– NANBA fight rights in Geneva

The North American National Broadcasters Association will be amongst the 20 major broadcast players from Canada, the u.s. and Mexico attending the World Intellectual Property Organization’s Diplomatic Conference in Geneva Dec. 2-20.

Up for discussion are copyright and neighboring rights issues, primarily proposals which would award new rights to authors, composers, performers and producers of sound and music recordings.

One proposition entails North American broadcasters paying performers and producers for the use of their sound recordings. Another may lead to broadcasters being required to buy reproduction and distribution rights for all recordings transmitted via their Internet undertakings.

According to nanba secretary general Bill Roberts, a wide scope of new rights may inhibit broadcasters’ use of new technologies and pose both practical and financial problems which could have a negative effect on the scope of programming they’re willing to buy.

Closer to home, Bill C-32 g’es into its third reading in the House this month after the clause-by-clause review process wraps Dec. 3. The House rises Dec. 13, leaving a copyright decision unlikely before the end of the year.

-Alliance launch

Word out of the London Film Festival has Alliance Communications launching a theatrical distribution operation in the u.k. within the next six months, likely as a joint venture with an existing distributor.

Chairman Robert Lantos is on the record saying that the u.k., despite the new dynamic created by multiplexes, is underserved. Alliance took until October to secure a u.k. theatrical release for David Cronenberg’s Crash through Columbia TriStar.

First Independent, Artificial Eye and Metro Tartan have been identified as potential partners for Alliance.

-Bonny news for Norstar

In other news from across the pond, Norstar Entertainment and the Scottish Film Production Fund are embarking on a major coproduction deal, the first ever to be forged between Canada and the Scottish fund.

At last month’s Sharing Stories, the annual Scotland-based international coproduction conference, Norstar and sfpf announced plans to develop four feature films in 1997 with a view to have Scottish producers coproduce with Norstar and/or have Norstar distribute.

The deal comes hot on the heels of principal photography for Regeneration, a coproduction between Norstar and Scotland’s Rafford Films now shooting in Glasgow, Lanarkshire and Dunbartonshire. Regeneration is being funded by the Scottish Arts Council Lottery Fund, the Glasgow Film Fund, BBC Films, Rafford and Norstar, with the sfpf one of the executive producers.

-New bid for T.O. licence

A combination of the access rules and the number of specialty channel licences is luring a new would-be community channel up to the plate.

Jan Pachul, president of Toronto-based North Star Media, says that contingent on receiving financing, he will file an application with the crtc within the next three months for a uhf public access community television station in east Toronto.

North Star, which works primarily as a low-end graphics shop, collects equipment mainly from bankruptcy sales and has a fully functioning broadcast studio set up in Toronto.

The new service would broadcast from the Danforth Ave. and Main St. site in Toronto, targeting East York, east Toronto and Scarborough, although its uhf signal would extend a 20km radius and cover most of the city.

According to Pachul, the motivation behind the application is that ‘the climate in Ottawa has changed quite a bit – it is actually possible to get a licence. Besides, any over-the-air service is a primary service, so cable would have to carry us.’

The plan at this point is to spend $400,000 to $500,000 on local programming and draw local advertising as the main source of revenue.

Pachul is shopping for a million in private investment money. To date, Toronto politician Tom Jacobek is on board for 4% of the initiative. A $100,000 investment nets a 4% interest.

-Microsoft launches Web-based I-net service

Microsoft Network Canada will launch the new Web-based version of its Internet service with a industry and media blowout Dec. 3.

In addition to a reorganized browser, MSN Canada will also be unveiling a new pricing plan which includes unlimited access to the Net for $36.95.

Former Atlantis exec producer Martin Katz, now executive producer at MSN Canada, is overseeing a multimillion dollar budget and will launch projects from independent producers with licence fees running the scale from $100,000 to a million or more. Each deal will have its own customized rights package.

More specifics on the financing available through Microsoft Multimedia Productions, known as M3P, will be available early next year.

Plans are for MSN Canada’s staff, which currently numbers about 10, to triple before the end of the year.

-Classification systems in gear

Word has it the u.s. team drumming up a ratings classification system have set themselves a working deadline of Dec. 19 to release the code. Ideally some programs will be inscripted with the new system in January 1997.

While the Canadian contingent works towards an April 30, 1997 deadline, France’s regulatory agency Conseil Superieur de l’Audiovisuel and the country’s leading broadcasters initiated their own anti-violence, anti-sexism labels to identify tv programs near the end of November.

The csa has designated five program categories, including all ages (no designation), parental guidance (a green circle), films unsuitable for children under 12 (an orange triangle), and feature films restricted to 17 and over (a red square).

-People

Teletoon is beginning to build its staff with the appointment of J. Kevin Wright as vp programming and Carole Bonneau in the role of director of scheduling and acquisitions.

Wright will retain his position as Family Channel’s vp of programming. Bonneau comes to the new specialty from Sullivan Entertainment where she served as director of Communications.

teletoon is currently seeking a director of original production and French-language programming market to work out of the soon-to-open Montreal office.

– Peter Moss, creative head of cbc’s children’s programming for the last three years, is leaving the corporation at the end of December to take a position as an executive producer with Children’s Television Workshop.

– Vince Carlin has been appointed head of CBC Newsworld, effective Jan. 1.

– John Morayniss has been named senior vp, business and legal affairs of Alliance Television Productions.

– Matt Gruson has been promoted to vp technology and software development at Disney Interactive. He will supervise the company’s production and technology teams in Victoria, b.c.

– Canal + production subsidiary Ellipse has reorganized its senior production staff following the departure of Takis Kandilis to Hamster Productions. Robert Rea is responsible for youth programs, working with Stephane Bernasconi of Ellipse Animation and Gerard Mital of Medialab. Laurence Bachman, head of his own company Alya Productions, will supervise drama production at Ellipse and at other affiliates including Elma and Le Sabre.

– Former client services director Eric Beausejour has been named gm at Centre de Montage Electronique and Sonolab. Beausejour replaces Pierre Mercier, assigned to special projects.

– Margot Kidder has signed on as host of The Body: Inside Stories, a human-science doc series produced by Barna-Alper Productions for Discovery Channel.

-BBC consolidates

The bbc has unveiled its new program production division, BBC Production. The new wing of the u.k. pubcaster combines all its tv and radio production into one department for the first time. The number of sub-departments has been reduced from 36 to 18, with the majority based in London.

The group will work with a budget of more than $1 billion per year to make programming for the bbc’s tv and radio services, as well as new digital and satellite services and its online offerings.

According to reports from Britain, the move is part of a larger restructuring of the bbc, which is prepping for the digital age by separating its broadcasting and production units so it can legitimately buy bbc programming for its own outlets.

-New script/editing service

Toronto’s Everett Lockhart Editorial Services has launched two new divisions: Scripts, a scriptwriting and editing arm helping individuals and companies polish film, video and multimedia projects; and TextBack, an electronic writing, editing and proofreading service.