Changes Coming To Cable

There could be a number of changes on the horizon for how cable television works in Canada. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) will be holding consultations starting Monday, Sept. 8 on 29 proposals that look at everything from how basic cable works, to pick-and-pay regulations and whether or not Canadian broadcasters will be able to impose their signal on American stations when they air the same event, like the Super Bowl.

John Meldrum, the Vice President of Regulatory Affairs for SaskTel, said there are changes aimed at the consumer especially around the proposals concerning small basic cable, or "skinny cable" as he called it, and the pick-and-pay proposals. He warned that while the idea of only paying for the channels you want is appealing, it may not be quite so simple.

"You couldn't just subscribe to the three or four of the channels that you watch. You would also have to subscribe to the basic package which would be between twenty and thirty dollars a month," Meldrum explained. He added that many of the broadcasters have contracts with cable companies that prevent the channels from being made available as a standalone. This is extremely troublesome when it comes to American channels.

"They haven't really embraced pick-and-pay in the United States and whether or not they would allow the cable companies to offer those channels on a standalone basis has yet to be determined," Meldrum said.

One issue that comes up to cable companies every year is that of simultaneous substitution. That is where a Canadian station broadcasts over an American channel if they are both showing the same show. The complaints come in fast and furious when the Super Bowl is televised, as many Canadians want to watch the American commercials during the event. The CRTC will be looking at two options when it comes to that. One is the elimination of the simultaneous substitution rules entirely, or just eliminating them for live events such as the Super Bowl. SaskTel would like to see a third option, and that is the simultaneous substitution rules removed after the Super Bowl only.