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CRTC Audit of Cable Community TV Reveals Same Pattern of Abuse as Previous Audits
CACTUS just completed its review of cable company logs submitted by Rogers, Shaw, Eastlink, Cogeco and Videotron as part of the most comprehensive audit ever conducted by the CRTC of cable community channels. The logs detail all the programming aired on cable community channels in selected licence areas for March 6-12, 2011.
The findings? The same widespread abuse of this community resource as was revealed by the CRTC's previous audits, conducted in 2002-2005. As in 2002-2005, many cable companies failed to meet the 60% local programming minimum that is a standard condition of their licences, and almost all failed to meet the 30% minimum for programming produced by community members (as opposed to programming produced by cable company staff).
Also as in 2002-2005, programs are frequently claimed as "access" (produced by someone in the community) when in fact the companies' web sites suggest they are driven by cable staff. Some cable companies are charging community groups for access; others employ network templates for programs, which are used over a large area.
For us at CACTUS, these findings are no surprise. As we have stated in several public proceedings, the time when it made sense for small mom-and-pop locally based cable companies to administer community channels and media resources is long past. Canada's big five cable companies have no place in the "community media" universe; Canada continues to be the only country in the world in which "community media" is not administered by communities... duh!
Since the audit week occurred just six months into the CRTC's new community TV policy (issued in August of 2010), we are sceptical that the targets of the new policy can be met. If cable companies cannot meet the 30% access programming minimum currently in force, we fail to see how they will be able to ramp up to the 50% access expectation that the CRTC has announced by 2014.
For a full copy of our findings, click here:
Help Us Grow: Become a Member or Make a Donation
As we enter a new year, we face several challenges and opportunities:
- We have a new community TV policy that recognizes past problems with access to cable-administered community channels (CRTC 2010-622).
- We are part of an on-going process with the cable companies and the CRTC to see how this new policy can be applied. Will it lead to more genuine access to cable community channels? Can it be used to generate funding for non-profit, community-owned TV channels?
- We are also part of a broad-based industry and civil-society coalition asking for a national education campaign in advance of the digital TV transition. We see it as an opportunity to educate municipalities about their potential role as broadcasters and rebroadcasters.
- We are engaged in the spectrum auction design process for the former TV channels 62 to 69, to ensure that some of that spectrum is set aside for public uses, such as distribution of community content.
- And last but not least, we celebrate the CRTC's decision that will require Bell to offer independent community TV channels as part of its basic service! This decision was a direct result of CACTUS' intervention, and an endorsement of the importance of our fledgling sector.
To enable us to continue to grow, we need your help. Up until now, we have been a web site and an e-mail list of interested supporters. In 2010, we incorporated as a non-profit, with the following board of directors:
Cathy Edwards - national co-ordinator
Patrick Watt - representative of the Maritimes and over-the-air TV community licence holders
Ivan Traill - representative of the Prairies, over-the-air licence holder and cable co-operative community TV channel
CACTUS Prepares Feedback for a Code of Best Practices for Cable Community Channels
As a result of the new community TV policy announced on Aug. 28th, the CRTC has asked cable companies to draft a code of access "best practices", and have sent to CACTUS and to the Fédération des télévisions communautaires autonomes du Québec a draft for review by Jan. 20th.
While neither CACTUS nor the Fédération was initially invited to participate in the "industry working group" to generate the code, CACTUS drew attention to the oversight at the Shaw cable license renewal in September. The CRTC responded by requesting cable companies in the working group to consult us.
CACTUS is discussing the draft code within its membership and with interested parties. If you would like to be included in this process, please e-mail Cathy Edwards at cedwards at timescape dot ca.
CACTUS is delighted that the CRTC has acknowledged that the public should be included in decisions about governance of community channels.
Once the working group submits its final draft code to the CRTC at the end of February, it will be offered to the public for comment, at which time any member of the public can intervene directly.
CACTUS and Public Policy: Fall 2010
In the wake of the CRTC's new community TV policy, announced August 28th, CACTUS has participated in three CRTC hearing processes related to Shaw Communications, and presented a brief before the Standing Committee Heritage regarding the role of small broadcasters in an increasingly consolidated media environment:
1) CACTUS intervened in the Shaw purchase of Canwest to support Shaw's offer to share transmission facilities with local and community broadcasters. This offer could considerably reduce the costs for community over-the-air broadcasters to launch in any market where Global is present.
2) CACTUS intervened in the Shaw license renewals to point out that of the 22 license areas in which Shaw was seeking a renewal, CACTUS could only confirm that 11 access studios exist. CACTUS asked that studios be reopened in the license areas that currently have no access facilities. This request was denied by the CRTC.
3) CACTUS intervened in the license application by Corus for a network of pseudo-weather community information channels called Local1, which would be located in the same communities where there is currently a Shaw community channel facility. Since Shaw's community channels already offer a Local1-like combo of weather and community news, CACTUS was concerned that the license being sought would repurpose existing community channel content, without addressing the access problems on those community channels.
The Digital Transition in Your Community
The way TV signals are delivered over the air is changing in Canada beginning in August 2011. If you have a cable or satellite subscription, your service will be unaffected. If you watch TV using an antenna ("bunny ears") mounted on the TV or on your roof, you will find yourself in one of the following situations:
- In most major towns and cities, broadcasters are upgrading their signals to digital. You'll need either a digital TV or a digital-to-analog converter box to continue watching over-the-air TV with an antenna.
- In smaller communities, some of your local broadcasters may upgrade their signals to digital (and you'll need a digital TV or converter box). Others may continue broadcasting in analog. In both cases, you can continue watching free TV, for now.
When the analog transmitters reach the end of their useful life, however, local broadcasters may elect not to replace them. At that time, you and your neighbours would have to subscribe to cable or satellite to continue to watch TV. That could happen next year, or in 5 years.
For example, the CBC is likely to begin phasing out analog transmission in 2013, affecting more than 600 transmitters serving small- to medium-sized communities across Canada.
