The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has launched a new round of consultations around market dynamics and the sustainability of Canada’s broadcasting system.

The CRTC opened the consultations for comments on Thursday (Jan. 9), setting a deadline of Feb. 24. The Commission has scheduled a public hearing beginning on May 12.

The consultations cover a wide range of topics in the broadcasting system, from the discoverability of channels and services, the use of connected devices and the effectiveness of the CRTC’s current regulatory tools. The Commission has posed an array of questions, including whether there are barriers to enter the market or be accessible to consumers. The questions also look at specific confirms for English- and French-language markets, as well as official language minority and Indigenous communities.

Among the issues the CRTC is exploring are the concept of “good faith” negotiations within the Broadcasting Act, data gathering and sharing, the market dynamics between large to small players within the system and the role of the CRTC in dispute resolution. The topics are meant to cover the streaming market as well as the traditional broadcast system.

Unlike the ongoing consultations on programming and the definition of Canadian content, the CRTC did not provide preliminary views on the topics. VP, broadcasting Scott Shortliffe told journalists in a technical briefing that the consultations are meant to examine what the current market dynamics in the industry are and how they’re changing.

Shortliffe said the CRTC is considering these consultations through the lens of “making sure Canadians can find the content and services they want.” Among the goals is to ensure a fair and competitive marketplace, a sustainable broadcasting model and a flexible system for the future.

Shortliffe also addressed the possibility of a spring election. He said the CRTC will be “business as usual” while Parliament is prorogued. In the event an election is called, the Commission will consult with the privy office on how to proceed under the Caretaker Convention, which restricts government work to necessary public business during an election period. He said this could impact the timing of public hearings, but would not result in a change in the overall regulatory plan to implement Bill C-11.

A public hearing on programming and Cancon is currently scheduled for March 31. The hearing falls a week after Parliament will begin a new session, which could see a non-confidence vote collapse the government and trigger an election.

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