Presentation to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage on the State of the Canadian Broadcasting System by:
Carole Taylor, O.C. Chair of the Board of Directors Robert Rabinovitch President and CEO March 14, 2002
CBC Panel
• Carole Taylor, Chair of the Board of Directors
• Robert Rabinovitch, President and CEO
• Michel Tremblay, Vice-president, Strategy and Business Development
Canada’s Most Important Cultural Institution
• The importance of public broadcasting to Canadians
• CBC committed to producing innovative and uniquely Canadian programming
• Setting the standard for news and public affairs
CBC’s Journalistic Presence
Newfoundland and Labrador Corner Brook Gander Goose Bay Labrador City St. John’s Prince Edward Island Charlottetown Summerside Nova Scotia Baie St.Marie Halifax Sydney Yarmouth New Brunswick Bathurst Campbelltown Caraquet Carleton Fredericton Grand Falls Moncton Saint John Québec Baie Comeau Chicoutimi Gaspé Iles de la Madeleine Kuujjuaq Matane Montréal Québec Rimouski Rouyn-Noranda Sept-Iles Sherbrooke Trois-Rivières Ontario Hawkesbury Hearst Kingston Kitchener London Ottawa Sudbury Thunder Bay Timmins Toronto Welland Windsor Manitoba Brandon Thompson Winnepeg Saskatchewan La Ronge Prince Albert Regina Saskatoon Yorkton Alberta Calgary Edmonton Lethbridge British Columbia Kelowna Nelson Prince George Prince Rupert Vancouver and Surrey Victoria Nunavut Cambridge Bay Iqaluit Northwest Territories Forth Smith Inuvik Rankin Inlet Yellowknife Yukon Yellowknife
TV & Radio Radio TV
What CBC Means to Canadians
• Connecting Canadians
– – – – Telling our stories Reflecting the regions to a national audience Providing a life-line service to many Giving Canadians a unique Canadian perspective on domestic and world events
• Being an incubator for Canadian talent • Taking programming risks
CBC: More Important than Ever in a Media-Cluttered World
• Dedicated to providing Canadians with a concrete sense of their roots and identity through our distinctive programming • The CBC remains a cornerstone of Canadian culture and of the broadcasting system • Public policy must recognize and reflect this reality
“The only thing that matters in broadcasting is programming content.”
Source:…..
Meeting the Needs of Canadians
• Our objective is to deliver programming to Canadians in the form and at the time they choose on all available platforms:
– – – – Radio and television networks and stations Wireless news Youth internet services Pay audio service
Significant Challenges Remain
• The availability of television programming has more than doubled over the last 10 years • More than $1 billion in CTF funding and millions in tax credits
• …yet the viewing to Canadian programming has not increased in either the English or French markets, especially in prime-time
Viewing to Canadian Programs: A 10 year comparison
Viewing to Canadian and Foreign Programs on English TV and French TV 7pm-11pm 1992-93 and 2000-01 % English TV French TV
31 73 Foreign 74 Foreign
38
69
27 Canadian 26
Canadian
62
1992-93 Source:
2000-01 (NMR - September to August data)
1992-93
2000-01
Why Canadians Aren’t Watching More Canadian Shows
• Market fragmentation
– With the explosion in availability of new specialty services, viewing options have been spread over more services – No corresponding rise in viewing to Canadian programming
• Give Canadians opportunities and they will watch!
– A People’s History – Random Passage – Music Hall 16 million Canadians reached 1.2 million Anglophone viewers 1.6 million Francophone viewers
Viewing to Canadian Programs in Prime-time per Program Source
English TV
7pm-11pm 2000-01 %
French TV
CBC TV* Newsworld CTV Global/Canwest Other Non-Pay**
34
Radio-Canada*
34
3 9 4 9
3
RDI
35
TVA
Pay/Specialty
41
11 3 14
TQS Other Non-Pay** Pay/Specialty
Base: 26%
Source: (NMR - September to August data)
Base: 62%
* excludes CBC TV/Radio-Canada affiliates in their own time ** includes Canadian educational broadcasters and U.S. conventional ***Includes Télé-Québec, TFO & Radio-Canada affiliates in their own time
Programming Economics: A Major Factor
• Quality Canadian programming is costly yet can not recover its costs in the market
– Da Vinci’s Inquest costs $1 million per episode yet generates less than $100,000 in advertising
• This reality applies to all players in the system and has a fundamental impact on prime time, especially in the English market
Source:
Viewing Level (%) 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50% 5%
6:00 - 6:15AM 7:00 - 7:15AM 8:00 - 8:15AM 9:00 - 9:15AM 10:00 - 10:15AM 11:00 - 11:15AM
0%
Prime-time: The Most Important Viewing Period
(NMR)
12 NOON - 12:15PM 1:00 - 1:15PM
2:00 - 2:15PM 3:00 - 3:15PM 4:00 - 4:15PM 5:00 - 5:15PM 6:00 - 6:15PM 7:00 - 7:15PM 8:00 - 8:15PM 9:00 - 9:15PM 10:00 - 10:15PM 11:00 - 11:15PM 12:00 - 12:15AM 1:00 - 1:15AM 2:00 - 2:15AM 3:00 - 3:15AM 4:00 - 4:15AM 5:00 - 5:15AM 7pm to 11pm
Hourly Viewing Curve of All Television Stations Monday to Sunday, All Persons 2+ January to December 2000
Basic Block Schedule Templates
Network pm 7 8 9 10 Monday 22 Mins It’s A Living Random Passage / Da Vinci’s Inquest Tuesday Life & Times The Nature Of Things Wednesday Thursday Friday Our Hero Mr. Bean 22 Mins Red Green Air Farce Made In Can
Winter 2002 Saturday
Canadian Sunday Emily Of New Moon
Foreign
Air Farce Country Can MarketPlace On The Road Witness the fifth estate The National Open -ing Night
Hockey Night In Canada
Disclosure
Random Passage / Da Vinci’s Inquest Sun. Report Venture Degrassi 21C Alias Specials W-FIVE Blackfly King Of Hill Simpsons Malcolm The X-Files The Practice
Hockey eTalk Exhibit A Mysterious Ways Figure Skating / Cold Squad Psi Factor Dawson’s Creek Dark Angel 20 / 20 Andromeda Mutant X
7
Wheel Of Fortune Jeopardy 8 Who Wants Imagine That ’80s Show Who’s Line / CSI Millionaire Wife & Kids Accord. Jim 9 Drew Carey Ally The West CSI: Crime McBeal Wing Scene Inv. Scrubs 10 7 8 9 Boston Public Raymond Becker NYPD Blue Third Watch Philly Law & Order ER
Weakest Link The Associates Law & Order SVU
Bob & Margaret Entertainment Tonight ’70s Show Survivor Smallville / Friends Spin City Frasier Will & Grace Gilmore Girls Shoot Me The Job Judging Amy Blue Murder The Agency
10
Outer Limits
Only titles and country of origin of programs which most frequently occupy time periods are shown.
A strong and vibrant national public broadcaster is the most effective way of ensuring for Canadians a high quality and distinctive Canadian voice.
Simulcast Schedule Templates
Network pm 7 8 9 10 Monday 22 Mins It’s A Living Random Passage / Da Vinci’s Inquest Tuesday Life & Times The Nature Of Things Wednesday
Winter 2002 Thursday
Canadian Friday
Foreign Simulcast Saturday Sunday Emily Of New Moon Hockey Night In Canada Random Passage / Da Vinci’s Inquest
Foreign
Air Farce Country Can MarketPlace On The Road Witness the fifth estate The National Open -ing Night
Disclosure
Our Hero Mr. Bean 22 Mins Red Green Air Farce Made In Can
Hockey eTalk Exhibit A Mysterious Ways Figure Skating / Cold Squad Psi Factor Dawson’s Creek Dark Angel 20 / 20 Andromeda Mutant X Outer Limits
Sun. Report Venture Degrassi 21C Alias Specials W-FIVE Blackfly King Of Hill Simpsons Malcolm The X-Files The Practice
7
Wheel Of Fortune Jeopardy 8 Who Wants Imagine That ’80s Show Who’s Line / CSI Millionaire Wife & Kids Accord. Jim 9 Drew Carey Ally The West CSI: Crime McBeal Wing Scene Inv. Scrubs 10 7 8 9 10 Boston Public Raymond Becker NYPD Blue Third Watch Philly Law & Order ER
Weakest Link The Associates Law & Order SVU
Bob & Margaret Entertainment Tonight ’70s Show Survivor Smallville / Friends Spin City Frasier Will & Grace Gilmore Girls Shoot Me The Job Judging Amy Blue Murder The Agency
Only titles and country of origin of programs which most frequently occupy time periods are shown.
How do we Strengthen the CBC?
1. Reconfirm the pivotal role of CBC in the system and provide it with the necessary flexibility to serve Canadians 2. Re-balance policy and funding instruments to provide support to those that are committed to distinctive Canadian programming 3. Introduce multi-year funding for CBC to facilitate program planning and increase operating flexibility
Preserving a Distinctive Voice for Canadians
With your help we will have the tools to ensure we keep setting the standard for what Canadian broadcasting can be and to preserve a truly distinctive voice for Canadians.