Order Referring Back to the CRTC Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2022-165: SI/2022-44

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 156, Number 20

Registration
SI/2022-44 September 28, 2022

BROADCASTING ACT

Order Referring Back to the CRTC Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2022-165

P.C. 2022-995 September 16, 2022

Whereas the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (“Commission”), in its Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2022-165 of June 22, 2022, made a decision to renew the broadcasting licences for the English- and French-language audiovisual and audio services of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation;

Whereas, subsequent to the making of the decision, the Governor in Council received 16 petitions in writing requesting that the decision be set aside or referred back to the Commission for reconsideration and hearing;

Whereas the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, as the national public broadcaster, is a pillar of Canada’s broadcasting system and contributes significantly to the achievement of the objectives of the broadcasting policy for Canada set out in subsection 3(1) of the Broadcasting Actfootnote a;

Whereas certain categories of programming remain essential to the attainment of those policy objectives and to the maintenance and enhancement of national identity and cultural sovereignty;

Whereas the Governor in Council recognizes that regulation needs to be adaptable in order to respond to the realities of the evolving broadcasting landscape;

And whereas the Governor in Council, having considered the petitions, is satisfied that the decision derogates from the attainment of the objectives of the broadcasting policy for Canada set out in subsection 3(1) of the Broadcasting Act footnote a and, in particular, subparagraphs 3(1)(i)(i), (ii) and (v) and subparagraphs 3(1)(m)(ii), (iv), (v) and (vii) of that Act;

Therefore, Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Canadian Heritage, under section 28 of the Broadcasting Actfootnote a,

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

To respond to 16 written petitions, pursuant to section 28 of the Broadcasting Act (the Act), requesting that the Governor in Council set aside or refer back for reconsideration and hearing the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) decision contained in Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2022-165 of June 22, 2022, to renew the broadcasting licences for the English- and French-language audiovisual and audio services of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (the Corporation).

Objective

To communicate that the Governor in Council, being satisfied that the above decision derogates from the attainment of some of the objectives of the broadcasting policy set out in subsection 3(1) of the Act, is referring the decision back to the CRTC for reconsideration and hearing.

Background

On November 25, 2019, the CRTC issued Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2019-379, to consider the Corporation’s applications to renew the broadcasting licences for its English- and French-language audiovisual and audio services.

From January 11 to 28, 2021, the CRTC held a virtual hearing to consider those applications. The hearing included the remarks of approximately 70 interveners and more than 10 000 individual comments submitted online.

On June 22, 2022, the CRTC issued Broadcasting Decision 2022-165, in which it renewed the broadcasting licences for the Corporation’s English- and French-language audiovisual and audio services, from 2022 to 2027. In its decision, the CRTC adopted an approach based on outcomes and risks, with requirements focused only on areas where the CRTC identified that the Corporation needed improvement. Among the new requirements, the CRTC imposed a multiplatform expenditure approach that allows the Corporation to include expenses made for Canadian programming on online services to meet its regulatory requirements. The CRTC also removed requirements where the Corporation’s historic performance met or surpassed the conditions of its current licences.

The Governor in Council has received 16 petitions under section 28 of the Act calling for the decision to be set aside or referred back to the CRTC for reconsideration and hearing. The majority of the petitions were submitted by associations, unions, and guilds from within the production sector and creative community. Others were sent by groups or individuals representing the public interest. The Ministère de la Culture et des Communications du Québec and the association representing private broadcasters have also petitioned.

The main issues raised in these petitions generally revolve around four main areas of concern, namely, the elimination of many exhibition-based conditions of licence in favour of expenditure requirements, expectations, and monitoring obligations for different categories of programming; the flexibility for the Corporation to allocate resources between its traditional and online services; advertising, including and especially the Corporation’s sale of “branded content”; and procedural issues in how the CRTC arrived at its decision.

Pursuant to section 28 of the Act, the Governor in Council may set aside or refer a decision back to the CRTC for reconsideration and hearing if it is satisfied that the decision derogates from the attainment of the objectives of the broadcasting policy set out in subsection 3(1) of the Act.

Implications

In the present case, after careful consideration of the petitions, the Governor in Council is satisfied that the decision derogates from some of the objectives of the broadcasting policy set out in subsection 3(1) of the Act.

Local news, children’s programming, original French-language programming, and independent productions are too vital to the fabric of Canadian society and to the broadcasting system in general for adequate safeguards not to be put in place to ensure their continued production and availability. Specific and targeted license conditions not only establish mandatory minimums, but also serve as a performance measurement framework.

By referring back the decision to the CRTC for reconsideration and new hearing, the Governor in Council asks the CRTC to ensure that the Corporation, as the national public broadcaster, continues to make a significant contribution to the creation, presentation, and dissemination of the aforementioned categories of Canadian programming. The CRTC will reconsider the matter and may rescind or confirm the decision either with or without change.

Contact

Michel Sabbagh
Director General
Broadcasting, Copyright and Creative Marketplace
Department of Canadian Heritage
Telephone: 613‑883‑8437