Post Tagged with: "Broadcasting"

Federal Court Rules Internet Providers Not Broadcasters

Last year, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission released its new media decision, which addressed the prospect of increased CRTC regulation of Internet activities.  After days of hearings and thousands of pages of submissions, the Commission side-stepped the pressure to "do something," maintaining a hands-off approach and punting the most contentious issue – the prospect of a new levy on Internet providers to fund Canadian content – to the courts.

The Internet levy proposal received strong support from several Canadian creator groups, who argued that given the video content streamed online, ISPs should be viewed as broadcasters within the Broadcasting Act.  By treating ISPs as the equivalent of conventional broadcasters, they would be required to contribute to the Act’s policy objectives, which include promotion and support for Canadian content.  The ISPs unsurprisingly opposed the proposal, maintaining that they are mere conduits in the transmission of video content.  They argued the levy proposal was illegal since they are regulated under the Telecommunications Act as telecom companies, not broadcasters.

My weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) notes the two sides faced off at the Federal Court of Appeal earlier this year and last week a unanimous court sided with the ISPs, ruling that providing access to broadcasting is not the same as broadcasting.  It concluded that so long as ISPs maintain a content-neutral approach, they fall outside of the Broadcasting Act and should not be expected to play a role in promoting the policies found in the legislation.  

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July 12, 2010 11 comments Columns

Federal Court of Appeal Rules ISPs Not Broadcasters: May Be End of ISP Levy Proposal

The Federal Court of Appeal issued is decision today [not online yet] on whether Internet providers can be considered broadcasters within the context of the Broadcasting Act.  The case is the result of last year’s CRTC New Media decision in which many cultural groups called on the Commission to establish an ISP levy to fund Canadian content.  The ISPs argued that such a levy was illegal since they fell under the Telecommunications Act, not the Broadcasting Act.  The cultural groups argued that ISPs should be considered broadcasters in the case of the transmission of video programs.  The CRTC punted the issue to the Federal Court of Appeal.

The Federal Court of Appeal sided with the ISPs, ruling that providing access to broadcasting is not the same as broadcasting.  So long as ISPs maintain a content-neutral approach, they fall outside of the Broadcasting Act and should not be expected to play a role in promoting the policies found in the legislation.  The case is a huge win for the ISPs and – subject to an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada or a legislative change – puts an end to the ISP levy proposal.  The case is also noteworthy from a net neutrality perspective, since the court emphasized that ISPs fall outside the Broadcasting Act so long as they remain content-neutral.  Should ISPs play a more active role, their ability to rely on the broadcast/transmission distinction would be lost.

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July 7, 2010 15 comments News

Dutch Public Broadcaster Launches Ambitious BitTorrent Trial

The Dutch public broadcaster NPO has launched an ambitious trial project that will involve making all of its recent video broadcasts available via BitTorrent downloads and streams.

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July 2, 2010 4 comments News

Broadcaster Plan Involves More Than Just Fee-For-Carriage

In the weeks leading to the CRTC hearing on broadcasting licences, Canadians were inundated with splashy advertising campaigns claiming that new fees for local signals were either a TV tax or would save local television.  With all of the major broadcasters and cable companies appearing before the commission, the fee-for-carriage (or value-for-signal) issue unsurprisingly took centre stage at last week's hearing.

Yet those convinced that the broadcaster plan was limited to a new fee were in for a rude awakening.  My weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) notes that fee-for-carriage is only part of the story, as broadcasters are also seeking to block U.S. signals, leave some Canadian communities without over-the-air television, and delay the transition to digital television transmission until 2013.

The prospect of blocking U.S. television signals will come as a shock to many, but both CTV and Canwest, Canada's two largest private broadcasters, have asked the CRTC to establish a new program deletion policy. 

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November 23, 2009 24 comments Columns

Study Finds DVRs Help Broadcaster Ratings

The NY Times reports that contrary to fears, DVRs are proving to increase ratings and that many viewers still do not skip commercials.

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November 3, 2009 2 comments News