Hull, Que.: ‘Channel nesting,’ ‘packaging’ and ‘duplication of overhead’ were the scintillating buzzwords as the crtc launched its specialty tv hearings in mid-August and applicants lobbied fiercely for the 10 preferred licences on offer.

The main point? That specialtycasters with an established infrastructure and expertise are best able financially and creatively to launch new channels, or ‘nested’ sub-channels. Those companies – such as Alliance Atlantis Broadcasting, Rogers, Corus, Chum and ctv – argue they should win licences for new channels or spin-offs from an existing ‘parent’ service and can assure long-term profitability.

The most coveted new channels – and the crtc will license 10 from 88 applicants – are Category 1 services, meaning cablers will have to guarantee carriage. The crtc is also licensing an unspecified number of Category 2 services: those licensees will have to persuade cablers to carry and market them.

To kick off the hearings, which run into September, aab presented its four applications: Independent Film and Documentary Channel, Health Network Canada, the Book Channel and Signature Television.

The indie channel, if licensed, promises to spend $20 million a year, or $140 million in its seven-year term, in distribution advances and equity investments in Canadian indie film.

The investment signifies a major move by the private sector to address the need for more money in the feature-film community, says aac ceo Michael MacMillan.

Conceding that ‘any and all players should be welcomed to the broadcasting industry,’ MacMillan added, ‘newcomers are going to have to have a combination of an excellent idea and deep pockets,’ reflecting the theme that money should be spent on programming and marketing, not on duplicating overhead costs.

‘Nesting is beneficial to the quality of the programming,’ said cab president Michael McCabe. ‘Nobody’s going to make any money until well into the licence term, but the real question is: Will the crtc license programming in new genres?’

A common theme among applicants is a promise to make programming consumer-friendly, which is ‘music to my ears,’ says ccta president Janet Yale. ‘There are currently 5.5 million homes in Canada that can subscribe to digital and less than half (roughly 1.2 million) actually do. Why? Because there’s no content to drive it.’

Yale says it’s imperative consumers are offered the option of ‘pick & pay,’ not because it makes economic sense, but because cablers can do it.

Also on day one, Rogers Broadcasting described its four applications: a doc service, the Biography Channel, Today’s Parent and tech service zdtv Canada.

Day two of the hearings saw ctv present 10 Category 1 applications (including Travel tv, a partnership with BCE Media and Travel Co.). Highlights include three proposed regional news channels, which are 100% Cancon services. Discovery Health Channel would provide 70% Cancon from day one. Shadow tv, ctv’s mystery service, would spend $350,000 on developing original Canadian screenplays and will commission programming from indigenous indie producers annually. Men’s Entertainment Network (Men) would spend more than $20 million on Canadian programming over the term.

The commissioners were concerned with the issue of control, as it is a requirement of the Broadcasting Act to spread out licensing fees. Likewise, the question of what constitutes an arms-length producer was prevalent throughout both ctv’s and aab’s presentations.

ctv ceo Ivan Fecan says the broadcaster would never own more than 34% of any given producer, but the commission was leaning toward a 30% maximum.

‘I worry about concentration of power. If all these guys get bigger, they’ll be buying more,’ says Martha Fusca, president of Stornoway Communications, which will present four applications Aug. 21.

On day three, Chum emphasized cultural diversity ahead of Cancon and made the point that the high Cancon promises of other applicants are unrealistic, since there’s not enough content being produced, at least in the area of independent film and documentary. Chum suggested Cancon levels in the 30% range on some of its apps, arguing that it won’t have to ask the crtc later to revise its licence conditions.

Category 2’s 361 applications will be considered outside of the oral hearings. The crtc expects to announce licensing decisions by year end.*