June 9, 2009

Antennas are springing up across the country as Canadians
take advantage of free TV. Yes folks, that's free TV.

Fields of rooftop antennas may evoke past memories but this
is not your granny's TV. Over-the-air reception has been
made new again by digital TV. Snowy, coarse images have
been replaced by cable-quality crisp pictures.

Canadians in big cities are canceling cable and satellite in
favour of free channels (did I mention no cost?).

Cable companies don't like it one bit. They don't mind free
TV as long as they are on the receiving end. But they balk
at paying local broadcasters as they do for other cable
channels.

And local broadcasters don't like giving away an expensive
product: local broadcasting. They have appealed to Canada's
TV regulator to collect fees for their channels. So far,
the CRTC has rejected the idea but a publicity campaign is
being waged by both sides.

You may have seen Jim Shaw's full page newspaper ads (yes,
cable companies still have faith in print media). The
Calgary cable mogul warns: "Broadcasters begging for
bailouts - - again. Without mincing words, this is a tax."

What he loosely calls a tax is simply fees that he collects
from other channels on cable. Shaw hopes to drum up public
support by arguing that we would all pay more when he passes
on extra fees to customers.

While Shaw's "Don't tax my TV" may drum up some support,
it's not clear that fees would have to be passed on to cable
subscribers. Friends of Canadian Broadcasting argue that
cable companies are raking in big profits and could absorb
the cost of supporting local TV broadcasters. Spokesman Ian
Morrison says that cable profits were a whopping 23 per cent
last year before taxes.

Meanwhile, local broadcasters also want us on their side.
CTV is holding open houses as part of their campaign called
Help Save Local Television. If it sounds familiar, it might
be because of the local lobby group called Save Our CBC
Kamloops. They started three years ago when CFJC dropped
CBC programming. I don't think CTV's acronym HSLT is nearly
as clever as SOCK although I confess a bias in being
involved with the local group.

Cable companies may have trouble gaining public support but
big broadcasters will also have trouble getting up-close and
personal. They have seen the problem coming for a long time
and done little to provide local programming. Broadcasters
have failed to use new technology such as digital TV when it
becomes available and now they want us to save them?

Jim Shaw is critical. He wonders why we should reward
broadcasters for poor performance. "[Canadians] deserve
better from the broadcasting business - - more innovation,
better Canadian programming, more local information, more
competition and better service."

As the TV titans duke it out, Canadians are dropping out and
tuning in. They are dropping cable and satellite and
putting up antennas. Antenna retailers are euphoric about
digital TV. "Here in our Mississauga store we are receiving
30 digital channels with crystal clear vibrant picture
quality. It makes no sense to pay cable fees when a single
investment gives you the best picture," enthuses one
retailer on his website.

Canadians are digging out the old rabbit ears from the
closet or buying a new antenna from their friendly antenna
store. If you have a new TV with a digital tuner, you are
set to go. An old set will work if you buy a new digital
cable box.

It will work in big cities but not in Kamloops. Pity.
Kamloops could have it all: free high quality TV and a
choice of six superior channels. The Canadian Media Guild
has mapped out a plan for Kamloops' digital stations and the
costs are surprisingly affordable. They have pitched a
comprehensive plan for Kamloops' new transmitter to the
CRTC.

Instead of losing the free TV stations we have, we could
gain more channels of superior quality. The guild's Karen
Wirsig says: "Kamloops stands to lose three over-the-air
stations but instead it can have six."

Kamloops needs TV springtime. Imagine antennas springing up
on rooftops as we ditch expensive TV and tune in to a few
good channels.

All it would take is an innovative broadcaster with clear
vision but so far, no corporate takers. Perhaps they are
haunted by ghosts of snowy images from past technology.
 

David Charbonneau is the owner of Trio Technical.
He can be reached at dcharbonneau13@shaw.ca

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