PIAC re-launches undue-preference complaint against Shomi

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) has re-launched an undue-preference complaint against Rogers Communications Inc.'s and Shaw Communications Inc.’s Shomi streaming service, following uncertainty about how a recent CRTC decision would affect the service. In the Part 1 complaint filed Monday, PIAC stated that by tying access to Shomi to Rogers or Shaw Internet or TV services, the companies are conferring an undue preference on their own services and discriminating against independent providers, in violation of both the Telecommunications Act and the CRTC’s digital media exemption order (DMEO), in addition to violating the prohibition against exclusivity in the DMEO. In February, PIAC had filed undue-preference cases against both Shomi and BCE Inc.’s CraveTV, taking issue with fact that their availability was linked to subscription services from certain TV or Internet providers. In March, the CRTC proposed a hybrid category for video-on-demand services that allows them to offer content exclusive to certain TV service providers and operate under the digital-media exemption order, as long as they also offer that content online to all Canadians. At the time the policy was announced, when asked how the proposal would affect Shomi and CraveTV, CRTC Chairman Jean-Pierre Blais told The Wire Report: “I think it would be premature to suggest that we know how it would apply.” That remained unclear on Monday, the deadline for comments on the proposal, as neither Bell, Rogers nor Shaw specified how the new hybrid category would apply to their streaming services, though they did tell the CRTC they were in favour of the new category. In its submission Monday, PIAC said the CRTC must provide more clarity on the issue, including explicitly stating whether Shomi and CraveTV count as hybrid services under the new category. In its submission, PIAC said Monday that it “has serious doubts that either Bell Media or the Shaw-Rogers Shomi Partnership would be sufficiently enticed by the new exempt VOD category to offer their services to all Canadians regardless of their communications service subscriptions.” It noted that there have not been “any changes to the ways in which Shomi and CraveTV are offered to Canadians since the Commission’s … decision and announcement of the new hybrid VOD category.” Currently, CraveTV is only available to those who subscribe to TV service from Bell and other TV service providers it has agreements with. When asked why its latest application is against only Shomi and not CraveTV, PIAC executive director John Lawford said in an email that the CRTC has indicated it would deal with issues surrounding broadcasting entities as its sorts out its hybrid-VOD policy. He noted that CraveTV is not tied to Internet subscriptions, just TV accounts, and he added that Bell had indicated it is trying to reach deals with all TV service providers to carry CraveTV. Bell said in its submission about the CRTC’s planned new VOD category: "We strongly support the Commission’s initiative in creating this new VOD category which will allow competition amongst VOD services to thrive while not imposing traditional regulatory obligations such as Canadian content exhibition and financial contributions to Canadian programming." It held the success of CraveTV — along with Shomi, Quebecor Inc.'s Club Illico and Netflix Inc. — as proof of public's desire for more choice, though it did not mention CraveTV a second time in the submission. Rogers and Shaw also praised the new category, though they did not provide any more detail about how it would apply to Shomi. Rogers said in its submission that it “generally supports” the CRTC’s proposal, and that the CRTC’s move to add a new hybrid VOD service category would make it easier for such services to compete with over-the-top (OTT) services like Netflix. “By amending the VOD Exemption Order to include the hybrid VOD service category and applying regulatory requirements that are comparable to those under the DMEO, hybrid VOD services will be able to operate on an equal regulatory footing with online video services,” it said. While the submission did not directly address whether the creation of the new category would force Shomi to be made available to all Canadian Internet subscribers, it stated that Shomi “has entered into commercial negotiations to make its catalogue available to licensed and exempt VOD services offered by BDUs over ‘closed BDU-specific platforms.’ ” In its submission, Shaw made reference to the same negotiations. It also said the “establishment of the hybrid VOD service category will address the regulatory uncertainty that has, to date, governed Canadian digital services such as shomi, which are currently subject to three different regulatory frameworks.” “This single streamlined regulatory framework will provide hybrid VOD service operators with more regulatory certainty and a clearer understanding of the rules and expectations that apply to each service, an objective identified by the Commission … which Shaw supports,” it said. It did not elaborate on how the new category would clarify the rules. The Competition Bureau also said on Monday it supports the CRTC's proposal to create the new video-on-demand category. The bureau said in a press release that the move "would allow consumers to purchase online video‑on‑demand services without also being required to purchase additional services — such as a TV service or an Internet connection — from a specific service provider." The competition watchdog said such a category would foster a more competitive environment in the video-on-demand market, while also giving Canadian companies a better chance to compete with services such as Netflix, given the lighter regulatory burden the new category would entail. In a submission to the CRTC, the Competition Bureau said that it "hopes that the Hybrid VOD model will be widely adopted, as this will allow Canadians to enjoy the benefits of enhanced competition, innovation and choice in the broadcasting sector." — With reporting by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewirereport.ca and reporting and editing by Derek Abma at dabma@thewirereport.ca

PIAC re-launches undue-preference complaint against Shomi

Broadcast | April 27, 2015

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PIAC re-launches undue-preference complaint against Shomi

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