Valerie Creighton, President and CEO at CMF
The CMF celebrates the passage of Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Act, which is poised to become law imminently after being adopted by Canadian Parliament. The bill, which represents the first update to Canada’s Broadcasting Act since 1991, gives the CRTC the necessary powers to establish new Canadian content contribution obligations for streaming services and online platforms.
“The passage of Bill C-11 opens up a wealth of new possibilities to strengthen the future of Canadian storytelling on screens at home and around the world,” said Valerie Creighton, President & CEO, CMF. “We thank Minister of Canadian Heritage Pablo Rodriguez for his tireless work and thank parliamentarians from across the political spectrum for their meaningful debate and thoughtful amendments to improve this important piece of legislation.”
Once C-11 becomes law, a formal direction from the federal government will follow, after which the CRTC is expected to initiate a wide-ranging policy review in the coming months to establish a new regulatory framework for Canada’s broadcasting system.
“As the country’s largest funder and catalyst for Canadian content creation, the CMF has an important role to play throughout this process,” added Creighton. “We look forward to working closely with the industry, including streamers and digital-first creators, and government to ensure that new regulations maximize this sector’s incredible potential.”
The government has previously stated that a central component of the CRTC’s forthcoming policy review will be the establishment of a modernized definition of “Canadian content.” The passage of Bill C-11 comes as the CMF undertakes the final steps of our multi-phase #CanConDef initiative to spark a constructive and meaningful industry conversation about how the definition should be modernized to meet the needs of a growing and diverse audiovisual production sector. The initiative will conclude with a series of virtual and in-person industry workshops across Canada later this spring, followed by a “What You Said” final report to be published later this year.