TV PROVIDERS ON CARPET
CRTC to review ‘skinny’ deals
Television providers could lose their broadcasting licences if they fail to convince Canada’s broadcast regulator at a hearing this week that their $25 basic TV services meet the “spirit” of the newly required packages.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) will review the “skinny” TV packages it mandated this spring and the pick-and-pay channels it will require as of Dec. 1 as part of its annual broadcasting licence renewal process at a twoday hearing in Gatineau, starting Wednesday. Companies must be in compliance to get their licences renewed.
The CRTC directed providers to offer the cheaper, smaller packages by March 1 to bolster consumer choice after a long consultation on the state of TV where people complained they paid for hundreds of channels they never watched. By December, providers must offer channels à la carte, both individually and in small packages of up to 10 channels, so people can tailor their services. They must make customers aware these options exist.
But after accusations that providers made the skinny TV packages undesirable in order to keep consumers on pricier plans or buried them on their websites where no one could find them, the CRTC announced a hearing to evaluate whether the plans fall in line with the regulator’s objectives.
Vidéotron Ltd., Rogers Communications Inc., Shaw Cablesystems Ltd. and Bell Canada will all defend their offerings, which they all made available by the CRTC’s deadline.
In its submissions to the regulator, Bell argued it is in full compliance with the letter and the spirit of the policy.
It noted that all broadcasters introduced basic service packages around $25 (VMedia and Zazeen were outliers, pricing their entry-level packaging at less than $20) and that most have already launched either small packages or à la carte channels. All charged extra for the cost of equipment such as set-top boxes (consumers can rent or buy them) and most charged installation fees.
“Regardless of how a ( broadcast distribution undertaking) has made the small basic service or flexible packaging available to their subscribers, our review indicates that all of them are fully compliant with the commission’s policies and regulations,” Bell’s submission states.
It included a screenshot of its website as proof that it advertised the starter package and called the hearing “premature” considering the pick-and-pay rules don’t come into play until December. (Bell also noted it launched flexible packaging nine months before the deadline.)
Yet the Consumers’ Association of Canada and Public Interest Advocacy Centre contended in submissions that information on the packages is hard to find and that some are subject to unfair practices, such as ineligibility for bundling discounts and charges for access to high-definition services.
“It turned out that by changing our current bundle of services ... we would be charged so much more for our phone and Internet, that any saving on our TV package would be negligible,” Debbie McGee of Newfoundland submitted.
“The new $25 package is a bit of a joke with multiple channels from different cities that have the exact same programming,” wrote John Davey of Ontario.
CRTC chairman Jean-Pierre Blais will kick off the hearing with a Facebook live stream on Wednesday at 9 a.m. ET.