communications Inc. and affiliated satellite TV distributor Star Choice Communications Inc., and not the regulator (CCR, April 12/02). New York-based CourtTV U.S. formed a partnership with CHUM Ltd. to jointly launch the diginet CourtTV Canada, an alternative that Shaw has so far declined to carry. It is not the first time that Viacom has avoided standard regulatory routes to enter the Canadian market. Viacom's MTV gained a foothold in Canada through a rebranding of Craig Media Inc.'s licensed Category 1 youth channel, formerly called Connect, to MTV Canada. CHUM, which airs some MTV programming on its MuchMusic specialty channel, filed a complaint with the CRTC. In that case, the CRTC ruled that Craig's youth channel was not in compliance with its conditions of licence (CCR, Feb. 28/03). Viacom officials had not returned calls seeking comment on the matter by press time.

Canadian broadcasters protest carriage of rebranded TNN channel in Canada

Broadcast | June 30, 2003

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Canadian broadcasters protest carriage of rebranded TNN channel in Canada

Broadcast | June 30, 2003

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