[opendtv] Pick-and-Pay TV Coming to Canada - WSJ

From: Craig Birkmaier <craig@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: OpenDTV Mail List <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 20 Mar 2015 05:53:07 -0400
http://www.wsj.com/articles/pick-and-pay-tv-coming-to-canada-1426798265

Pick-and-Pay TV Coming to Canada

By
Paul Vieira
Updated March 19, 2015 6:01 p.m. ET
GATINEAU, Quebec—Canada moved Thursday to give households greater freedom to 
choose the television channels they want as part of their cable package, making 
it one of the biggest jurisdictions in the developed world to compel some form 
of a-la-carte TV offering.

The change, unveiled by Canada’s broadcast regulator and set to come into force 
next year, brings an end to a hotly contested fight by cable firms that sought 
to keep the status quo, and marks a victory for consumers who will no longer 
have to pay for bundles of channels.

U.S. consumer advocates said they are watching developments in Canada closely 
given their push for a pick-and-pay system in the U.S. has failed to gain 
traction.

“Canada could serve as a real-world example of whether pick-and-pay can really 
work,” said John Bergmayer, senior attorney at Washington-based Public 
Knowledge, a nonprofit group that lobbies for affordable communications.

The move by Canada comes at a time when broadcasters and cable- and 
satellite-TV providers in the U.S. and Canada are scrambling to deal with the 
competitive threat posed by Internet-based TV, through streaming services such 
as Netflix Inc., and the emergence of potential new players such as Apple Inc. 
Canada’s biggest cable-TV distributors—BCE Inc.,Rogers Communications Inc. and 
Shaw Communications Inc.—have in recent months released their own 
online-streaming services to compete with Netflix but have restricted access to 
date to their own subscribers.

In its decision, following nearly 18 months of consultations and hearings, the 
CRTC said its ruling is based on the need “to take positive steps to bring 
about greater choice and flexibility in the Canadian television system,” adding 
Canadian cable providers have failed to show willingness to “move to more 
flexible packaging options on their own.”

CRTC officials said they were unaware of any other jurisdiction that compelled 
cable providers to offer a pick-and-pay offerings to consumers.

Canada’s biggest cable company by subscribers, Shaw, said in a statement it 
supported the CRTC’s commitment to maximize choice for Canadians, and it 
believes the regulator has struck a “bold yet balanced” framework. Rogers said 
it already offers dozens of services on a pick-and-pay format and the ruling 
gives the cable company more certainty over its offering to customers. BCE 
declined to comment.

CRTC data indicates revenue for Canadian cable- and satellite-TV providers has 
climbed at an average annual rate of 5.9% over the five-year period ended Dec. 
31, 2013. In 2013, cable and satellite firms recorded sales of 8.99 billion 
Canadian dollars ($7.07 billion) in 2013.

The new regime will be implemented in two stages. Starting in March 2016, 
Canadians can purchase a basic cable package, priced at a maximum C$25 a month 
and made up of local stations and the main U.S. networks. With that basic 
package, cable firms have the option of offering subscribers more channels 
either through smaller, bundled packages or on a pick-and-pay basis. By 
December 2016, cable firms are compelled to make the pick-and-pay option 
available.

Write to Paul Vieira at paul.vieira@xxxxxxx
[opendtv] Pick-and-Pay TV Coming to Canada - WSJ

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