Satellite Radio and the CRTC

Is anybody else happy that satellite radio will be available in Canada?

Moving on, why is this topic in Canadian Politics? After wading through the CRTC's decision to grant licences to American companies to broadcast their signal in Canada, I have to agree with the Globe's Friday Editorial that the CRTC is an outmoded antique roadshow that should be shot, buried and forgotten.

It's almost enraging that the CRTC is empowered to decide how many radio or television stations are permitted in Canada. Once upon a time, there were only so many channels on the dials. In that time, it did make sense for the government to regulate which companies, American or Canadian, were allowed to utilize those frequencies within Canada. In order to stave off drowning out Canadian initiatives and to protect Caadian sovereignty (or so it is said), the CRTC was formed with the CRTC Act in 1968. Given the power to regulate all aspects of broadcast in Canada, it set about its course to date.

But all that has changed.

With satellite radio and satellite TV, there is no more need for the CRTC. There are practically an infinite number of stations from which I can choose to listen. EVEN if the CRTC decides it doesn't want to allow Sirius to broadcast Howard Stern in Canada for instance, it's irrelevant. I can sign up for Sirius and listen through my computer. If the CRTC deems not to allow British radio broadcasters, I can do the same thing.

Furthermore, the Globe and Mail compared the very idea of the CRTC limiting choice of radio to the CRTC dictating to Chaper's how many different fishing magazines they may sell and for those magazines that are allowed to be sold, they must have certain content requirements. If an American company wanted to sell MP3 players and the government stepped in to say there are already too many American products on the market, there would be a NAFTA lawsuit in a heartbeat.

Why are radio and television stations so different? Why is the CRTC still in existence? It's time the damn thing was done away with.

The destruction of Canada is going to be through Nationalization,
Capitalization and Democracy. We give free reign to big business to make
our decisions and those decisions are made only with their profit margin
in mind. We are being Americanized day by day and in 20 years time you
will see no borders between the two Countries. The power of our Country
is in the hands of the few, and those few do not have the betterment of
Canada or it's people in their hearts.

Canadian artists get more play on satellite radio then in domestic markets because of volume but they are up against way more American content. We will be left foreigners in our own country because we will be drowning in profit driven industry that is not based in Canada. If we wish to be a small and insignificant voice in our own market then get rid of the CRTC but understand there is no chance of going back or being anything more than a 2nd rate backwater media. Right now we do have quality programs and artists here. If we want to keep that we need to fight for it and keep it Canadian. If you want as a consumer to hear American entertainment on American media you can do that now.

Smart Regs really dumb

This is the future of regulations in Canada, and if your a taxpayer in Canada it effect you.

Scape,

An interesting reply. True, the CRTC has kept the Canadian Content going which has allowed many an artist to get needed exposure within Canada, but at the very same time, we don't really tend to celebrate artists that haven't gotten a lot of exposure in the States.

Barenaked Ladies, Nickelback, Avril Lavigne, Alanis Morrisette (sp?), Shania Twain all do well and fine in the States, but the Tea Party, Junkhouse, the Gandharvas (R.I.P.) never did and despite any quality they have or had, they're nobodies.

I understand your central point that Canada is too small to beat the Americans at their own game and Goliath is going to whump poor David this time 'round. However, there is also a problem when I am barred from getting programming I want simply because it's American.

I read your link, but I didn't see how it related on point.

The CRTC regulating content on TV and Radio doesn't just help Canadian artists gain exposure to an audience, it also creates many other jobs from technicians to program producers. We also need people trained to do all these jobs so a college offers a program and needs to hire teachers etc.

Now, because of the jobs that are available, young people that want to pursue a career in radio or TV can look forward to working in Canada to provide entertainment to Canadians.

CRTC = increased jobs and success for Canadians.

I live in Mississauga and have had a sub to XM radio for the last 1.5 years. You don't need the CRTC's blessing for anything. The activation center for XM is at Eglington and Young YES downtown Toronto. Just call them up makeup a fake US addy and use a CC for the payment and your off and listening to satellite radio.

The CRTC is lining the pockets of very rich Canadians:

Canadian Satellite Radio, owned by John Bitove, former co-owner of the Toronto Raptor basketball team, has partnered with Washington-based XM. New York-based Sirius has invested in Canada's closely held Standard Broadcasting Inc. and the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corp.

You really think the either XM or Sirius is going to do this:

The Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission said at least 10 percent of the channels offered must be produced in Canada, 85 percent of the music and programing on those channels must be Canadian, and at least 25 percent of the Canadian channels must be French-language

They have a market of 300 million people without any of that ^^^ and for them to change the stream to accommodate 30 million people, I don’t think so. It’s the same for DTV or Dishnetwork they will not change the programming for the little market of Canada. So I’ll continue to enjoy my DTV and XM radio the way I found how to get them and the rest of Canada can listen to what the CRTC thinks is appropriate for the better of Canadians and the hypocrites that make a fortune out of rebroadcasting the US signals.

http://today.reuters.com/News/TechStori ... DIO-DC.XML

Hwacker,

It's not often that I agree with you, but the CRTC has also failed in its efforts anyway.

They deny Comedy Central access to Canada, but approve The Comedy Network. Screw you Cartoon Network with the Adult Swim lineup, hello Teletoon with the exact same Detour lineup. Buzz off ESPN, make way for TSN. MTV can suck it, Much Music, go for it! VH1, peddle your wares elsewhere, we're too busy watching Much More Music. Not so fast Oxygen, the WTN is already broadcasting its crap.

What's the point? The most successful shows that CTV, Global and City TV broadcast are American ones anyway. What killed off Mike Bullard's Open Mike on Global? Monsieur Jon Stewart and his Daily Show on CTV.

Even though Howard Stern broadcasts to the GTA on 92.9 Jack FM out of Buffalo, the CRTC has to give it their official stamp of approval for him to begin broadcasting on Sirius in Canada. Did Toronto get sucked into the 6th ring of hell while he could be heard for free? Seems like the city's doing fine. But the CRTC has to make sure.

And Canadian content be damned. I'm PAYING for the service. It's no different than me wandering down to buy a Newsweek at Indigo only to find out that's not possible because there aren't enough Canadian stories in the magazine.

Canadian content rules do more to hurt than to help us Canadian indie artists. The programmers look at the rulings and decide how much Anne Murray to play is all. We get more airplay in Australia than we do in Canada.

If it helps keep the trash out or at least minimize the amount of American shit that we're already subjected to, then by all means the CRTC is indeed relevant and an integral part of preserving our culture.

Somebody has to enforce the standards of broadcasting. Just as the FCC does in America with it's fines of Howard Stern and companry for their on air vulgarity