Listening to today’s hearings at the CRTC’s new media proceeding, I heard a number of complaints that Canadian broadcasters weren’t being helpful enough in developing new media for distribution on the internet.
The sense I got was that today’s witnesses felt that not enough broadcasters were interested in acquiring internet distribution rights for Canadian programs or the broadcasters weren’t interested in working with the creators to develop interactive programming.
I was left wondering why distribution would be limited to websites controlled by the broadcasters. Why aren’t creators developing their own platforms to attract viewers to lay claim to advertising revenues or sell content through global content aggregators?
The internet creates an opportunity to bypass the traditional broadcasting system. A limited number of channels with a finite number of hours in a day imposed a cap on the ability for creators to reach their audience.
No such limits exist in an internet world. As the Chair pointed out in one of his questions before lunch, there is unlimited shelf space in an internet world. No bottlenecks; no gatekeepers.
In this morning’s opening remarks, the Chairman asked:
Are measures needed to support the promotion and visibility of Canadian broadcasting content in New Media?
Is it really just about money?
One of the presenters this morning said that their polling indicates that Canadian’s support ISPs and WSPs paying into a fund to support Canadian content. Would support be as high if Canadians were asked if they want their own internet and wireless bills to increase by 3%?