CBC to be unavailable on antennas in 604 communities

CBC/Radio-Canada's programming, including local news shows, will become unavailable using TV antennas in 604 communities across Canada under the broadcaster's plan to shut down its analog transmitters, according to a count by The Wire Report. In total, CBC will shut down about 607 analog retransmitters, causing 604 communities to lose access to local CBC or Radio-Canada signals over TV antennas, according to a list of affected communities provided in the CRTC's approval of the shutdown. The broadcaster says the analog shutdown will provide annual savings of nearly $10 million and help compensate for budget cuts announced in the Conservative government's federal budget on March 29. Last year, for the country's switch to digital, over-the-air broadcasting on Aug. 31, 2011, CBC/Radio-Canada converted transmitters to digital to serve all of its 27 stations across Canada. Those communities and cities with local stations can pick up local CBC or Radio-Canada signals in digital format, but communities outside of those markets will now lose access to CBC and must watch the public broadcaster online or through subscription cable, satellite or IPTV services. CBC could expand its over-the-air services in digital but last year, for the digital transition, said it could not afford to put up more digital transmitters. The affected communities will also continue to receive local news and programming over-the-air from other local stations, including those on the Global (owned by Shaw Communications Inc.) or CTV (owned by BCE Inc.) television networks. Barry Kiefl, president of Canadian Media Research Inc. (CMRI), said that it’s difficult to determine the precise number of people affected by the analog retransmitter shutdown but estimated that “10 per cent of the population as a whole will lose their access to over-the-air television.” According to research Kiefl conducted in January and filed with the CRTC, about 9.5 per cent of anglophones in Canada don’t subscribe to a cable, satellite or Internet-protocol TV service. He said in a phone interview he believes the number of Canadians receiving over-the-air TV signals could be as high as 10 per cent. Kiefl said small and rural communities will be more affected by the CBC retransmitter shutdown. “Those are the people that are going to be affected. A lot of people, of course, who have cottages, they’re going to be affected as well,” he said. Angus McKinnon, a CBC spokesman, said in a phone interview that cable, satellite, or free online streaming services are alternatives for people to continue watching CBC programming. He said CBC is concerned about viewers losing local CBC programming. “We’re not happy about having to reduce our over-the-air service, but circumstances have made it such that continuing to operate them at this point is not really a viable option,” McKinnon said. McKinnon said that “every station that originates local news right now is equipped with a digital transmitter to cover the community and surrounding area from which that local news originates.” A fact sheet on CBC’s website says that less than two per cent of Canadians will be affected by the shutdown of its analog transmitters. “Over 98% of Canadians will continue to receive their CBC and/or Radio-Canada TV signal the same way they do today,” CBC says. Jeffrey Dvorkin, a journalism professor and broadcasting expert at the University of Toronto, said in an interview that CBC's analog shutdown will not have as great an impact as it may have in the past because most people now pick up CBC television through subscription TV services. “I think that the CBC was right to do this,” Dvorkin said.“It will be inconvenient for a few Canadians but the number of people who receive their television signal over the air get smaller every year. This is something the CBC had to do, and it was inevitable.” The CRTC said in its decision this week that Shaw’s Local Television Satellite Solution (LTSS) is an another appropriate alternative for viewers losing CBC. Through the LTTS program, Shaw provides free local and regional services as well as satellite equipment for households that lose access to over-the-air TV signals. dgrenier@thewirereport.ca --- CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story said CBC plans to decommission 620 analog transmitters. CBC has revised that number to 607.

CBC to be unavailable on antennas in 604 communities

Broadcast | July 19, 2012

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CBC to be unavailable on antennas in 604 communities

Broadcast | July 19, 2012

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