Canada Broadcasting Policy
Question 1
Why does the government maintain Canadian ownership rule for broadcasting in Canada
The government of Canada and more specifically, the Broadcasting Act aims at maintaining local ownership of broadcasting license to maintain the Canadian National Heritage in economic and investment field. The purpose behind the Act is to give Canadians, the opportunity to own and invest in local cultural content with the aim of maintaining their cultural heritage, national policies, and national appeal. Under the Investment Canada Act, the Broadcasting sector has never been reviewed to limit foreign ownership in local companies in the country. Concerning the Canadian Ownership Concentration, the government has maintained the property rule to give locals unrestricted access to the broadcasting market and shall be “effectively owned and controlled by Canadians” (Amstrong 2015, 204)
Question 2
List and briefly explain the three different types of industrial concentration.
Industrial concentration denotes to the tendency of big business to dominate in a given business. It arises when a small number of corporations or businesses offer a significant portion of the manufacturing within the industry.
- Hozirontal Concentration- Refers to a situation whereby a horizontally integrated firm “owns a number of outlets in the same market” (209).
- Vertical Integration is whereby a vertically integrated firm takes in more than one successive part production (209).
- Cross Media ownership, defines a situation whereby “ownership of more than one mass communication medium in the same market” (Gasher et al. 2012, 209).
- Question 3
Why is concentration an issue in the broadcasting industry?
Within the Canadian broadcasting industry, concentration is a matter as it has a significant bearing on broadcasting ownership, deregulation of the sector, consolidation of broadcasting companies, and the integration of production, marketing and creation of broadcasting activities within and outside the country. To avoid conflict of interest and ownership complication, the National Heritage of Canada defines and gives the boundaries of operation as is concerning licensing and operation of a broadcasting company. On the other hand, considering the massive benefits broadcasting companies enjoy within a healthy or “perfect” competitive market, the CRTC, sets the mandate and policies governing economic competition to create a healthy business environment for success for all investors within the industry. Concentration, therefore, plays a critical role in and within the broadcasting industry regarding maintaining a national cultural outlook, defined as “a unique cultural activity” (Amstrong 2015, 204)
Question 4
Concerning the Broadcasting Act, why do you think that the CRTC is interested in ensuring that the private broadcasting sector contributes to a “diversity of voices”?
The “diversity of voices” aims at giving the CRTC an opportunity to create a national outlook and appeal in keeping up with the country’s National Heritage and Culture. According to the Regulatory Policy the Diversity of Voices is intended to “ensure that Canadians benefit from a range of perspectives in their local news perspective” (Amstrong 2015, 218). By contributing to the “diversity of voices,” the CRTC, plays its mandate and role as a watchdog in keeping with the Broadcasting Act and in ensuring that the industry remains and has a significant amount of local content both in its audio and visual broadcasting content.
Question 5
Pay TV Industry
The Pay TV Industry serves to address the Standards in addition to the Practices as outlined in the code of programming. The code commits to the broadcasting of contents that is well balanced, interests a wide variety of Canadian viewers, and offers quality content. The objective of the code is to streamline and guide public broadcasting contents meant for consumption in the public domain while at the same time offering high returns and standard material for the industry players. For instance, the VOD and PPV services enable viewers to choose programs that best fulfill their expectations.
Reference
Gasher, M. & Skinner, D. (2012). Mass Communication in Canada. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Armstrong, R. (2015). Broadcasting policy in Canada. University of Toronto Press.