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CRTC requires television broadcasters to air public service announcements on the transition to digital television

OTTAWA-GATINEAU, March 18, 2011 —The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission announced today that it is requiring conventional television stations to conduct a national awareness campaign to inform Canadians of the transition to digital television that will be taking place on August 31, 2011, and to let them know how to prepare.

Conventional television stations that are required to make the transition must begin airing public service announcements as of May 1, 2011.

The announcements must be broadcast a minimum of six times per day, and at least 25 per cent of them must be broadcast between 7:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. The announcements must be at least 30 seconds long, be closed captioned and contain audio descriptions.

The announcements must include the following elements:

• a statement to the effect that the Canadian television system is in the process of converting its over-the-air transmitters from analog to digital
• a statement to the effect that some viewers may experience a loss of service following the conversion, if applicable
• a statement to the effect that only those viewers who receive the signal directly over the air may be impacted by the conversion
• a statement to the effect that an over-the-air viewer may need to take steps to continue receiving and viewing the station’s over-the-air programming after the conversion and an indication of where further information on those steps can be found, and
• the licensee’s contact information and website address.

Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2011-198

 

The CRTC

The CRTC is an independent public authority that regulates and supervises broadcasting and telecommunications in Canada.

Reference documents:
Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2010-927

Backgrounder: Canadian local over-the-air television stations moving to digital: August 31, 2011

 

 

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