Broadcast lobbying jumped ahead of Creative Canada release

Creative organizations stepped up and added to a surge in lobbying activity in the broadcast sector leading up to the release of the results in the Heritage Minister’s review of Canadian content in the digital age last month. September saw 22 communications reports related to the broadcast sector, eight more than the 14 in the prior month — a 57 per cent increase, according to the federal lobbyists’ registry. Parliamentarians resumed another session on Sept. 18. Last month also saw twice as many parties lobbying compared to August, with September boasting 12 companies and organizations lobbying government officials handling broadcast affairs. Last September, there were 47 communications related to broadcast, up from a total of 10 the month prior. The Writers Guild of Canada (two reports), Friends of Canadian Broadcasting (one report) and News Media Canada (one report) all added to the September broadcast lobbying effort after being absent from that track the previous month. Pelmorex Corp., also absent in August, added three reports, with the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network Inc. (APTN) adding one report. The heightened activity came largely in the weeks prior to the late-September release of Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly’s plan for supporting Canadian content in the digital age. Related lobbying is likely to continue in the future, as the strategy put off regulatory and legislative change to future reviews of the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Acts, the Copyright Act and Copyright Board, and a report on distribution models from the CRTC. The WGC, under president Jill Golick’s registration, filed two reports and had communications with Joly. The subject matter of the registration included CBC/Radio-Canada funding, support for the Canada Media Fund (CMF), Heritage’s strategies for international exposure and export of Canadian content, taxation of foreign digital companies in Canada and the CRTC decision to standardize and in some cases lower spending requirements for programs of national interest, which has been sent back to the regulator. Joly’s strategy unveiled new funding of $125 million over five years for an export strategy as well as top-up funding for the CMF. Consultant Isabel Metcalfe lobbied on behalf of News Media Canada and had communications with MP Adam Vaughan. That registration included, among other subjects, getting the government to spend advertising money in Canadian media and expand the Canada Periodical Fund for community newspapers. Friends of Canadian Broadcasting, under spokesman Ian Morrison’s registration, communicated with MP Guy Caron. The registration details “broadcasting policy with respect to regulation, funding, licensing, Canadian programming, media concentration and restrictions on foreign ownership.” Meanwhile, under chairman Pierre Morrissette, Pelmorex’s registration included subject matters related to the broadcasting distribution regulations for small, independent specialty services. Vincent Rigby, associate deputy minister of Public Safety Canada (PS), and MPs Marco Mendicino and Matthew Dube participated in communications with the company. The Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) filed four reports in September, one shy of the previous month, under president and CEO Reynolds Mastin. Communications were with Heritage director of policy Caroline Seguin, Joly, Heritage chief of staff Leslie Church, Heritage special advisor Elliott Lockington, and MPs Julie Dabrusin, Adam Vaughan and Arif Virani. The subject matter of those registrations include Heritage’s co-production policy with respect to international production treaties and seeking CRTC-mandated contributions on internet service providers (ISPs), wireless service providers and internet broadcasters for Canadian content. Joly’s strategy did not include any such measures and the federal government has since rejected, for the second time, the idea of an “ISP tax.” Rogers Communications Inc. filed a leading 11 total reports under broadcasting, telecommunications, intellectual property, international trade, privacy and access to information and arts and culture in the month. It filed three reports for broadcasting, with the most recent coming one day after the release of Joly’s Creative Canada strategy, with the subject matter of the registration including Creative Canada, the Copyright Act and its fair dealing and anti-piracy provisions and broadcast policy related to set-top boxes. Communication was with Heritage’s special assistant Nick Kang. It also had communications with Heritage’s Seguin, Innovation’s director of policy David McFarlane and assistant deputy minister Fiona Gilfillan, deputy director of policy for the Prime Minister’s office Justin To, Public Safety’s director of policy and parliamentary affairs David Hurl and CRTC acting secretary general Scott Hutton. Telus Corp., which was second with nine total communications in the month, filed eight under its president and CEO Darren Entwistle and the other under Hill+Knowlton Strategies’ consultant Kevin Bosch. Those communications were made with figures including Heritage senior policy advisor Kelly Wilhelm, Heritage’s Seguin, as well as ISED’s parliamentary secretary David Lametti, its associate deputy minister Kelly Gillis, its chief of staff Gianluca Cairo, director of policy McFarlane, policy advisor Parvinder Sachdeva, its special assistant of parliamentary affairs Roselyne Zamor and its special assistant in policy Cameron Mitchell. Those registrations included issues like proposed amendments to the Broadcast Act to streamline regulation of the industry, broadcasting policies relating to specialty TV and the five-year review of the Copyright Modernization Act next month. BCE Inc., for its part, filed a total of five reports, with one addressing broadcasting in particular and under the registration of its president and CEO George Cope. Those registrations include topics like potential amendments to the Broadcast Act, as well as broadcast policies for commercial radio, traditional, specialty and pay TV and policies on carriage of broadcasting distribution undertakings’ (BDU) services by terrestrial and satellite TV distributors. The company had communications with figures including Heritage’s Seguin, Wilhelm, policy advisor to the Prime Minister’s office Maxime Dea, as well as ISED’s Sachdeva and Gillis, and MP Yvonne Jones. Under CEO Brad Shaw, Shaw Communications Inc. filed three total communications with registrations on subjects including reviews of the Broadcast and Telecommunications Acts, copyright regulations on the notice-and-notice system, and trade policy — such as under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) — with respect to the rights and interests of broadcasters, online content providers and ISPs. Communications with Shaw were made with ISED’s McFarlane and assistant deputy minister Eric Dagenais and Heritage's Seguin. Shaw also added a new registrant, consultant Graham McLaughlin at McMillan Vantage Policy Group. His registration, which is active as of Sept. 19, indicates topics such as communications with the CRTC on the development of a revised National Contribution fund, ISED on its innovation agenda and Public Safety on cybersecurity and impacts on privacy and operations of BDUs, ISPs and telecoms, among other government offices. Shaw had added consultant Richard Mahoney from the same firm last month. There were 23 communications reports on telecommunications in September, two reports up on the previous month. Outlined in the registration was affordable access to internet, rural broadband, development of 5G wireless networks, wholesale wireless roaming, lawful access obligations and the review of the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). — With reporting by Ahmad Hathout at ahathout@thewirereport.ca and editing by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewirereport.ca

Broadcast lobbying jumped ahead of Creative Canada release

News | October 24, 2017

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Broadcast lobbying jumped ahead of Creative Canada release

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