Broadcasting Distribution Regulations (SOR/97-555)

17.1 Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall not charge a customer more than $25 per month for the distribution of its basic service.

First-tier Offering

17.2 Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee may offer its first-tier offering to its subscribers and prospective subscribers.

• 17.3 (1) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, if a licensee offers a first-tier offering it shall distribute the following services in each licensed area as part of that offering:

  • (a) the programming services that are required to be distributed under subsections 17(1) to (5); and

  • (b) the programming service of at least one Canadian programming undertaking that is in addition to those distributed under paragraph (a).

• (2) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee may, in addition to the programming services required under subsection (1), distribute as part of the first-tier offering in the licensed area any non-Canadian programming service that may be distributed under subsection 17(6).

Access for Television Programming Services

• 18 (1) The following definitions apply in this section.

  ethnic Category A service

  ethnic Category A service means, in respect of a licence that was issued before March 12, 2015, a programming service that is designated as an ethnic Category A service by the Commission or named in paragraph 138 of Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2008-100, dated October 30, 2008 and entitled Regulatory frameworks for broadcasting distribution undertakings and discretionary programming services. (service ethnique de catégorie A)

  general interest television pay-per-view service

  general interest television pay-per-view service means a television pay-per-view service whose programming is selected — unrestricted by any condition of licence — from any of the categories set out in item 6, column I, of Schedule I to the Pay Television Regulations, 1990 (service de télévision à la carte d’intérêt général)

• (2) Except as otherwise provided in this section, in sections 23 to 27 or under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall distribute

  • (a) if the licensee is operating in an anglophone market,

    • (i) each English-language Category A service whose operator is authorized to provide the service to all or part of the licensed area,

    • (ii) at least one English-language general interest television pay-per-view service, and

    • (iii) to the extent that such a programming service is available, at least one French-language discretionary service for every 10 English-language programming services that it distributes;

  • (b) if the licensee is operating in a francophone market,

    • (i) each French-language Category A service whose operator is authorized to provide the service to all or part of the licensed area,

    • (ii) at least one French-language general interest television pay-per-view service, and

    • (iii) to the extent that such a programming service is available, at least one English-language discretionary service for every 10 French-language programming services that it distributes; and

  • (c) the ethnic Category A service of a programming undertaking that is authorized to provide that programming service to all or part of the licensed area if

    • (i) the licensee was distributing the service in the licensed area on October 30, 2008, or

    • (ii) according to the most recent population figures published by Statistics Canada, 10% or more of the total population of all cities, towns and other municipalities situated in whole or in part within the licensed area is of one or a combination of the ethnic origins to which the service is intended to appeal.

• (3) For the purposes of subparagraphs (2)(a)(iii) and (b)(iii),

  • (a) the definition discretionary service in section 1 does not include a programming service that the licensee is required to distribute under paragraph 9(1)(h) of the Act; and

  • (b) the analog or standard definition programming service and the high definition service together count as a single programming service.

• (4) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall distribute

  • (a) the programming service of a community-based low-power television station to the subscribers of the distribution undertaking whose residence or other premises are located within the service area of that station; and

  • (b) the programming service of a community-based digital undertaking to the subscribers of the distribution undertaking whose residence or other premises are located within the service area of that undertaking.

• (5) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee fulfils its obligations under this section and section 19 by distributing either the standard definition programming service or the high definition version of that programming service.

18.1 [Repealed, SOR/2011-148, s. 8]

Access for Unrelated Programming Undertakings

• 19 (1) The following definitions apply in this section.

  exempt distribution undertaking

  exempt distribution undertaking means a distribution undertaking the operator of which is exempt under Broadcasting Order CRTC 2014-445, dated August 29, 2014 and entitled Terms and conditions of the exemption order for terrestrial broadcasting distribution undertakings serving fewer than 20,000 subscribers, as amended from time to time. (entreprise de distribution exemptée)

  independent programming undertaking

  independent programming undertaking means a programming undertaking for which no licensee of a distribution undertaking or operator of an exempt distribution undertaking, or an affiliate of the licensee or operator, holds, directly or indirectly, an interest or right in the assets. (entreprise de distribution indépendante)

  related exempt programming undertaking

  related exempt programming undertaking means an exempt programming undertaking that is not an unrelated exempt programming undertaking. (entreprise de programmation exemptée liée)

  unrelated exempt programming undertaking

  unrelated exempt programming undertaking means

  • (a) an exempt programming undertaking of which the licensee or an affiliate, or both, controls 10% or less; or

  • (b) an exempt programming undertaking of which the licensee or an affiliate, or both, controls more than 10% but less than 15% and whose programming services the licensee was distributing on October 30, 2008. (entreprise de programmation exemptée non liée)

• (2) For the purposes of subsection (3), the definition discretionary service in section 1 does not include any of the following:

  • (a) a programming service that the licensee distributes under section 18;

  • (b) an adult programming service;

  • (c) an exempt programming service, other than an exempt discretionary service;

  • (d) a programming service that the licensee is required to distribute under paragraph 9(1)(h) of the Act.

• (3) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall distribute in its licensed area

  • (a) to the extent that such programming is available, at least one English-language discretionary service of an independent programming undertaking for each English-language discretionary service of a related programming undertaking that it distributes in the area; and

  • (b) to the extent that such programming is available, at least one French-language discretionary service of an independent programming undertaking for each French-language discretionary service of a related programming undertaking that it distributes in the area.

• (3.1) to (4) [Repealed, SOR/2015-239, s. 11]

• (5) A licensee that distributes one or more programming services of related exempt programming undertakings in a licensed area shall also distribute an equal number of programming services of unrelated exempt programming undertakings in the licensed area.

• (6) Subsection (5) does not apply to the distribution of an exempt discretionary service of a related exempt programming undertaking.

19.1 [Repealed, SOR/2011-148, s. 8]

Television Programming Services that May Be Distributed

• 20 (1) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee may, in addition to the programming services required under sections 17 to 19, distribute in its licensed area

  • (a) the programming service of any regional television station that is not distributed by the licensee in the licensed area under section 17 or of any extra-regional television station;

  • (b) any on-demand service, the operator of which is authorized to provide the service to all or part of the licensed area, that is not distributed by the licensee in the licensed area under section 18;

  • (c) any discretionary service that is not distributed by the licensee in the licensed area under section 18 or 19;

  • (d) subject to section 30, community programming;

  • (e) the programming service of any non-Canadian television station that is received over the air at the local head end, other than

    • (i) a religious programming service, and

    • (ii) the programming service of a non-Canadian television station that began operation after January 1, 1985;

  • (f) any authorized non-Canadian programming service — including, subject to section 22, a 4 + 1 package of programming services;

  • (g) subject to section 21, the programming service of any distant television station;

  • (h) the programming service of any licensed television station that provides its programming services by direct feed and that is not distributed by the licensee in the licensed area under section 17 or otherwise under this section;

  • (i) the programming service of any exempt programming undertaking;

  • (j) any programming service that promotes a programming service distributed by the licensee and that meets the criteria set out in paragraph 27 of Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2007-74, dated July 5, 2007 and entitled Previews and promotional channels;

  • (k) subject to section 21, an educational television programming service whose operation is the responsibility of an educational authority designated by a province other than the province in which the licensed area is located; and

  • (l) any programming service — including, subject to section 22, a further 4 + 1 package of programming services — that is authorized under a condition of its licence.

• (2) A licensee that distributes a programming service under subsection (1) may also distribute the high definition version of that programming service.

Distribution of Distant Television Stations

• 21 (1) Except as otherwise provided in a condition of its licence, which condition takes effect on or after September 1, 2011, a licensee shall obtain the consent of the operator of a distant television station to distribute its signal before the licensee makes the signal available to its subscribers.

• (2) The licensee is not required to obtain the consent of the operator of the distant television station if the signal is required to be distributed as part of the licensee’s basic service under section 17 or under a condition of its licence.

Distribution of Non-Canadian Television Stations

22 Except as otherwise provided in a condition of its licence, which condition takes effect on or after September 1, 2011, a licensee shall not distribute a 4 + 1 package of programming services that originate outside the time zone in which the licensee’s local head end is located unless the licensee also distributes to its subscribers the programming services of at least one television station from each English major ownership group that originate in the same time zone.

Distribution and Linkage

• 23 (1) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, all authorized non-Canadian programming services, other than the programming services of non-Canadian television stations, and all discretionary services that are offered by a licensee in a licensed area shall be offered as follows:

  • (a) during the period beginning on March 1, 2016 and ending on November 30, 2016, either on a stand-alone basis or in packages of up to 10 programming services; and

  • (b) on or after December 1, 2016, both on a stand-alone basis and in packages of up to 10 programming services.

• (2) In addition to the packages required under subsection (1), a licensee may offer any programming services that are not distributed as part of its basic service in packages of more than 10 programming services.

• (3) For the purposes of subsections (1) and (2), the licensee may offer either or both of the following:

  • (a) packages that consist of programming services that are chosen by the licensee; and

  • (b) packages that consist of programming services that are chosen by the subscriber.

• (4) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence or these Regulations, a licensee shall not, on or after December 1, 2016, distribute a programming service or package of programming services such that, in order to obtain that service or package, a subscriber is required to subscribe to an additional programming service or package of programming services.

24 Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence or these Regulations, a licensee may only distribute an authorized non-Canadian programming service on a discretionary basis.

• 25 (1) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall not distribute an adult programming service in a package such that a subscriber is required to subscribe to that service in order to obtain any other programming service.

• (2) A licensee that distributes an adult programming service shall fully block the reception of both the audio and video portions of the service to subscribers who request that they not receive the service in either unscrambled or scrambled mode.