CRTC denies licence renewal applications from two Quebec radio stations

The CRTC has denied two licence renewal applications from Quebec-based French language radio stations for consistently failing to meet their licence obligations. In two separate Friday decisions, the regulator said it would not renew the licence of a numbered company that owns rock station CFOR-FM Maniwaki or that of Groupe Médias Pam Inc.’s Saint-Constant country music station CJMS 1040 AM. The CRTC found CJMS had failed to file an annual return for the 2018-19 broadcast year by the required date, as well as failed to file a complete and accurate self-assessment report and music list. It also found the station did not adequately serve the market of Saint-Constant because of its small amount of local programming and news, contrary to the 2006 commercial radio policy and the CRTC’s expectation that a station offer local programming. Listeners were also not served adequately due to technical issues causing “frequent” service interruptions in the last six months, the CRTC said in its decision. CJMS has been non-compliant with at least one licence condition during its last six licence renewal periods, with the CRTC determining less severe approaches like licence suspensions, a short-term renewal or mandatory orders would “not be effective measures.” The station was sold to Groupe Médias Pam Inc. in 2014 after the CRTC forced its previous ownership to dispose of its broadcast licence. “Despite several warnings from the Commission, the licensee continued to be in non-compliance. The current non-compliance instances are not isolated incidents, but rather instances of severe and recurring non-compliance. Accordingly, the Commission is not convinced that a change in the licensee’s behaviour regarding its regulatory obligations will occur: none of the licensee’s actions demonstrates a willingness to comply with its regulatory obligations in the future,” the CRTC said in its decision. Meanwhile, the owners of CFORM-FM Maniwaki failed to file annual returns, a program log, audio recordings, a self-assessment report and music list according to licence requirements and failed to respond to inquiries regarding regulatory compliance. It also did not obtain prior approval from the CRTC before making a change in ownership, and failed to make a required Canadian content development contribution. The station had also been non-compliant during its previous three licence terms. That history of non-compliance, coupled with the “severity and recurrence of the current instances of the current non-compliance” led to the CRTC determining to not renew the station’s licence, the regulator said in its decision. The broadcasting licence for both stations expires on Aug. 31, and the CRTC invited prospective broadcasters to file applications to operate radio stations in both markets.

CRTC denies licence renewal applications from two Quebec radio stations

Brief | July 31, 2020

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CRTC denies licence renewal applications from two Quebec radio stations

Brief | July 31, 2020

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