Feds ask CRTC to review Canadian content decision after outcry over lower investment
GATINEAU, Que. — The federal government is asking Canada’s broadcast regulator to review the licence renewals for several TV providers following outcry over their potential impact on Canadian content on screen.
In mid-May, the CRTC renewed the licenses for multiple broadcasters and set the amount they must spend on programs of national interest to five per cent of their total revenue — a drop for some broadcasters.
At the end of June, groups representing Canada’s independent producers, professional performers and other media workers submitted a petition to the Canadian Heritage minister to set aside the renewals or refer them back to the CRTC, saying the lowered investment could hurt the industry.
The government said in a statement it is referring the decision back for the CRTC to reconsider following numerous appeals from the cultural sector.