CCR Short Takes

Decima Reader Online Poll, October/November 2002Twenty-nine per cent of Decima Publishing readers responding to an informal online poll indicated that they felt any skills shortage in the communications sector had been mitigated by heavy layoffs. A key theme from the Speech from the Throne, delivered on September 30, was on the need to attract skilled workers. Decima Publishing subscribers were asked in October/November 2002 whether they believed that: there is no shortage; the skills shortage has been mitigated by heavy layoffs in the communications sector; Canada must immediately invest more heavily in education to train Canadians for skilled jobs in the communications sector; or a poor investment climate, and not a lack of training, is responsible for the skills shortage? CRTC gives Shaw until Jan. 10 to confirm diginet complianceThe CRTC has asked Shaw Communications Inc. to confirm by January 10, 2003 that it’s in compliance with the commission’s five-to-one rule for the carriage of digital specialty TV channels. "If by that date the two Category 2 services to which you refer are not distributed, it appears to us that Shaw would be faced with two choices to come into immediate compliance. Shaw could add two alternative unrelated Category 2 services. Alternatively, Shaw could delete Scream until such time that it launches two or more additional unrelated Category 2 services," the commission writes in a December 4 letter to Shaw. The cableco has told the CRTC that it would launch two new Alliance Atlantis Communications Inc. digital specialty channels, DIY and Fine Living, in January to put it in compliance with the rule that five non-affiliated digital channels be distributed for every affiliated channel (CCR, Nov. 22/02). The day after the CRTC letter was sent, CCR ran a news brief quoting Alliance Atlantis chair and CEO Michael MacMillan as saying his company had no plans to move ahead with the launch of those two channels this coming January (CCR, Dec. 5/02). Industry Canada sets start date for foreign ownership reviewThe House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology announced December 11 that it would start hearings into foreign ownership restrictions in the telecommunications sector on January 27. "Our review of the foreign ownership restrictions in the telecommunications sector will be a thorough investigation of their impact on investment and on sovereignty in light of the essential role played by this sector in a knowledge-based economy," says committee chair Walt Lastewka. The chair told Canadian Communications Reports affiliate publication Network Letter that it was unlikely that the committee would meet the February 2003 deadline set by Industry minister Allan Rock to report its findings. The Canadian Cable Television Association (CCTA) has indicated to CCR that it intends to be an active participate in those proceedings (CCR, Nov. 22/02). For more information on the review of foreign ownership restrictions in the telecommunications industry, see the Dec.9, 2002 issue of CCR affiliate publication Report on Wireless and the upcoming issue of Network Letter. French-language digital channels get second extension The CRTC has approved a second extension to the deadline for launching the French-language Category 1 digital specialty channels Télé Ha! Ha!, LCN Affaires, Canal Mystère and Info-Sports – Broadcasting Decision 2002-414. The deadline for launch has been extended until Sept. 20, 2003. The services had been given an extension of ten months last year. The licensees told the commission that they wanted more time to learn from the launch of the English-language diginets, and that the number of digital boxes estimated at 500,000 or 600,000 in Quebec was too small to ensure their success. As well, they noted that "some disruption" in Quebec’s distribution market would prevent programming undertakings from negotiating satisfactory deals. Cableco Vidéotron ltée is currently locked in disputes with French-language sports channel RDS (CCR, Dec. 5/02, Oct. 10/02; CCR Update, Oct. 17/02) and the Family Channel (CCR Update, Nov. 13/02) over wholesale rates. The CRTC wants the services to file a report by June 30, 2003 confirming that they will be launching. CRTC approves Quebecor intracorporate reorganizationThe CRTC has approved an intracorporate reorganization that involves the liquidation of Le Groupe Vidéotron ltée into Quebecor Media Inc. – Broadcasting Decision 2002-413. As well, the CRTC approved an intracorporate reorganization at Archambault Group Inc. as a result of the liquidation of Quebecor Communications inc. – Broadcasting Decision 2002-423. The 91.3% voting shares held by Quebecor Communications in Archambault will be transferred to parent company Quebecor Media. Archambault is the licensee of the English- and French-language regional video-on-demand (VOD) service called Théâtre Archambault @ la maison. Cogeco says its digital cable base grew 35% in FY 2002Subscriptions to Cogeco Cable Inc.’s digital cable service increased 35% to 129,789 customers from a year earlier, the cableco highlighted December 4 at its annual meeting in Toronto. Cogeco Cable president and CEO Louis Audet said that digital cable customers enjoy the flexibility of choosing channels. Cogeco noted that as of August 31, 2002, 27% of its digital customers had subscribed to at least one digital specialty channel. Cogeco Cable launched about 50 new digital services in its Ontario systems in September 2001. In Quebec, it launched the 28 most popular English-language diginets in May 2002, followed by four European-based French-language digital and radio services in June (CCR, June 21/02). Canada’s fourth-largest cableco also estimates that 40% of its basic cable customers will have access to its video-on-demand (VOD) service by this Christmas (CCR, Nov. 22/02). That number is expected to increase to 70% by February, and 100% by the end of 2003. Rogers gets approval for Blue Jays radio networkThe CRTC has approved an application by Rogers Broadcasting Ltd. for a licence to operate an English-language radio network to broadcast the baseball games of the Toronto Blue Jays during the 2002-03 season– Broadcasting Decision 2002-420. The radio broadcasts will originate from CJCL Toronto. Rogers is currently broadcasting under the authority of a temporary network. Rogers also received approval for a licence for an English-language radio network that would include parts of the programming of ESPN from the ABC radio network – Broadcasting Decision 2002-428. Cirque du Soleil pulls plug on international complexesCirque du Soleil has pulled the plug on the international complexes it proposed to develop worldwide – a project that was to be overseen by former TVA executive Daniel Lamarre (CCR, Dec. 21/00). The Cirque du Soleil announced that construction would not proceed on a prototype complex that was to be built in Montreal. The decision was made after a financial analysis of the undertakings. Lamarre is a former chair of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters. Stursberg praises success of producers in Quebec marketRichard Stursberg, executive director of Telefilm Canada, praised the efforts of producers in the French-language market of Quebec in a December 4 speech in Montreal. "Right now, a remarkable 10 out of 10 programs in the Canadian French-language market are produced here in the country," he said. "That’s better than the U.K., Australia, Germany and Italy. It’s an accomplishment that’s matched only by France and the U.S." He added, "Here in Quebec, as in the European and Australian markets, numbers for domestic television productions have grown substantially over the last decade, especially for dramas." Picking up on a theme from an earlier speech he gave in Toronto, Stursberg noted that things were much different in English Canada, where homegrown TV productions don’t even crack the top 20. "Your successes in both TV and film can teach English Canadian producers a great deal about creating product that reflects your audience’s tastes and interests. And you have done this in a comparatively small market with limited resources," he added.

CCR Short Takes

Broadcast | December 13, 2002

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