Official Languages committee  Good morning, and thank you for having invited us to appear today. Active nationally since 1991, the Alliance des radios communautaires du Canada has 31 active members in 9 provinces and 2 territories. We have 25 radio stations on the air and 6 that are being set up. In the curr

Official Languages committee  As concerns new media, in the space of less than a decade, cell phones with Internet access, embedded cameras, Wi-Fi connections and other technologies have become more and more common, and this has changed the communications and media sector in ways we never could have imagined.

Official Languages committee  This is why, over the past little while, we have been working extra hard to urge the Government of Canada to make an annual investment of $4.2 million in the Community Radio Fund of Canada. To date, only Astral Media has stepped up to the plate. It contributes to two programs adm

Official Languages committee  The burnout has already started. Right now, this burnout is being experienced in the western part of the country in particular, but it is slowly moving east. Yes, we will reach a point where we will no longer have any volunteers for radio. In the communities, it is often the same

Official Languages committee  As far as we are concerned, the other departments always tell us that they do not have anything set aside for radio, that there are no existing programs for radio and that we do not fit in anywhere but that Canadian Heritage has an Official Languages Support Program, the OLSP. We

Official Languages committee  The Franco Medias Project was an unmitigated success. It was a remarkable project both for the communities and for the participants. It was an extraordinary experience for the participants who, likely for the only time in their lives, were able to attend the Olympic Games and rep

Official Languages committee  Are you talking about government advertising?

Official Languages committee  Last year, national radio advertising was $450,000. This year, it will be close to $485,000.

Official Languages committee  It is purchased by our national advertising company, which redistributes the money to radio stations according to certain financial criteria, and according to the market size of course.

Official Languages committee  Currently, the APOL, which is there for community radio stations, pays 50% of the equipment start-up costs for the station. Afterwards, there is no more. We provide half of the tools, and following that, we tell people to fend for themselves. However, things are not so simple. Th

Official Languages committee  I would like to add that that is why we work with the APF and the QCNA. In fact, we would like a study to be done on the ratings of our radio stations across Canada.

Official Languages committee  That is why this project is so important.

Official Languages committee  Locally?

Official Languages committee  Yes, it is rather difficult. Situations vary in our New Brunswick stations, for example. In some markets where radio is really number one, advertising is not a problem at all. However, in a market like Saint John, Moncton or Fredericton, it is a bit more difficult because of the

Official Languages committee  —without ratings to prove how many are listening to you.