In our recent appearances before the CRTC, we have argued for an approach to policy and regulation based on what we call the Corus “big six”. We think that our big six principles are particularly relevant to this proceeding. Allow me to list them one at a time.
The first principle is to embrace the merits of fostering a Canadian-owned but globally competitive industry. It must be explicitly recognized that we compete in the world market. Of course this has always been the case in traditional broadcasting. Our policies are built upon the realities of our small market, which evolves in juxtaposition to a huge market. Digital media simply broadens the scope of the problem. The adjacent market is now the whole world.
Government and regulatory bodies must align their domestic policies and rules so that we can have a Canadian-owned system that is globally competitive. We can no longer shelter our domestic market. The barriers that we have built to protect Canadian media can become a confining trap if we are not mindful of the change.
The second principle is to increase the probability of success of the Canadian media industry by encouraging the creation of larger and stronger enterprises.
Corus is a significant player in the Canadian market, but we are very small on a global scale. Google spent roughly US$1.5 billion on research and development in 2007. That amount is greater than the revenue last year of the entire Canadian radio industry. So we must all recognize that the problem is worse in the digital realm than it was in traditional broadcasting. This makes it very challenging to fully participate in the new media world.
The third principle is to develop a Canadian industrial strategy for our sector. As has been the case in other industries, we need to look at our business from a strategic perspective. Strategic thinking means making decisions about what the priorities are for the system. That was one of the themes raised during the Canada 3.0 Conference.
As an immediate first step, we recommend the creation of a panel of experts to report on the state of the media environment and about what government should do. This approach was successfully implemented with the recent telecommunications review panel, as well as with the process that led to the Caplan-Sauvageau report in 1986.
The fourth principle is to recognize that private media enterprise success is what will lead to a stronger cultural system, not the current system of progressive fees, conditions and tariffs.
Imposing a regulatory system of conditions, tariffs and quotas on new media participants will not promote a greater Canadian presence in new media. In fact, it is likely to have just the opposite effect. Furthermore, the commission should make no attempt to regulate the new media activities of Canadian broadcasters. As we have said, this would only inhibit, not enhance, our ability to prosper in the digital universe.