Following the letter submitted by the Attorney General of Canada to the Federal Court of Appeal, in which the government states its intention to eliminate the base contribution requirement imposed on foreign online streaming services and replace it with government funding, Hélène Messier, Francophone Co-Chair of the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (CDCE) and President and CEO of the Association québécoise de la production médiatique (AQPM), issued the following statement:

“The Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (CDCE) has taken note of the recent letter sent by the Attorney General of Canada to the Federal Court of Appeal, in which he states the government’s intention to eliminate the base contribution requirement imposed on foreign online streaming services and replace it with government funding.

The government will have to permanently guarantee the funding that the audiovisual and music sectors had every reason to expect under the base contribution requirement, estimated at no less than $200 million annually. Simply replacing the amounts currently at stake will not be enough: this funding must also grow in step with the revenues of online streaming services. Without such a commitment, funding for the audiovisual and music sectors would gradually erode, even as the value generated by these platforms continues to increase.

This direction also raises serious concerns about whether the objectives of the Online Streaming Act will be achieved. The government must not lose sight of the fundamental principle underlying the Act: ensuring equitable participation by all players in Canada’s broadcasting system. Foreign online streaming platforms generate substantial revenues from the Canadian market and occupy an increasingly important place in the public’s viewing and listening habits. They should therefore contribute directly to the vitality of a sector from which they benefit.

The government must therefore ensure that the directions it provides to the CRTC as part of the announced reconsideration of its decision allow for the establishment of a sustainable and predictable funding mechanism that is not subject to changing circumstances, so that foreign online streaming platforms contribute their fair share to the production of Canadian content.”