Canadian Heritage committee  We think it is extremely important, as we currently have a two-tier system: one for foreign companies and another one for Canadian companies. We think all companies that produce Canadian content, and not content produced in Canada, should be subject to the same requirements, regardless of whether they are foreign or Canadian companies.

Canadian Heritage committee  Thank you.

Canadian Heritage committee  I would like to focus on commercial agreements. Independent producers have very limited negotiating power in relation to traditional broadcasters, and even less in relation to platforms. Ms. Winder spoke about this earlier. Producers are often required to give up their rights in negotiations with these parties and major broadcasters; they cannot collect revenues and make decisions on the presentation of their works.

Canadian Heritage committee  That is a pretty general question, but what struck me the most may be some people's lack of understanding of the bill's scope, especially when it comes to social media. Yesterday's meeting with the CRTC shifted a lot of notions. That said, I must say that, in all the discussions on Canadian content, what struck me the most is the lack of consideration for independent producers' intellectual property.

Canadian Heritage committee  They are trying to tell us that, since X‑Men is being filmed in Montreal, it counts as Canadian content. That's like saying that a Hyundai vehicle is a Canadian vehicle because it was manufactured in Bromont by Quebec workers using components manufactured in Quebec. That's ridiculous.

Canadian Heritage committee  I want to have the most equitable system possible. We know that the act is reviewed every 30 years, and that doing it is difficult. It is being said that anyone benefiting from this system must contribute to it. As we have seen—and the Canadian Media Producers Association, CMPA, is also talking about this—people are consuming more and more content on the Internet through those services.

Canadian Heritage committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you for having me today. I am Hélène Messier, president and chief executive officer of the Association québécoise de la production médiatique, AQPM. The AQPM advises, represents and supports more than 160 independent Quebec film, television and web production companies.

Canadian Heritage committee  We haven't talked much about the CRTC's oversight. We think that it's important. The CRTC has a great deal of power. It's necessary to restore the possibility of appealing the CRTC's decisions to the Governor in Council. This possibility was removed in the current bill regarding the terms and conditions for orders that will be issued to programming undertakings, whether they're online or traditional.

Canadian Heritage committee  I think that there are some major exclusions in the bill. We talked about social media, such as YouTube and Facebook, which broadcast a great deal of professional music and audiovisual content. We talked about digital distribution, which would make it possible to protect, for example, the broadcasting of TV5 and Unis TV on digital platforms.

Canadian Heritage committee  Quebeckers still watch a great deal of linear television and regularly tune in to their programs. As a result of the pandemic, significant audience records have been broken. We tend to think that television is dead and that everything will now be on digital platforms. I don't subscribe to that school of thought.

Canadian Heritage committee  I've studied the legislation passed in France, Spain and Australia. I've looked at just about every model. The challenging thing about the Canadian Broadcasting Act is the difference in the players. There are traditional players and new players. Of the new platforms, some are Canadian and some are foreign.

Canadian Heritage committee  In what way? Who would be the top students? Are you talking about incentives for broadcasters?

Canadian Heritage committee  I don't know about that. We must see how this would be addressed in the act. As I said, for the new players, it would be possible to develop something very specific that imposes obligations that are a little more restrictive than what already exists. It would be a new way of thinking for the Canadian legislator.

Canadian Heritage committee  It is difficult to answer that question because it's the CRTC that will decide how that money will be distributed. Of course, I hope that French-language production will receive its fair share. The francophone music industry has about 40% of the funding in Canada. Generally, institutions like Telefilm Canada or the Canada Media Fund have to make do with one third of the funding.

Canadian Heritage committee  Too often in the past, the CRTC has interpreted the recognition of linguistic duality as the provision of content in French, with no concern for whether the content consisted of programs translated from English, with subtitles or dubbing. That is why we are arguing for the creation of original content in French.