It’s been Clear Channel’s policy for a long time to not allow Canadian visitors to listen to their streams. A lot of abuse has been directed at me by Canadians as if I had something to do with it. Up until today, I suspected the reason was disputes or uncertainty about payment of performance royalties for Canadian listeners to US radio stations.
Today, a visitor from Canada reported that they can’t listen to Air America. He was offered the choice instead to subscribe to XM satellite if they want to hear the shows.
Since Air America doesn’t play music, that sent me in another direction. It was one already in my thoughts – was this Canadian blackout the result of Canada’s Domestic Content Regulation?
Back in the early days of Sesame Street (in the early 1970s), one of the challenges the producers faced was the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation(CBC) would not let Big Bird and Cookie Monster onto their TV airwaves – because Sesame Street was not made in Canada.
To satisfy Canada’s concerns about their unique Canadian Culture becoming drowned by the morally and intellectually inferior U.S. culture, the Children’s Television Workshop had to create special segments produced in Canada and containing content targeted at the multicultural needs of Canada’s diverse communities. In 1995, the CBC launched the all Canadian Content “Sesame Park” – which was a dismal failure, as Canada’s children preferred to watch the American show.
Spin forward to 2009 – according to this account, the Canadian Radio and Television Commission (CRTC) has been holding hearings recently to extend “Canadian Domestic Content” rules on any Internet Delivered content – or perhaps taxing Canadian internet service providers to fund TV production costs if they can’t force Canadian Content Regulations on the entire internet. They are trying to “protect” Canada’s unique culture in the era of the New Media. Good luck on that.