Broadcasting Distribution Regulations (SOR/97-555)

33.1 [Repealed, SOR/2011-148, s. 8]

33.2 [Repealed, SOR/2011-148, s. 8]

33.3 [Repealed, SOR/2011-148, s. 8]

Contribution to Local Expression, Canadian Programming and Community Television

• 34 (1) If a licensee is required under this section to make a contribution to Canadian programming, it shall contribute

  • (a) to the Canadian production fund at least 80% of its total required contribution; and

  • (b) to one or more independent production funds, the remainder of its total required contribution.

• (2) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence or subsection (3), a licensee shall, for each broadcast year, contribute to Canadian programming an amount equal to 4.7% of its gross revenues derived from broadcasting activities in the previous broadcast year less any allowable contribution to local expression made by the licensee in the current broadcast year to a maximum of an amount equal to 1.5% of its gross revenues derived from broadcasting activities in the previous broadcast year.

• (3) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, if a licensee does not make an allowable contribution to local expression in the current broadcast year and a community programming undertaking is licensed in the licensed area, a licensee shall, for each broadcast year, contribute

  • (a) an amount equal to 3.2% of its gross revenues derived from broadcasting activities in the previous broadcast year to Canadian programming; and

  • (b) an amount equal to 1.5% of its gross revenues derived from broadcasting activities in the previous broadcast year to the community programming undertaking.

• (4) to (7) [Repealed, SOR/2017-160, s. 10]

35 Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall, for each broadcast year, contribute an amount equal to 0.3% of its gross revenues derived from broadcasting activities in the previous broadcast year to the Independent Local News Fund.

• 36 (1) Each contribution that is required under section 34 or 35 shall be made separately by the licensee in 12 equal monthly instalments during the broadcast year, with an instalment being made on or before the last day of each month.

• (2) The licensee may estimate the required monthly contribution for September, October and November.

• (3) If a monthly contribution for September, October or November of a broadcast year is based on an estimate that is greater than the amount required, the licensee may deduct the excess from the amount of the contribution that is required for December of that broadcast year; however, if the contribution made by the licensee is less than the amount required, the licensee shall contribute the balance by December 31 of that broadcast year.

37 [Repealed, SOR/2017-160, s. 12]

38 [Repealed, SOR/2015-240, s. 7]

PART 3Distribution of Programming Services on an Analog Basis

Application

39 Except as otherwise provided under a condition of licence, this Part and sections 19, 23 to 26, 28 and 30 to 36 apply to terrestrial distribution undertakings that elect to distribute programming services on an analog basis.

Analog Distribution

40 A licensee that distributes programming services on a digital basis to its subscribers in a licensed area shall not distribute a programming service on an analog basis in the licensed area if the distribution of the latter service prevents it from fulfilling its obligations under Part 2 in the licensed area.

Television Programming Services To Be Distributed as Part of the Basic Service

• 41 (1) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence or in subsections 17(3) and (4), a licensee that distributes programming services on an analog basis in a licensed area shall distribute the following as part of its analog basic service in the licensed area in the following order of priority:

  • (a) the programming services referred to in paragraphs 17(1)(a) to (f), in the order of priority in which those paragraphs are set out; and

  • (b) the programming services of a programming undertaking that the Commission has required, under paragraph 9(1)(h) of the Act, to be distributed as part of the basic service, but excluding any programming service of a programming undertaking that is required to be distributed solely on a digital basis.

• (2) When the operator of a Canadian programming undertaking provides a programming service solely on a digital basis, the licensee shall obtain the operator’s consent in writing before distributing the programming service on an analog basis.

• (3) Despite subsection (1), if the consent referred to in subsection (2) cannot be obtained, the licensee is not required to distribute the programming service in question.

Television Programming Services that May Be Distributed

42 Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee may, once it is distributing all the programming services that it is required to distribute in a licensed area under section 41, distribute in that licensed area any programming service that it was distributing on an analog basis in that licensed area before December 10, 2010.

Cessation of Analog Distribution

43 A licensee shall not cease distributing any of the programming services that it distributes in accordance with section 41 until it has first ceased distribution of the programming services that it distributes in accordance with section 42.

44 A licensee shall not cease the analog distribution of a programming service unless, at least 60 days before the proposed cessation date, the licensee sends a written notice indicating the proposed cessation date to the operator of the programming undertaking whose programming service is the subject of the proposed cessation.

44.1 [Repealed, SOR/2011-148, s. 8]

44.2 [Repealed, SOR/2011-148, s. 8]

PART 4DTH Distribution Undertakings

Application

45 Except as otherwise provided under a condition of licence, this Part and sections 19 and 23 to 29 apply to licensees that hold a licence to operate a DTH distribution undertaking.

Basic Service

45.1 Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall not distribute as part of its basic service any programming services other than those that are referred to in section 46.

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

  independent ownership group

  independent ownership group means an ownership group — other than the Corporation or a major ownership group — that owns and operates an independently-owned television station or an ownership group designated as such by the Commission in paragraph 31 of Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2010–162 dated March 19, 2010 and entitled Distribution by direct-to-home services of stations from the major ownership groups in the Atlantic provinces and independently owned stations across Canada. (groupe de propriété indépendante)

  independently-owned television station

  independently-owned television station means a licensed television station that is not owned by one of the major ownership groups and that provides, in one of the official languages, local programming to the community it is licensed to serve. (station de télévision de propriété indépendante)

• (2) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall distribute, as part of its basic service, to the extent that they are available, the programming services of two independently-owned television stations from each independent ownership group to subscribers whose residence or other premises are located within the Grade B official contour or noise-limited bounding official contour.

• (3) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall distribute as part of its basic service,

  • (a) the educational television programming services, to the extent that they are available, whose operation is the responsibility of an educational authority designated by the province in which the subscriber’s residence or other premises are located; and

  • (b) the programming services of a programming undertaking that the Commission has required, under paragraph 9(1)(h) of the Act, to be distributed as part of the basic service.

• (4) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall distribute as part of its basic service to a subscriber whose residence or other premises are located in Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, British Columbia, Saskatchewan or Alberta,

  • (a) the programming service, to the extent that it is available, of one of each of the Corporation’s English-language and French-language network television stations that originate in the province in which the subscriber’s residence or other premises are located;

  • (b) the programming service, to the extent that it is available, of one television station from each major ownership group that originates in the province in which the subscriber’s residence or other premises are located; and

  • (c) the programming service, to the extent that it is available, of one independently-owned television station that originates in the province in which the subscriber’s residence or other premises are located.

• (5) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall distribute as part of its basic service to subscribers whose residence or other premises are located in the Atlantic provinces

  • (a) the programming services, to the extent that they are available, of two of each of the Corporation’s English-language and French-language network television stations that originate in the Atlantic provinces;

  • (b) the programming services, to the extent that they are available, of two television stations that originate in the Atlantic provinces, from each major ownership group; and

  • (c) the programming service, to the extent that it is available, of one independently-owned television station that originates in the Atlantic provinces.

• (6) If two or more programming services from the Corporation or two or more programming services from the same ownership group are available to be distributed by a licensee in accordance with paragraph (5)(a) or (b), the licensee is required to distribute only one of those programming services from the Corporation or one of those programming services from the ownership group, as the case may be, if the operator of the programming undertaking that provides the programming services has not committed to providing local programming as part of its licence issuance or most recent licence renewal or amendment.

• (7) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee shall distribute as part of its basic service to a subscriber whose residence or other premises are located in Yukon, the Northwest Territories or Nunavut

  • (a) the programming services of at least one of the Corporation’s Northern Television Services; and

  • (b) the programming services referred to in subsections (2) to (4) that are distributed in another province.

• (8) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee may, in addition to the programming services required under subsections (2) to (7), distribute to a subscriber as part of its basic service

  • (a) a 4 + 1 package of programming services that originates

    • (i) in the same time zone as that in which the subscriber’s residence or other premises is located, or

    • (ii) if no such package originates in that time zone, in any other time zone; and

  • (b) the programming service of any radio station whose market, as defined in section 2 of the Radio Regulations, 1986, includes the location of the subscriber’s residence or other premises.

• (9) A licensee that distributes a programming service under this section may also distribute the high definition version of that programming service.

46.1 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

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

• 46.3 (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 as part of that offering:

  • (a) the programming services that are required to be distributed under subsections 46(2) to (7); and

  • (b) the programming service of at least one Canadian programming service 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 46(8).

Access for Specialty, Pay Television and DTH Pay-per-view Services

• 47 (1) In this section, general interest DTH pay-per-view service means a DTH pay-per-view service whose programming is selected — unrestricted by any condition of licence — from any of the categories listed in column I of item 6 of Schedule I to the Pay Television Regulations, 1990.

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

  • (a) each Category A service;

  • (a.1) to each subscriber whose residence or other premises is located in an anglophone market and to the extent that such a programming service is available, at least one French-language discretionary service — other than a programming service that the licensee is required to distribute under paragraph 9(1)(h) of the Act — for every 10 English-language programming services that it distributes to the subscriber;

  • (b) at least one English-language general interest DTH pay-per-view service; and

  • (c) at least one French-language general interest DTH pay-per-view service.

• (3) Except as otherwise provided under a condition of its licence, a licensee fulfils its obligations under subsection (2) by distributing either the standard definition service or high definition service of a programming service.

Programming Services that May Be Distributed

• 48 (1) Except as otherwise provided in section 49 or under a condition of its licence, a licensee may distribute the following programming services:

  • (a) the programming service of any licensed programming undertaking, excluding a television pay-per-view service;

  • (b) any authorized non-Canadian programming service — including, subject to section 50, a 4 + 1 package of programming services;

  • (c) subject to section 29, the programming service of any exempt programming undertaking;

  • (d) 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; and

  • (e) any programming service — including, subject to section 50, 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.