Our Mandate, Mission and What We Do

The CRTC is an administrative tribunal that regulates and supervises broadcasting and telecommunications in the public interest.

We are dedicated to ensuring that Canadians have access to a world-class communication system that promotes innovation and enriches their lives.

Our Mandate

Our mandate is entrusted to us by the Parliament of Canada, and administered through the Minister of Canadian Heritage. It focuses on achieving policy objectives established in the Broadcasting Act, Telecommunications Act and Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL)

We do not intervene in newspapers, magazines, the quality and content of TV and radio programs or the retail rates for most communication services.

We deliver our mandate from offices in the National Capital Region.

Our Mission

We recognize the importance of communication services to Canadians. And we are dedicated to ensuring that the needs and interests of Canadians are at the centre of the system that provides those services.

The activities we engage in to ensure that Canadians have access to a world-class communication system are supported by three pillars:

In fulfilling our mission, we strive to be an institution that Canadians trust. And we are committed to providing tools that help Canadians make informed decisions in the marketplace.

What we do

At the CRTC, we engage in a wide range of activities. We supervise and regulate over 2,000 broadcasters, including TV services, AM and FM radio stations, and the companies that bring these services to you. We also regulate telecommunications carriers, including major telephone companies.

Our activities include:

We listen and collaborate

To fulfill our mandate, we must understand the needs and interests of Canadians who make use of broadcasting and telecommunications services.

As a result, we regularly hold public hearings, round-table discussions, informal forums, and online discussion forums designed to gather Canadians' views about broadcasting and telecommunications services—information that we can then act on to serve the public interest.

We also attend regular meetings with our international counterparts in 25 countries to discuss new technologies, new market arrangements and emerging trends. Our experience with both broadcasting and telecommunications puts us in the unique position of being able to both learn from and help other regulators in the international community.

Read our 5-minute guide, It’s your CRTC: Here’s how to have your say!, to understanding and participating in our activities.

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