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Privacy and Security
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2.0 The CRTC, policies, and regulation

2.2 Regulatory oversight of broadcasting and telecommunications

Overview

The Commission uses a variety of means to exercise its regulatory powers. Under section 6 of the Broadcasting Act, the Commission has the power to establish policy guidelines and statements. These policy guidelines and statements are periodically reviewed to ensure that they are current. When reviewing the guidelines and statements, the Commission consults with the industry and the public by holding public proceedings that can include calls for comments. The Commission also has the power, pursuant to the Broadcasting Act, to establish regulations⁶ applicable to the broadcasting industry. Under subsection 9(1) of that Act, the Commission has the authority to establish classes of licence and to impose conditions of licence. The Commission imposes conditions of licence when it issues a licence and amends these conditions as necessary when renewing the licence to achieve the Canadian broadcasting policy objectives set out in the Broadcasting Act.

Pursuant to section 47 of the Telecommunications Act, the Commission must exercise its powers and perform its duties under that Act with a view to implementing the telecommunications policy objectives set out in section 7 and in accordance with any order made by the Governor in Council or any standards prescribed by the Minister of Industry.⁷ These objectives include ensuring that the rates charged by Canadian telecommunications carriers are just and reasonable, and in relation to the provision of telecommunications services, Canadian carriers do not discriminate unjustly or accord any undue or unreasonable preference.⁸ In addition to regulating the rates, terms and conditions under which telecommunications services are provided, the Commission has the power to forbear from regulating telecommunications services or classes of service where it finds, among other things, that there is sufficient competition to protect the interests of users.⁹

The Commission fulfils its broadcasting and telecommunications regulatory and supervisory responsibilities by means of a number of interrelated activities, which include:

i) establishing, monitoring, assessing, and reviewing, where appropriate, regulatory frameworks to meet its policy objectives;
ii) implementing procedures for the efficient and effective resolution of competitive disputes; and
iii) making determinations on industry mergers, acquisitions, and changes of ownership in the industry.

The Commission also monitors the programming and financial obligations of broadcasting undertakings to ensure compliance with regulations and conditions of licence.

Regulatory framework within a competitive environment

In exercising its statutory powers under the Acts and predecessor legislation, the Commission has, where feasible, gradually and in an orderly manner opened up monopoly-based markets to competition to allow consumers multiple means of receiving programming services that include not only traditional cable companies but also satellite, wireless and telephone companies. In Public Notice 1997-25,¹⁰ the Commission established the conditions under which it would forbear from the regulation of Class 1 undertakings.¹¹ In the process of opening the broadcasting distribution undertaking (BDU) market to competition, the Commission has implemented self-regulating mechanisms in the broadcasting industry where appropriate. The Commission has encouraged industry associations, such as the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB), to develop self-regulating codes of conduct and standards pertaining to their industries.

Similarly, since the early nineties, the Commission has moved toward greater deregulation of the telecommunications market. In Telecom Decision 94-19,¹² the Commission established a three-step process by which it could determine whether a telecommunications market is or is likely to become competitive for the purpose of considering forbearance applications.¹³

As outlined in Appendix 2, since 1994 the Commission has forborne from regulating a number of telecommunications services including mobile services, retail Internet services, long distance and international services, various data and private line services, terminal equipment and inside wiring, satellite services and services provided by non-dominant carriers. In 2006, the frameworks for the forbearance from regulating retail local exchange services were established. The Forbearance Order¹⁴ amend the Commission's framework established in Telecom Decision 2006-15¹⁵ for forbearing from regulating retail local exchange services. In the HSDS Decision,¹⁶ the Commission established a framework for forbearing from regulating high-speed intra-exchange digital network access (high-speed DNA) services and metropolitan wavelength services (MWS). In this decision, the Commission also forbore from regulating Bell Canada's high-speed DNA services in a number of wire centres and from regulating the company's MWS in the Toronto, Montréal and Ottawa census metropolitan areas.