The CRTC is continuing to move forward with implementation of the Online Streaming Act, launching two public consultations – one of which will look at lessening the regulatory burden on radio stations.

The first consultation – The Path Forward – will update the definition of Canadian content for TV and online streaming services, looking at how that definition can better support telling Canadian stories, recognize the role of key creatives, and explore issues like local programming expenditures, data, and whether artificial intelligence can be considered Canadian content and under what circumstances.

Scott Shortliffe, the commission’s Executive Director of Broadcasting, said the commission is proposing to expand the current 10-point Cancon system to 15 points, with the proceeding intended to explore issues around what makes a production Canadian, including intellectual property ownership, financial and creative control, and co-production models.

The consultation will be followed by a public hearing in Gatineau, slated to begin March 31. It will take into consideration information from forthcoming public opinion research and the recently published, Defining Canadian Content – Workshops with Stakeholders and Industry: What We Heard Report.

Modernization of radio processes

The second consultation – Modernization of radio processes – will update the rules radio stations follow to offer more flexibility.

The CRTC says given the emergence of online undertakings in the Canadian broadcasting landscape and its new power to regulate them, the commission is of the view that  regulatory processes need to be reviewed to reduce the regulatory burden on radio stations “to ensure that radio remains culturally dynamic and competitive, while ensuring that programming continues to serve the public interest and responds to market specificities”

The commission is also soliciting comments on how it could better promote the sustainability of broadcasters, particularly in underserved markets.

“We have a preliminary view we can be more flexible…including having possibly indefinite licence terms for particular kind of radio stations,” said Shortliffe. “It could be tied to the kind of radio station it is, again not decisions, but asking questions saying what is in the public interest?”

He said low power and campus and community stations, for example, could also be granted certain filing exemptions, in addition to a more streamlined licensing process. Instead of addressing complaints during a licence renewal period, he said the commission could use new tools to be more reactive and grant more regulatory flexibility.

“We’re basically hoping we can pay more attention to acting quickly on complaints…use tools that are more focused, and in turn for that, grant more regulatory flexibility to radio stations so they operate more efficiently and can concentrate on content and broadcasting music relevant to Canadian audiences, rather than going through the regulatory burden with us,” he added.

The CRTC is welcoming comments on both consultations until Jan. 20.The commission said the radio consultation won’t be followed by a public hearing because of its specificity to the radio industry.

More consultations to come

With the introduction of the Online Streaming Act producing uncertainty, Shortliffe says the aim of the consultations is to get key policy work done towards a goal of having tailored conditions of service in place for broadcasting groups and streamers by the end of 2025.

There will be another consultation initiated in December. Formerly proposed under the guise of exploring “structural relationships,” that consultation will focus on market dynamics and sustainability. Early in the New Year, a major policy proceeding on audio policy will follow. It will cover content contributions, rules for audio streamers, quotas being kept, how to support music in the future, as well as CRTC definitions and whether they need changing.

Shortliffe acknowledged that with a large amount of work for stakeholders involved in these proceedings, the commission is trying to present preliminary views as much as it can, so organizations aren’t starting with a blank slate.

“The commission’s mind is not closed on anything,” said Shortliffe. “We have some preliminary views, but these preliminary views are generated based on evidence we’ve seen to date and we are open to being convinced our preliminary views need to be modified.”