• Canadian government and broadcast regulator waive 2021-21 licence payments
  • Relief support for broadcasters expected to free up more than $30 million
  • Minister of Canadian Heritage: “We are working on more measures to support the industry”

Behind the scenes tv cameraman outside broadcast

CRTC: Waives regulatory charges for broadcasters

The Canadian government and broadcasting regulator CRTC will not request payment for Part I licence fees by broadcasters for the 2020-21 fiscal year, in a move to provide relief to the sector.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and the Government of Canada issued a formal statement confirming its initiative to waive the regulatory charges for broadcasters.

The decision “provides immediate relied for the broadcasting industry, freeing up more than $30 million in cash.”

In 2020-21, 107 broadcasters were expected to pay licence fees to the CRTC.

The two also acknowledged how much the Canadian public reply on television and radio to stay up to date on issues related to Covid-19, as such broadcasters have increased output to deliver news and information programming, while faced with operational challenges and significant declines in advertising revenue.

Minister of Canadian Heritage Steven Guilbeault said: “Canadian broadcasters are working hard to fulfil the mission of sharing credible and verified information with Canadians. This task is even more difficult since they also face significant drops in advertising revenue.

“The decision to waive the regulatory charges is one we could make quickly and we are working on more measures to support the industry. We will continue to monitor the impacts of Covid-19 on all sectors, ensuring we remain well-positioned to respond to this rapidly changing environment.”

Last year, Canadian and British broadcasters confirmed a creative co-production partnership in a commitment to future collaboration across drama, documentaries and news content.

The agreement was made between the BBC director general Tony Hall and CBC/Radio-Canada president and chief executive Catherine Tait in the latest move to fight back against the global streaming video-on-demand (SVOD) platforms.

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