WGC on Twitter
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Deadline July 16 Nominations for the Margaret Collier Award
This Award is presented to a writer for a body of work in Canadian television, or for significant contribution to the international profile of Canadian television. Recommendations should be submitted to the Special Awards Committee. Each recommendation must include a one-page bio and a two-page rationale. Deadline July 16, 2009. See nomination form here.
CRTC Decision on New Media
The CRTC issued their decision on New Media broadcasting in Canada, and will extend the exemption on New Media broadcasting services for what will likely be at least five more years. We are disappointed and believe that the commission missed an opportunity to strengthen Canadian content online, and that a five year wait will put us even farther behind in what may be the real future of broadcasting.
The WGC appeared before the CRTC in February and presented statistics about the inadequate funding for original New Media content. The WGC recommended the creation of a fund for original Canadian content derived from a very modest levy on ISPs and WSPs. The WGC also demonstrated to the commission the difficulty of finding traditional Canadian programming on the Canadian broadcasters' websites. We recommended a number of solutions to create greater visibility for Canadian programming online.
The CRTC was unconvinced of the need to regulate. In the coming months, they will introduce a reporting requirement for the services, so that when they revisit this issue (perhaps within five years) they will have the data and information necessary for a clearer picture of the sector. The CRTC has also decided to send to the courts the issue of whether or not they have jurisdiction over the ISPs - it is our position, supported by a legal opinion, that they do.
The WGC issued a press release in response to the decision - you can find it here
TV Policy Review at CRTC in Fall 2009
May's CRTC decision to issue one-year licences to Canwest, CTV, Sun-TV and CityTV came with the provision that certain issues would be revisited at station group hearings in 2010. Prior to that hearing however will be a very critical TV Policy Review in Fall 2009. The Fall 2009 Policy Review will look at "establishing the appropriate minimum levels of spending on Canadian programming by English-language television broadcasters and the regulatory mechanism to ensure these levels."
The WGC has been asking for a full policy review and for regulations ensuring minimum levels of Canadian programming for some time - and so we applaud the announcement of a Fall review and the inclusion of spending levels as a point of consideration. We have requested that, prior to the hearing, the commision make available the clear and relevant data from the broadcasters necessary to an informed discussion.
The WGC appeared May 7 at the CRTC hearings for Over-the-Air (OTA) broadcasters. Read the press release here.
Canadian Programming Can Pay its Way
WGC, ACTRA, DGC and CFTPA release Nordicity analysis that shows Canadian broadcasters can make a profit from Canadian programming. Broadcasters say they spend big on U.S. drama (almost half a billion dollars last year) as a way to pay for making Canadian. Nordicity analysis reveals broadcasters shouldn't be using Canadian drama as an excuse for shopping sprees in the U.S. Read study here.
WGC and the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage
The WGC appeared before the parliamentary Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage in Ottawa on May 6 to urge the committee to tell Canadian broadcasters that they have no business asking Canadians to give up Canadian programming. Press release.In the last several months, Canadian broadcasters have done little else but try to position themselves to provide less Canadian programming to Canadians. On top of relief for local programming, the broadcasters are now petitioning for changes to requirements around high-quality Canadian programming like documentaries and drama - some broadcasters want to eliminate the requirements altogether, and others want to dilute them by allowing cheaper programs such as awards and reality shows to qualify. If change is required, it should not come at the cost of the very identity piece of the system quality Canadian programming.
Rebecca Schechter, President, WGC, says Now, after many years of enjoying stable profits and being supported through public policy, these newly integrated businesses are petitioning for relief from the very thing that should give them purpose: providing Canadian programming to Canadian audiences. If these companies do nothing but act as middlemen, rebroadcasting foreign shows, why have the Canadian people invested in them over the last decades? What have we been building?
The WGC thanked the Committee for this timely review of broadcasting in Canada. This seems like a watershed moment in Canadian broadcasting, and there is a lot at stake for the industry and for Canadian audiences, added Ms. Parker.
