Lurching towards the proverbial 500 channels, requests to add 30 foreign broadcasting services to the Eligible Services lists have been filed in response to the crtc’s call for amendments, alongside letters of intent for yet another dozen new Canadian specialty channel services.

Sundance Channel, BBC World, Turner Classic Movies, Playboy tv, Court tv and the Game Show Network are amongst the American specialty channels which groups including the Canadian Cable Television Association, Family Channel, TMN-The Movie Network and Allarcom Pay Television are petitioning to make available to Canadian subscribers.

The process at hand – a paper filing for amendments to both the a (specialty) and b (pay-per-view) lists which will be gazetted over the next two months, followed by a call for comments, and a decision expected this summer – could yield a bundle of new ppv options and choices with which to form new program packages come September and the launch of teletoon, The History and Entertainment Network, The Comedy Network and N1.

At the same time, depending on how the process plays out, there could be more Canadian specialty channels in line to launch by 1999. Details are sketchy since the filings have yet to be made public, but sources say there are at least 12 letters of intent to file applications for new services, a play to block the addition of some foreign services by flagging the will to create a Canadian equivalent.

Others among the 14 ‘digital’ specialty licensees have ‘sponsored’ u.s. services, some with the quid pro quo that their service be up first or other strange trade-off machinations. Carriage and linkage rules, North American rights, the ever-present capacity question, and trade issues could dance in the context of the process, says Lorne Abugov, former crtc senior council, now a partner at Osler Hoskin and Harcourt.

‘Who knows what kinds of synergies they could develop over time to benefit both the Canadian and u.s. services. These sponsorship arrangements could blossom into all kinds of things.’

It’s a varied group of foreign services being pitched at the crtc. Ethnic programming rates huge with TV Japan, TV Polonia, ART America (Arabic), Deutsche Welle (German), The Filipino Channel, and wmnb-tv (Russian) in the offing.

Religious programming, preceded by the ghosts of the nine applications denied by the crtc over the past couple of years, also rank, with Catholic service Eternal Word Television Network pitched by three different groups. Cornerstone TeleVision and The Inspirational Network (both Christian) and Three Angels Broadcasting Network, a service offering ‘child/family development and education,’ kids’ programming, health, music, and ‘preaching,’ also make the list.

Also of note is a numbered company requesting cbc’s Newsworld International join the lineup, and a pitch from Canadian Satellite Communications (Cancom) to put 13 Canadian services including Global, Citytv, chch-tv, cfto-tv, cfcf-tv Montreal and chan-tv Vancouver on part b of the discretionary list and turn the terrestrial broadcasters into potential ppv offerings.

In the short term, any additions the commission deems fit to add to the Eligible lists will be dictated by proven demand. In this case, the criteria includes not only whether the distributor sponsors it but also whether specialty licensees support it as an addition to the spectrum with the power to bump penetration.

In context, petitioners including the cablecos are seeking modifications to carriage and linkage rules in an effort to bring additional flexibility to packaging and marketing plans.

According to Abugov, affiliate relations strategies, largely outside crtc jurisdiction, could yield a bunch of challenges and payoffs on a case-by-case basis. Subject to the limits of Canadian and u.s. law, there are no boundaries to what these new relationships could entail. Arrangements to provide Canadian programming for u.s. and international distribution, for example, in exchange for Canadian distribution of the service.

‘Caution will have to be exercised with respect to rights. The whole area is a difficult and delicate one and requires as much cooperation and common sense as everyone can bring to the issue – but at this stage, you don’t want to inhibit competition in the supply of programming services, but you don’t want to undermine Canadian programmers either.’

The largest filing on the table comes from the ccta at 17, with all but Denver superstation kwgn pitched at the a list and therefore packagable with the specialties.

In addition to six of the ethnic services are Court tv, Fit tv, TV Food Network, America’s Health Network, business and news service Bloomberg Information Television and Speedvision, an automotive, aviation, and marine information and entertainment channel. Also on the list but now off the air is The Popcorn Channel, which died a slow torturous death in the u.s. last month.

Some list shifting is also on the ccta’s agenda, moving Black Entertainment Television from the b list to the a list, and lifting the restrictions on Consumer News and Business Channel which limit its airtime to between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m. weekdays.

Other sponsors include Family Channel, which is onside for the Game Show Network and Turner Classic Movies; tmn for American Movie Classics and Sundance Channel; the Canadian Cable Systems Alliance for the Golf Channel and eight u.s. superstations under the Prime Time 24 umbrella (all, including Golf, also pitched at the a list); Allarcom Pay Television of Alberta for Court tv, Deutsche Welle, and, sin on one hand, redemption on the other, Playboy tv, The Inspirational Network, Three Angels and Cornerstone TeleVision.