Headline, Industry News

Broadcasters buy more US programs

Toronto – Canadian performers are angered that executives of Canada’s private broadcasters are in L.A. this week gambling hundreds of millions of dollars on new American shows for the fall television season while neglecting our own domestic industry.

“Canada’s private broadcasters are eager to hand over more than $250 million dollars on new American dramas and reality shows, when they should be investing in new Canadian dramas in their own backyards,” said Richard Hardacre ACTRA’s National President. “They spend millions of dollars on American shows in what amounts to an annual crap shoot that pays out few winners.”

Canada’s private broadcasters enjoy the benefit of protection from foreign competition, but are not willing or obligated by the CRTC to invest in Canadian English-language television dramas. It is not acceptable that Canadian broadcasters acquire simulcast rights of U.S. shows, air them in primetime slots, and treat Canadian dramas as second-class citizens.

Canadian broadcasters continue to:

· allow U.S. simulcasts to dictate the programming of Canadian shows;

· increase their profits every year as they insert Canadian advertising into these already produced U.S. simulcasts; and

· add to the profits of U.S. producers who have already recouped the cost of these shows in the U.S.

“Our broadcasters have decreased their spending on Canadian drama by almost $12 million over the past year,” says Stephen Waddell, ACTRA’s National Executive Director. “Last year they spent 12 times more on buying foreign programming than they did all year on Canadian drama.”

Canadian performers insist the CRTC ensure private broadcasters spend at least 7% of their advertising revenue on new Canadian English-language dramas and schedule a minimum of two hours of these dramas in real prime-time (Sunday to Thursday, 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m).