After a brief postponement, the highly anticipated public hearing on the definition of Canadian content (CanCon) is now underway.
On December 23, 2024, our Cassels Comment reported that the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) had launched a public consultation about the definition and certification of CanCon to continue its efforts to modernize the Canadian broadcasting regulatory landscape. Since then, a federal election was called, resulting in the postponement of the CRTC's initial public consultation hearing dates in March 2025. Now that the federal election is over, the CRTC re-convened the public hearing, which commenced on Wednesday May 14, 2025, to receive comments on the potential amendments to the definition of CanCon within the audiovisual industry.
Specifically, the CRTC's Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2024-288 sought stakeholder submissions regarding five potential ways to amend the current definition of CanCon. These included expanding the list of key creative positions; creating a definition of "showrunner"; potentially including cultural elements within the certification framework; revising the Canadian creative control requirement underpinning the qualification and calculation of "CanCon points"; and creating a more flexible approach to the traditional Canadian intellectual property ownership requirement. The consultation also sought input on other pressing issues for Canada's broadcasting and production industries, such as Canadian programming expenditures and programs of national interest, the use of artificial intelligence by audiovisual creators and broadcasters, and creating access to data and information for the broadcasting industry.
The CRTC has set the hearing to run from May 14 – May 27, 2025, in Gatineau, Quebec. The CRTC has also released an agenda for the hearing, outlining the individuals and interveners who will be speaking throughout the two weeks.
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