Give us more Canuck TV, Trailer Park Boy tells CRTC

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"We need more Canada on TV," Trailer Park Boys star Robb Wells told the federal broadcast regulator on Friday as hearings continued into Canada's broadcasting environment.


Yes. We need some canadian content. Some being more than what we have right now , which is basically nothing but american reruns and a couple of newscasters commenting on some video they bought of an american company and trying to rack up a minute or two of canadian content by babbling about the obvious for a moment or two.

Sheesh , I know more about the american election than I do about my own countries political parties. Whats up with that ?


Monique Lafontaine, director of regulatory affairs at the Directors Guild, said the guild believes the cable and satellite distributors will drop Canadian services under a deregulated regime, resulting in fewer channels to buy Canadian programming.


Yes, when you make a show for a set price , and then sell it to 300 million people , you can charge less for a show made for only 30 million people. And now that you got your money already from those 300 million , you can export it for below what it would cost even americans to produce and pick up a few more pennies at the price of swamping and exterminating any film industry in your target country (canada , in this case, but they do it to other countries as well)

This is called "dumping" , and if it were for any other product , it would be illegal. But some how for TV it is not.


Hours devoted Canadian drama has fallen sharply since 1999, when the CRTC relaxed rules that forced broadcasters to create new drama.


Yes, buying shows from america at below the cost to produce is cheaper than making your own. Thats a no brainer.


That deregulation led to the cancellation of Cold Squad, a Canadian crime drama, because broadcaster CTV was able to buy a copycat U.S. show, Cold Case, much cheaper, said actress Julie Stewart.


Steal our own idea and sell it back to us , cheap. After they made their money from the american market. Brilliant.


A big problem for us is shorter episode orders," he said, pointing out that stations are ordering shorter seasons, which makes it more expensive for producers and harder to market their program.

Then when episodes run out, channels will bend the rules on Canadian content, as when History Channel ran CSI New York as its Canadian content, he said.


*Laughing* You ran a show called CSI New York as Canadian content and they let you get away with it? Are there actually any canadian content rules ? Or is it all volintary and you get to break the rules any time you like ?


The CRTC sees content rules as difficult to enforce, but that is no reason to get rid of the rules, he said.

"If the CRTC had the ability to fine broadcasters or punish them when they break the rules, then it might be easier."


So what you're saying is that the CRTC is a toothless tiger. Break their rules ... and don't sweat it. Nothing they can do about it.


The cable and satellite industries have opposed both fee-for-carriage and increases to the CTF, saying what they need is less and more simple regulation.


What regulation ? You do as you please and there is nothing anyone can do to stop you. What regulation are you panicking over ?