Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2006-160
Digital radio policy
The CRTC today released a statement on the implementation of Digital Radio in Canada. As some may know, Canada joined most of the world in choosing to go with a pure digital radio service, in our case located in the “L-band.”
For a variety of reasons the Americans decided to go it alone with “In-Band On Channel” (IBOC) system now being marketed as “HD Radio.” This system adds a digital signal on top of existing FM and AM signals, with varying degrees of success.
In today’s announcement the CRTC acknowledges that implementation of L-band digital radio in Canada has ground to halt, and opens the door to applications to launch IBOC or “HD” services in Canada.
The American experience has been that IBOC has some significant technical challenges, and that consumers neither know nor care what it is.
Worth noting is that the tag “HD” does not mean “High Definition.” It in fact has no meaning other than being two letters used for marketing.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) today released a report entitled The Future Environment Facing the Canadian Broadcasting System.
In June 2006, the Minister of Canadian Heritage, the Honourable Beverley J. Oda, announced that the Government, in accordance with section 15 of the Broadcasting Act, would draw on the expertise of the CRTC to examine the future technological environment facing the Canadian broadcasting industry. This request was embodied in Order in Council P.C. 2006-519, 8 June 2006.
Community radio is mentioned twice in this report.
On page 91:
240. Over 15 Subsidiary Communications Multiplex Operations (SCMO) services (auxiliary radio on the FM band) in various languages are available in various cities. Multilingual programming is also available in many cities, on various campus and community radio stations. Several of the above radio and SCMO services are also available as cable and satellite “audio services”.
On Page 115:
313. The Alliance des radiodiffuseurs communautaires du Canada (ARC du Canada)
expressed its concern that, as the Canadian broadcasting system evolves over the next
few years, community radio will have to find a niche in the new system. With its lack of
financing and small size, community radio risks finding its prospects of growth reduced.
That’s it.
Reference documents: Report on the Future Environment Facing the
Canadian Broadcasting System [.htm] [.pdf]
Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2006-72
Order in Council P.C. 2006-519
Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2006-668
Complaints regarding the broadcast by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation of Sex Traffic and Old School prior to the watershed hour.
CBC television finds itself on the wrong end of two CRTC decisions regarding the broadcast of sexually explicit material before the 8 Pm “watershed” hour.
One involves film maker Abi Morgan’s docu-drama Sex Traffic “that explores the notorious trafficking of hundreds of thousands of young Eastern European women into sexual slavery in cities throughout Europe and North America”.
The second addresses that cinematic masterpiece known as “Old School.”