April 1, 2010

The new TV channel proposed for Kamloops looks interesting. Corus Entertainment wants to televise local events and activities, as well as detailed weather reports, traffic and road reports.

Their plan for Kamloops is not unique; we're just one of 64 channels across Western Canada to receive customized local programming.

In an attempt to get municipalities on board, Corus sent letters to city councillors. The response from Kamloops has been cautiously optimistic. Mayor Milobar says he welcomes new business if it doesn't cannibalize the local market. Councillor Nancy Bepple said she supports Corus as long as the local market can support the competition.

Rick Arnish, the general manager of CFJC, is not so enthused. He thinks the proposal will reduce their advertising revenue. "For them to come in and want to have six minutes an hour of local commercial content, that will impact all the local media in Kamloops," worried Arnish.

Arnish is rightly concerned. While cable TV has been raking in the dough, broadcasters like CFJC have been struggling. The difference is in the business model. Cable TV collects millions from subscribers while broadcasters transmit for free, relying on advertising dollars.

The recent decision by Canada's TV regulator, the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission, hasn't helped. The CRTC ruled that cable companies don't have to pay CFJC and others despite the high cost of production. Instead the two can "negotiate" so-called carriage fees.

Given the acrimony between broadcasters and cable companies, negotiations will be rocky. Cable companies have warned customers that they will pass on any fees they have to pay broadcasters, calling it a "tax." They are apparently not bothered by similar fees paid for U.S. channels.

The proposed local Corus channel will be on cable, similar to existing Channel 10. There are other similarities between Shaw cable and Corus. Corus was spun off of Shaw in 1999 and although Corus is supposed to be independent, Shaw family members sit on the boards of directors of both companies.

I have to wonder if Shaw will pay Corus for programming? And if they do, will the fee be labeled a "tax" and passed on to cable subscribers?

Broadcasting feuds aside, the Corus proposal is interesting because they believe in local TV as a commercially-viable prospect.

 

They are right to be optimistic. Kamloopsians would support a new TV channel because we have a lot to say about ourselves. Not only are we interested in traffic and weather, we want to know more about the arts, interests, and activities that characterize our vital city.

Some possibilities for increased local TV: amateur theater plays produced by TRU and high schools, lectures by guest speakers, research being done by professors, articles by journalism students, the Kamloopa Pow-Wow, rodeos, 4H fairs, and sporting events.

Of course, this can't be done without professional-level camera operators, equipment, and studios. That's where the Canadian Association of Community Television Users and Stations (CACTUS) comes in.

CACTUS proposes that community studios be set up where training be provided and equipment borrowed, something like libraries. Studios would be paid for it with funds already designated for community TV.

As cable subscribers, you and I contribute to the operation of channel 10 as a community channel. That amounted to $166 million last year. CACTUS argues that since cable companies do not operate true community channels, the millions collected would be better spent under the control of local citizens, not corporations.

Although cable companies have a superior business model now, that could change with new technology. CFJC could provide the kind of local TV that Corus finds commercially viable through digital multiplexing which allows for six channels to be broadcast from one transmitter.

Such a cluster of channels would replace their old transmitter and CFJC could broadcast multiple channels from one source. Control of channel allocation would belong to CFJC, not cable.

In addition to their own signal, they could rent out channels to CBC, community stations (should they get funding), and others. Revenue could be generated by inserting local commercials on those channels much the way Canadian ads are inserted on U.S. cable channels.

Multiplexed TV is not futuristic hi-tech stuff. It's now in use in the U.S. and next year it will be the required standard in Canada.

With Kamloops growing self-confidence and flourishing arts community, the demand is there. Whoever seizes the opportunity should be welcomed, regardless of whether it's Corus or CFJC.
 

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