Evidence of meeting #123 for Canadian Heritage in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was creators.
A recording is available from Parliament.
12:50 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
Thank you.
Ms. Jones, you made reference to three recommendations that you felt we should be looking at. Can you articulate those a little more finely and define them with more specificity as to how you would see them operationalized?
12:50 p.m.
Executive Director, Connect Music Licensing
Absolutely. The $1.25-million radio exemption, which we've heard about before, would compensate artists for public performance on all revenues that are generated by the radio stations, and that would be an immediate change, an immediate increase in revenue.
12:50 p.m.
Liberal
12:50 p.m.
Executive Director, Connect Music Licensing
It's going to put more money in the pockets of the artists and the creators. It's balancing the scale.
The private copying reform would also help compensate those artists, again, and creators whose music is being copied onto technological devices like phones and the like, and on the Internet. The old regime put a tax on the devices themselves, and now we're looking at creating a fund so that it doesn't affect the consumer whatsoever.
12:50 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
What is the principle behind the $1.25 million? You're suggesting it's going to give more, but how do you rationalize the equity within that? Why is it $1.25 million?
12:50 p.m.
Executive Director, Connect Music Licensing
It's an exemption that's been in place since neighbouring rights were brought in in 1997, and it was put in place to help the mom-and-pop and Internet radio stations, which don't really exist anymore, so there's no need to have that exemption.
12:50 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
Are you exempting any of the mom-and-pop stations at all?
12:50 p.m.
Executive Director, Connect Music Licensing
Certainly. As I mentioned in my opening remarks, the community radio stations and local campus radio, etc., are still protected.
12:50 p.m.
Executive Director, Connect Music Licensing
Yes. We're talking about commercial stations.
12:50 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
Thank you.
Mr. Schiller, what happens about Canadian broadcasting into the States? How is that being impacted?
12:50 p.m.
Canadian Advisor, Border Broadcasters, Inc.
That's an excellent question. Really, it's not a comparative market. All Canadian TV subscribers receive over-the-air American services in their packages, whereas in the U.S., it's limited to approximately 40 to 45 designated market areas, so only an estimated 500,000 to a million U.S. TV customers receive Canadian services. Generally, it's one or two services. Most often, it's actually the CBC.
In the case of commercial Canadian stations, there aren't reciprocal rules. For example, the Super Bowl might have to have Canadian commercials in Canada, but the retransmission of the Super Bowl by the Canadian network back into the U.S. has Canadian commercials. The copyright remuneration for these stations in the U.S. is actually growing, whereas in Canada, it's going the other way.
The idea would be to take the retransmission consent model, supplementing a fair and equitable copyright regime, and make that available for Canadian broadcasters so that they could receive new commercial revenues as well.
12:50 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
The same problem exists; it's just the quantum is different. Is that what you're saying?
12:50 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
In the case of British Columbia, there are some radio stations and broadcasters that have situated in Blaine, Washington, to broadcast into British Columbia. How would you deal with that?
12:50 p.m.
Canadian Advisor, Border Broadcasters, Inc.
I don't think I would be in a position to comment on radio as a—
12:50 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
There's some television that is considering doing that as well.
12:50 p.m.
Canadian Advisor, Border Broadcasters, Inc.
I think the larger and more interesting question coming forward will be that as the Americans implement this next generation's new TV standard, it's important to appreciate that for the first time, broadcast transmissions will be available not only for fixed receivers, such as your television in your living room, but for mobile receivers, including things like your phone, your autonomous vehicle and things like that. It seamlessly integrates digital broadcasting with broadband, so we're going to see a whole new plethora of products and services being unrolled, but it's not clear how the Canadian side of the border is going to cope with that.
12:55 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
In terms of the submissions you're making to us on how we should affect the broadcasting of American-produced television programs into Canada, you're saying exactly the same principles would apply on Canadian programs going into the States.
12:55 p.m.
Canadian Advisor, Border Broadcasters, Inc.
Reciprocity would be a step forward, because right now, the rules are not reciprocal.
12:55 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
Are you speaking to American legislators about this as well?
12:55 p.m.
Canadian Advisor, Border Broadcasters, Inc.
There are ongoing discussions. At the moment, I think that the key focus is the fact that all Canadian TV package subscribers receive multiple U.S. services, whereas only a very small percentage of American stations do.
12:55 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
I just have to make one quick comment to Mr. Dagonas.
12:55 p.m.
Liberal
Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC
I thought your comment that you trust government to make good decisions was a very interesting and positive comment. You expect governments to take time to do that and they should take time—I'm being cut off, right?
