Mr. Speaker, on September 19 I asked the Minister of Industry whether the competition bureau would investigate recent media mergers. At the time the minister replied that these mergers were reviewable under section 92 of the Competition Act but he did not indicate he would request an investigation be launched.
These media mergers are becoming a matter of concern to Canadians and let me explain. In July CanWest-Global Communications Corp. of Winnipeg acquired more than 200 Canadian publications as well as half of the National Post from Toronto based Hollinger Inc., combining them with its Global Television Network.
The announcement came just a month after CanWest had bought the television assets of WIC, Western International Communications Ltd. Then in September Montreal based publisher Quebecor acquired Quebec's largest cable company, Groupe Vidéotron Ltée, also of Montreal, for $4.9 billion. On September 15 BCE Inc., the Thompson Corporation and the Woodbridge Company announced the creation of a multimedia company that would combine CTV, the Globe and Mail , Globe Interactive, an Internet content provider, and Sympatico, an Internet portal. The result is the boundaries between print media, broadcasting, the Internet and telecommunications companies have been blurred so much that the industries are now virtually indistinguishable.
The CRTC held hearings on September 18 on BCE's change of ownership application. The decision is still pending. The CRTC's mandate is to regulate broadcasting and telecommunications in the best interest of the Canadian public. It is trying to deal with these multiple mergers and the rapidly changing technology. But while the CRTC regulates broadcasting and telecommunications, it does not have a say about newspapers or the Internet.
All three media mergers include both newspapers and Internet services as well as broadcasting. The CRTC in reviewing the BCE-CTV transaction asks broad questions about its impact on the broadcasting system and on Canadian content, but it does not address whether these transactions result in convergence in the Canadian market.
In light of these mergers, we can define convergence as cross-ownership of newspapers, television stations and Internet assets, plus possibly a giant phone or cable company.
Clearly it is the competition bureau's responsibility to maintain and encourage fair competition in Canada. It can determine whether these mergers result in lessening or prevention of competition in the marketplace. It is clear also that such massive concentration of power in the media is detrimental to the public interest.
Again, I would like to ask the minister through his parliamentary secretary whether he would launch a comprehensive investigation in the public interest.