Evidence of meeting #4 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 programming.
A recording is available from Parliament.
9:45 a.m.
Liberal
Seamus O'Regan Liberal St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL
Let me intervene because time is of the essence. This is our first time sitting down and getting our heads around this.
Where does Canadian Heritage fit in for that argument and that debate? That'll inform our questions from here on.
9:45 a.m.
Director General, Broadcasting and Digital Communications, Department of Canadian Heritage
Our responsibility is to provide general overarching policy advice to the government on broadcasting policy and legislation.
9:45 a.m.
Liberal
Seamus O'Regan Liberal St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL
What is the relationship with the commission?
9:45 a.m.
Director General, Broadcasting and Digital Communications, Department of Canadian Heritage
The relationship with the commission is circumscribed in the act. The minister has certain powers with relation to the CRTC, but under limited circumstances.
9:45 a.m.
Van Loan
To Mr. Maguire.
9:45 a.m.
Conservative
Larry Maguire Conservative Brandon—Souris, MB
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you to my colleague for allowing me to ask a few more questions.
Welcome to all.
To the CRTC, thank you for your presentation. Competition is what we're here to talk about, and to try to come to some conclusions about how our committee and Canadian Heritage can enhance and provide more opportunities in these lower level, smaller markets from the large broadcasters, and papers as well.
I have just a quick question. As I mentioned, I have some questions on paper that I can maybe table for all my colleagues to see and to get some replies from Canadian Heritage.
Regarding the kinds of funds that come through the opportunities fund and some of the others, have you ever assessed the possibilities around how these funds are being used today in the industry? By that I mean, do they promote innovation or discourage it? Are they fostering dependence on those dollars, in some areas? And do you think it has anything to do with the graphs you gave us regarding some of the use by the different kinds of media?
I could probably summarize it by asking you if the funds are being used wisely. Are they fostering dependence in some areas where people aren't willing to change, or are they being used to create the independence that Mr. O'Regan was just asking about with regard to moving forward with some of the smaller mediums?
9:45 a.m.
Director General, Cultural Industries, Department of Canadian Heritage
For the Canada periodical fund, the contribution of the fund varies a lot per title. I'll use Maclean's as an example. The contribution of the fund to Maclean's may be—I don't have the exact number—let's say 5% of the cost of operating Maclean's. In the case of more niche publications, or community newspapers such as La Liberté—I'm sorry to pick on La Liberté, but it's a good example—the contribution, for various reasons, is a little bit more material to the business model of that community newspaper. It varies according to the recipient, but never are we there, with the fund, with 90% of the budget of La Liberté coming from public sources.
In terms of allowing them or giving them incentives to innovate, I would say that a big shift of what we did in 2010 with the creation of this fund was to put the onus on the publishers' shoulders, where they say, “Okay, I get $100,000 from the Canada periodical fund; where is the best place to put that $100,000?” Perhaps it's developing an app, or paying for a journalist to be at the Saskatchewan legislature. It's really up to the publisher to decide where that money best fits.
We also have in the Canada periodical fund—it's in the deck, although I skipped through it—an innovation component that allows publishers to come in and say, “Geez, the online world is there. How can I adapt my business model?” They'll seek a bit of advice here and there. We support that.
9:50 a.m.
Conservative
Larry Maguire Conservative Brandon—Souris, MB
Thank you.
Madam Chair, I have a couple of questions that I was talking about earlier. Maybe I'll just table them with you. I'd like to read a couple of them just so that our colleagues know what we're asking and they can get back to us later.
First, what internal and third party polling has the department undertaken to determine the level of access Canadians have to local and regional media—some of the basis that you found in the report? What medium is used to access local and regional media? Are Canadians satisfied with the content of their local and regional media? What's the work you've done there?
As well, if you added up all of the tax dollars used to fund the programs that support regional and local through Canadian Heritage on a yearly basis, excluding the CBC, what would that amount be? Could the dollars be broken down by program and then by provinces, so that we could have a regional view of it as well? How does the department audit and measure the success of the funding it gives to local and regional media, excluding the CBC? What metrics does the department use, and what are the expected outcomes?
9:50 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Hedy Fry
Thank you, Mr. Maguire.
Those questions are being placed on the table. We're hoping that the department will answer those questions and send the answers to the clerk, and we will distribute them to all of the members.
We now have Mr. Breton and then Mr. Nantel, for three minutes.
Mr. Breton, you have five minutes.
February 23rd, 2016 / 9:50 a.m.
Liberal
Pierre Breton Liberal Shefford, QC
Thank you, Madam Chair.
A sincere thanks to the witnesses for the various sources of information they provided. It's extremely appreciated.
Can I backtrack to ask questions or do I have to stick to the CRTC? This is my first time on the committee, so I want to be sure that I can—
9:50 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Hedy Fry
The CRTC will be our next witness, so you may want to ask them specific questions about their own shop.
9:50 a.m.
Liberal
Pierre Breton Liberal Shefford, QC
Very well.
What concerns me is the growing shift to electronic media and social networks, when it comes to news sources. My question is this, and I'm not sure who is able to answer.
How would you describe the extent of the shift and its impact on traditional media, particularly local news? It always comes back to that.
9:50 a.m.
Director General, Cultural Industries, Department of Canadian Heritage
That's a very broad question.
On page 8 of our presentation, you can see consumption patterns by age group. Nearly 80% of those between the ages of 15 and 34 turn to the Internet for their news. We will eventually die, and they will be in the habit of looking for that information on the Internet. So it's a major transformation and not just in Canada. It's happening all over the world. There's no quick fix. It's a very tough question to answer.
Perhaps Mr. Halucha would care to add something.
9:55 a.m.
Paul Halucha Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategic Policy Sector, Department of Industry
Just to add to that, I think there's a real danger in presenting the Internet and the diversity of voices that it allows as something that is to be overcome.
If you look at the media environment right now.... At the Department of Innovation, Science, and Technology, we study a lot of disruptive technologies and their impacts on existing marketplaces. I think what's happening in newspapers is not different from what happened in the music industry in the late 1990s, when all of a sudden they had challenges selling CDs and a new distribution model appeared, or from what's happening in the taxi industry right now, for example, with Uber and the challenge it's presenting to an existing model.
On the side of the Internet, we're obviously extraordinarily pro Internet at the Department of Innovation, Science, and Technology. Our view is that it has a real capacity and a real ability to create the diversity of voices. For example, there were some questions around whether existing programs are sufficient to create diversity of voices.
I would say, look at the Internet. Without government subsidies and without a regulatory type of environment, in fact, the freedom it allows has created a huge amount of diversity of voices. We have all kinds of new media services that are available now. As well, it has really reduced the cost of entry to a lot of these industries. In a local media source, if a market player is displaced or if you have concentration in traditional media, it's probably easier than ever before for a new business to get started and for new voices to occupy that space. I think there's a lot to be really excited about, not just looked at as a challenge to an existing industry, which clearly is facing that challenge and trying to find ways to compete in a digital marketplace.
I think the new entrants are really exciting and should have a place in the study of the committee going forward. I just wanted to give that kind of appeal for innovation and competition.
9:55 a.m.
Liberal
Pierre Breton Liberal Shefford, QC
I'm aware of the trend in Canada and globally.
Is there also a larger tendency among Quebeckers to get their news from the Internet? Are there any programs or funding assistance to help these media services, in order to support the transition and provide ongoing news coverage to a large segment of the population that still uses traditional media sources?
9:55 a.m.
Director General, Cultural Industries, Department of Canadian Heritage
In French-speaking Quebec, I would say that people are a bit slower in adopting these new technologies. It's not that they don't exist, but there's—
9:55 a.m.
Director General, Cultural Industries, Department of Canadian Heritage
—a slight difference.
In terms of programs, the Canada periodical fund helps companies and publishers adapt to new technological platforms.
9:55 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Hedy Fry
Thank you, Mr. Bernier. I am sorry to cut you off.
Mr. Nantel, you have three minutes, and then we will end the session.
