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Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2015-231

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Reference: Part 1 application posted on 16 January 2015

Ottawa, 29 May 2015

Soundview Entertainment Inc.
Across Canada

Application 2015-0030-7

Addition of ATN News to the List of non-Canadian programming services authorized for distribution

The Commission approves an application to add ATN News to the List of non-Canadian programming services authorized for distribution (the list) and amends the list accordingly. The revised list is available on the Commission’s website at www.crtc.gc.ca, by clicking on “TV & Radio” and selecting “Programming.”

Introduction

  1. The Commission received an application from Soundview Entertainment Inc. (Soundview), acting as the Canadian sponsor, to add ATN News to the List of non-Canadian programming services authorized for distribution (the list). The Commission did not receive any interventions regarding this application.

  2. Soundview described ATN News as a 24-hour news channel (74% Bengali-language and 26% English-language) providing in-depth news coverage and other news-related programming. Its target audience would be Bengali-speaking, South Asian Canadians with a specific interest in news related to and originating from South Asia, as well as business and cultural news programming. Its service originates from Bangladesh.

  3. The Commission’s general approach to the addition of non-Canadian English- and French-language services to the list is set out in Public Notice 2000-173, and reiterated in Broadcasting Public Notice 2008-100. Under this approach, the Commission assesses such requests in the context of its general policy, which, among other things, precludes the addition of a non-Canadian service that can be considered either totally or partially competitive with Canadian specialty or pay television services.

  4. In regard to non-Canadian news services, however, the Commission considers a more open-entry approach to be consistent with the importance it places on a diversity of editorial points of view. Consequently, in Broadcasting Public Notice 2008-100, the Commission stated that absent clear evidence, as determined by the Commission, that a non-Canadian news service will violate Canadian regulations, such as those regarding abusive comment, the Commission will be predisposed to authorize non-Canadian news services for distribution in Canada.

Commission’s analysis and decision

  1. In the absence of opposing interventions and any evidence that the service would violate Canadian regulations, the Commission approves the application by Soundview Entertainment Inc. to add ATN News to the List of non-Canadian programming services authorized for distribution and amends the list accordingly. The revised list is available on the Commission’s website at www.crtc.gc.ca by clicking on “TV & Radio” and selecting “Programming,” and may be obtained in hard copy on request.

Secretary General

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