Foreign Internet Streaming Services Warn CRTC Its Bill C-11 Regulations May Lead to Blocked Content or Services in Canada
Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez claimed Bill C-11 would lead to increased choice. Now foreign streamers are talking about blocking Canadian users due to the regulatory burden.
The Bill C-11 process featured a marked divide on the implications for consumer choice. While Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez claimed it would lead to increased choice (a claim he re-iterated this week in Banff), critics of the bill argued that the opposite was true, namely that the bill would likely lead to fewer services entering the Canadian market or streamers reducing content choices. The net effect – contrary to government claims – would be to impact what Canadians could watch. With the CRTC’s Bill C-11 consultations now underway, foreign streamers are warning that they may block services from Canada or reduce the scope of their content libraries due to the regulatory requirements or burden. This notably includes mainstream streamers such as PBS and niche services such as AMC’s ALLWAYSBLK.
My post yesterday on the CRTC’s Bill C-11 consultations (my submission here) focused on the numerous demands for new exceptions covering everything from adult content to fitness apps. In addition to seeking exceptions, some services are warning the CRTC that the regulatory framework may cause them to stop streaming into Canada altogether. For example, PBS has called for exception for non-profit broadcasters and warned that its stations could stop streaming services into Canada:
CRTC regulation could also inadvertently cause PBS member stations to have to withdraw online streaming offerings from Canada if making them available becomes unduly burdensome on stations’ very limited resources, thereby hindering the stations’ ability to provide their educational public service to their local communities.
Leading U.S. Broadcaster AMC has warned the Commission that a low threshold for exemption – which would have the effect of regulating more services – would make it more likely that its smaller niche services could withdraw from the Canadian market:
Imposing administrative and potential financial burdens on smaller or emerging players that are seeking to compete in the Canadian market will discourage those players from entering or remaining in the market, thereby choking innovation, lessening competition, and reducing consumer choice. AMC currently offers a diverse array of distinct online services to Canadians, including ALLWAYSBLK, a service that offers programming that primarily stars and is produced by the Black community. AMC is proud to contribute these diverse voices to the Canadian broadcasting landscape, in line with the policy objectives of the Broadcasting Act; however, such services ultimately generate relatively modest Canadian revenue. Establishing a threshold which aggregates the revenues associated with these distinct services for the purposes of imposing regulatory obligations on each service (regardless of size) would ultimately undermine the business case for offering such services in Canada and may lead online undertakings to withdraw smaller niche services from the Canadian market.
There are similar warnings from Roku, which warns about reduced Canadian investment for its Roku Channel:
Developing TRC in Canada will continue to demand a significant amount of investment in the years to come. It will also require that Roku refine and experiment with TRC’s accessible and consumer friendly business model. Roku is participating in these consultations to emphasize to the Commission that imposing substantial new administrative burdens on still-nascent services could have the perverse effect of dissuading investment in Canada.
And even from Crunchyroll, the Japanese anime streaming services that noted it participated in the process to raise its concerns about the ability for small players to operate in Canada given the regulatory requirement:
An appropriate threshold should ensure that larger players contribute in a way that is commensurate to the place they occupy and the role they play in the Canadian broadcasting system, while ensuring that smaller players can continue to operate without facing a significant burden that could jeopardize their presence in the market
For those remaining in Canada, the Bill C-11 regulations may result in the removal of content for Canadian subscribers. For example, Tubi warns:
As we note in paragraph 5 above, Tubi offers 46,150 titles available for exhibition in Canada, all for free. By contrast, Netflix offers 6,673 titles available for a minimum of $5.99 per month with advertising or $16.49 per month to view without advertising. Tubi may be forced to reduce the number of titles available in its catalogue by necessity of compliance with the proposed regulatory requirements which would have the unfortunate effect of decreasing content diversity available to Canadian viewers.
None of this should come as a surprise as the potential market effects of Bill C-11 have been well known for months. The government declined to address the concerns during the legislative process and now the prospect of blocked services or content in Canada has become a reality. Indeed, much like the Bill C-18 process, in which the government ignored the commercial impact of its policies that could lead to blocked news content, officials acted as if streaming services would simply accept the increased costs without consequence. As a result, the government’s Internet policies threaten to reshape what Canadians can access and watch with less choice and higher consumer costs.
Post originally appeared at https://www.michaelgeist.ca/2023/06/foreign-internet-streaming-services-warn-crtc-its-bill-c-11-regulations-may-lead-to-blocked-content-or-services-in-canada/
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