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Canadian content (abbreviated CanCon, cancon or can-con; ) refers to the
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; french: Conseil de la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications canadiennes, links=) is a public organization in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasti ...
(CRTC) requirements, derived from the Broadcasting Act of Canada, that radio and television
broadcasters Broadcaster may refer to: * A presenter of any syndicated media program * A broadcasting organization, one responsible for audio and video content and/or their transmission * A sports commentator on television or radio * Broadcaster, currently ...
(including cable and satellite
specialty channel A specialty channel (also known in the United States as a cable channel or cable network) can be a commercial broadcasting or non-commercial television channel which consists of television programming focused on a single genre, subject or targeted ...
s) must produce and/or broadcast a certain
percent In mathematics, a percentage (from la, per centum, "by a hundred") is a number or ratio expressed as a fraction of 100. It is often denoted using the percent sign, "%", although the abbreviations "pct.", "pct" and sometimes "pc" are also use ...
age of content that was at least partly written, produced, presented, or otherwise contributed to by persons from Canada. CanCon also refers to that content itself, and, more generally, to cultural and creative content that is Canadian in nature. Current Canadian content percentages are as follows: radio airplay is 40% (with partial exceptions for some specialty formats such as classical), and broadcast television is 55% yearly or 50% daily (CBC has a 60% CanCon quota; some specialty or multicultural formats have lower percentages). The loss of the protective Canadian content quota requirements is one of the concerns of those opposed to the
Trans-Pacific Partnership The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), or Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, was a highly contested proposed trade agreement between 12 Pacific Rim economies, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singa ...
. Canada entered into the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a multilateral free trade agreement, in October 2012.


Origins

In enforcing the ''
Broadcasting Act Broadcasting Act (with its variations) is a stock short title used for legislation in Canada, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom that relates to broadcasting. The Bill for an Act with this short title will usually h ...
'', the CRTC is obligated to ensure that "each element of the Canadian broadcasting system shall contribute in an appropriate manner to the creation and presentation of Canadian programming", and that every broadcast undertaking " akesmaximum use, and in no case less than predominant use, of Canadian creative and other resources in the creation and presentation of programming".


Radio

For music, the requirements are referred to as the "MAPL system". Following an extensive public hearing process organized by the CRTC, the MAPL system, created by
Stan Klees Stan Klees (born 29 April 1932 at Toronto, Ontario) is a Canadian retired music industry businessman. He created the music recording companies Tamarac and Red Leaf Records in the 1960s. Klees was a presenter at CHUM radio in the late 1940s then ...
(co-creator of the
Juno Award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...
), was adopted in 1971 to define and identify Canadian content in pieces of music for the purposes of increasing exposure of Canadian music on Canadian radio through content regulations governing a percentage (25%) of airplay to be devoted to Canadian music. The percentage was increased to 30% in the 1980s, and to 35% effective January 3, 1999. However, most new commercial radio stations licensed since 1999 have been licensed at 40%. Before the MAPL system was established in 1971,
Canadian music The music of Canada reflects the diverse influences that have shaped the country. Indigenous Peoples, the Irish, British, and the French have all made unique contributions to the musical heritage of Canada. The music has also subsequently been i ...
was regarded with indifference by Canadian radio, and during the 1960s, Canadian radio was dominated by
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
or American acts. This was a major hurdle for Canadian musicians, since they could not gain attention in their home country without having a hit single in the United States or Europe first."CanCon music survivors from Streetheart to Maestro Fresh Wes savouring the new mood in Canada"
''
Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...
'', April 19, 2019.
Even after MAPL was implemented in the early 1970s, some radio stations were criticized for ghettoizing their Canadian content to dedicated program blocks, in off-peak listening hours such as early mornings or after midnight, during which the music played would be almost entirely Canadian — thus having the effect of significantly reducing how many Canadian songs would actually have to be played during peak listening times. These program blocks became mockingly known as "beaver hours," featuring Canadian songs selected from the "beaver bin." This practice is now reduced by CRTC regulations stipulating that CanCon percentages must be met between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m., rather than allowing a station to save all their Canadian content for off-peak hours. Artists who were active in the early CanCon era in the 1970s and 1980s have noted that their music was often dismissed by Canadian audiences as inferior product, propped up by quotas rather than quality, if they were unable to replicate their Canadian success internationally. Yet, at the same time, artists who did break through internationally also ran the risk of becoming dismissed by Canadian audiences as no longer truly Canadian. Some stations – especially those playing formats where there may be a limited number of Canadian recordings suitable for airplay, such as classical,
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
or
oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as we ...
, may be allowed by the CRTC to meet Canadian content targets as low as 20 per cent. Stations in
Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...
,
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, are also permitted to meet lower Canadian content targets, due to Windsor's proximity to the
Metro Detroit The Detroit metropolitan area, often referred to as Metro Detroit, is a major metropolitan area in the U.S. State of Michigan, consisting of the city of Detroit and its surrounding area. There are varied definitions of the area, including the ...
media market in the United States.
Community radio Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial and public broadcasting. Community stations serve geographic communities and communities of interest. They broadcast content that is popular ...
and campus-based community radio stations often choose to meet higher Canadian content levels than commercial broadcasters, because of their mandate to support independent and underground and provide content not readily available on commercial radio or the CBC; however, this is a voluntary commitment made by these stations rather than a core CRTC requirement, and CanCon requirements may be lower for campus and community stations as they often air large quantities of category 3 music. On
satellite radio Satellite radio is defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)'s ITU Radio Regulations (RR) as a ''broadcasting-satellite service''. The satellite's signals are broadcast nationwide, across a much wider geographical area than ter ...
services, Canadian content regulation is applied in aggregate over the whole subscription package.
Sirius XM Canada Sirius XM Canada Holdings Inc. (commonly referred to as Sirius XM Canada) is a Canadian radio broadcasting company, which operates as a Canadian affiliate of Sirius XM Radio. The company received approval from the Canadian Radio-television and Te ...
produces channels focused on Canadian music and content and offers the CBC's national radio networks, as well as its digital-exclusive networks such as
CBC Radio 3 CBC Radio 3 is a Canadian digital radio station operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, which plays a relatively freeform mix of indie rock, indie pop, alternative hip hop, folk, country and electronic music. The service, which lanuc ...
, which are incorporated into the overall lineup of U.S.-produced channels shared with its U.S. counterpart.


How the MAPL system works

To qualify as Canadian content a musical selection must generally fulfil at least two of the following conditions (one if recorded prior to January 1972): *M (music) — the music is composed entirely by a Canadian *A (artist) — the music is, or the lyrics are, performed principally by a Canadian *P (performance) — the musical selection consists of a performance that is: **Recorded wholly in Canada, or **Performed wholly in Canada and broadcast live in Canada. *L (lyrics) — the lyrics are written entirely by a Canadian For the purposes of MAPL, a "Canadian" refers to a citizen, permanent resident, someone whose "ordinary place of residence" has been in Canada prior to their contribution to the musical selection, or someone who is a licensee. A musical selection may also qualify as Canadian content if it is: * An instrumental performance of a composition by a Canadian. * A "performance of a musical composition that a Canadian has composed for instruments only." * Performed live or recorded after September 1, meets the criteria for either artist or performance, and a Canadian receives at least half of the credit for music and lyrics. This last criterion was added in 1991, to accommodate
Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...
' album ''
Waking Up the Neighbours ''Waking Up the Neighbours'' is the sixth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams, released on September 24, 1991. The album was recorded at Battery Studios in London and The Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, mixed at Mayfair Studios ...
'', which, unusually, did not meet the Cancon standard despite every track being co-written and performed by a Canadian artist. Adams had recorded the album mainly in England, and although some recording work was done in Canada, no track on the album qualified for the P in MAPL. Adams had also collaborated on the writing of the album with South African record producer
Robert John "Mutt" Lange Robert John "Mutt" Lange (born 11 November 1948) is a South African record producer and songwriter, mainly known for his work in rock music as well as his previous marriage to Canadian singer Shania Twain, for whom he wrote and produced several ...
in London, England, with Adams and Lange both being credited as co-writers of both words and music on every cut on the album. As a result, no song on the album featured either music or lyrics ''entirely'' written by a Canadian, and therefore none of the album's songs qualified for the M or L in MAPL. All this meant that no track on the album qualified as Canadian content under the existing rules—although if Adams and Lange had simply agreed to credit one party with 100% of the music and the other with 100% of the lyrics, ''all'' the Adams/Lange collaborations would have counted as CanCon (as they were recorded by a Canadian artist). After extensive controversy in the summer of that year, the CRTC changed the rules to allow for such collaborations, wherein a Canadian can work with a non-Canadian on both music and lyrics, provided the Canadian receives at least half of the credit for both music and lyrics. This gives the recorded track 1 point out of a possible 2 for the M and L sections of the MAPL criteria; to qualify as Cancon, the finished recording must also meet the criterion for either artist (A) or performance (P). Other Canadian artists with long-time international careers, like
Anne Murray Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian singer. Her albums, consisting primarily of pop, country, and adult contemporary music, have sold over 55 million copies worldwide during her over 40-year career. Murray was the fir ...
,
Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...
,
Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. At age 16, she signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records. Her debut studio album, ''Let Go (Avril Lavigne album), Let Go'' (2002), is the ...
, and
Shania Twain Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...
, have used recording studios in Canada specifically to maintain Cancon status. In December 2022, the CRTC announced a proposal to update the MAPL system to account for changes in the music industry and reduce regulatory burden, which would remove the existing "Performance" criteria, and change Music and Lyrics to only require either to be principally (at least 50%) composed or written by a Canadian.


Talk radio and American syndicated programming

Unlike music radio, the rules on talk radio are more ambiguous. The vast majority of Canadian talk radio stations operate with local talk for most of the daylight hours, with the exception of two nationally syndicated Canadian talk show hosts: news/talk personality
Charles Adler Charles Adler may refer to: * Charles Adler (broadcaster) (born 1954), Canadian broadcaster * Charlie Adler (born 1956), American voice actor * Frederick Charles Adler (1889–1959), usually known as F. Charles Adler, English-German conductor * ...
and sports talk host Bob McCown. The lone restriction is that the station must have a working studio within the region it broadcasts, which prohibits the use of entirely satellite-operated stations (which are commonplace in the United States). Syndicated programming from the United States invariably airs after 7:00 pm local time in virtually all markets, and usually features non-political programs such as ''
The Jim Rome Show ''The Jim Rome Show'' is a sports radio talk show hosted by Jim Rome. It airs live for three hours each weekday from 9 a.m. to noon Pacific Time. The show is produced in Los Angeles, syndicated by CBS Sports Radio, and can be heard on affilia ...
'' and ''
Coast to Coast AM ''Coast to Coast AM'' is an American late-night radio talk show that deals with a variety of topics. Most frequently the topics relate to either the paranormal or conspiracy theories. It was hosted by creator Art Bell from its inception in 19 ...
''. More political American shows such as ''
The Rush Limbaugh Show ''The Rush Limbaugh Show'' is an American conservative talk radio show hosted by Rush Limbaugh. Since its nationally syndicated premiere in 1988, ''The Rush Limbaugh Show'' became the highest-rated talk radio show in the United States. At its ...
'' are rarely picked up by Canadian radio stations, although the now defunct
CFBN CFBN was a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 1280 kHz in Mississauga, Ontario. The station, owned by the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, aired a business news format branded as ''Canada's Business Network'', as well as some travel ...
aired
Dennis Miller Dennis Michael Miller (born November 3, 1953) is an American talk show host, political commentator, sports commentator, actor, and comedian. He was a cast member of ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1985 to 1991, and he subsequently hosted a stri ...
and the ''
Glenn Beck Program ''Glenn'' (previously titled ''The Glenn Beck Program'') is a news talk and political opinion show on TheBlaze hosted by Glenn Beck. It is produced and recorded at TheBlaze studios in Dallas, TX. The show originally ran on CNN Headline News fr ...
'' on tape delay in the evenings for a few months, from April through November 2007, when CFBN stopped broadcasting over the air, and ''
The Phil Hendrie Show ''The World of Phil Hendrie'' is a comedy talk radio program. The show is syndicated throughout North America on Westwood One. It is known for outrageous guests, the majority of whom are fictional and voiced live by the host, Phil Hendrie. Though ...
'' aired for many years on
CKTB CKTB is a radio station in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Broadcasting at 610 AM, the station airs a news/ talk format. CKTB is housed in the former mansion of William Hamilton Merritt, the main promoter of the first Welland Canal, located o ...
, even during the period when it focused on political content. Miller also aired on
CHAM Cham or CHAM may refer to: Ethnicities and languages *Chams, people in Vietnam and Cambodia **Cham language, the language of the Cham people ***Cham script ***Cham (Unicode block), a block of Unicode characters of the Cham script *Cham Albanian ...
for two years from 2008 to 2010. No rule prevents programs such as Limbaugh or Beck from being aired on Canadian radio stations; such programs are simply not carried because their focus on American politics limits their relevance to Canadian radio audiences, especially given the high rights fees Limbaugh charged his affiliates. As in the United States in the 1980s, the trend for AM stations in Canada in the 1990s was to apply for an FM broadcasting license or move away from music in favour of
talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...
formats. (Since the late 2000s, AM radio in North America has been declining as stations have shut down and moved to FM.) The total amount of Canadian-produced content declined as broadcasters could license syndicated radio programs produced in the U.S., while the Cancon regulations were conceived to apply to music only, and not to spoken-word programming. This became particularly controversial in 1998 when stations in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
and
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
started airing ''
The Howard Stern Show ''The Howard Stern Show'' is an American radio show hosted by Howard Stern that gained wide recognition when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from WXRK in New York City, between 1986 and 2005. The show has aired on Howard 100 a ...
'' from New York City during prime daytime hours. Stern was forced off the air not because of Canadian content, but because the
Canadian Broadcast Standards Council The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) is an industry funded self-regulating organization created by the Canadian Association of Broadcasters to administer standards established by its own members, Canada's private broadcasters. The coun ...
reprimanded the stations broadcasting Stern numerous times for Stern's comments, which prompted the two stations to drop him in short order. Stern would later move exclusively to satellite radio. American shows that combine talk and music, such as
Blair Garner Blair Garner is an American radio personality best known for his work in country radio. Garner spent over two decades as a nationally syndicated overnight disc jockey, first hosting ''After Midnite'' for Premiere Networks and then ''The Blair Gar ...
,
Elvis Duran Elvis Duran (born Barry Brian Cope; August 5, 1964) is an American radio personality. He is the host of the daily morning radio program ''Elvis Duran and the Morning Show'' in New York on Z100 and in syndication on Premiere Networks. Before h ...
,
Delilah Delilah ( ; , meaning "delicate";Gesenius's ''Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon'' ar, دليلة, Dalīlah; grc, label=Greek, Δαλιδά, Dalidá) is a woman mentioned in the sixteenth chapter of the Book of Judges in the Hebrew Bible. She is loved b ...
and
John Tesh John Frank Tesh (born July 9, 1952) is an American pianist and composer of pop music, as well as a radio host and television presenter. He hosts the ''Intelligence for Your Life'' radio show. In addition, since 2014, he has hosted ''Intelligen ...
, usually have special playlists for airing in Canada to assist in meeting Canadian content requirements. Because of the different requirements, American syndicated
oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as we ...
programs are widely popular in Canada, such as '' American Gold'',
Wolfman Jack Robert Weston Smith (January 21, 1938July 1, 1995), known as Wolfman Jack, was an American disc jockey active from 1960 till his death in 1995. Famous for his gravelly voice, he credited it for his success, saying, "It's kept meat and potatoes ...
, and '' M. G. Kelly's American Hit List''. These shows usually do not substitute Canadian songs, due in part to a fairly large library of Canadian musicians already in rotation in the format (such as
The Guess Who The Guess Who are a Canadian rock band formed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1965. The band originated in 1962 and achieved an international hit single with a cover of "Shakin' All Over" in 1965 under the name Chad Allan and the Expressions. After c ...
,
Gordon Lightfoot Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr. (born November 17, 1938) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music. He is credited with helping to define the folk-pop sound of the 1960 ...
,
Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known for his signature hit songs including " Diana", " Lonely Boy", "Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and " (You're) Having My Baby". Anka also ...
,
Terry Jacks Terrence Ross Jacks (born March 29, 1944) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer and environmentalist, best known for his 1974 hit song "Seasons in the Sun". Early life Terry Jacks was born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba. His fam ...
or
R. Dean Taylor Richard Dean Taylor (May 11, 1939 – January 7, 2022) was a Canadian musician, most notable as a singer, songwriter, and record producer for Motown during the 1960s and 1970s. According to Jason Ankeny, Taylor was "one of the most underra ...
). In other formats, an American syndicated program sometimes is supplemented with an all-Canadian program; for instance,
CKMX CKMX is a radio station broadcasting at 1060 AM in Calgary, Alberta, and owned by Bell Media. Its comedy format is branded on-air as ''Funny 1060''. CKMX's studios are located on Centre Street in Eau Claire, and its transmitter site is near So ...
will broadcast ''
Country Countdown USA ''Country Countdown USA'' is a nationally syndicated weekly country music top-30 chart countdown program hosted by Lon Helton. Debut The show premiered on the Mutual Broadcasting System in April 1992. The program began as the brainchild of Wes ...
'' and ''America's
Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...
Weekend'' along with the Canadian syndicated programs ''Canadian Country Spotlight'' and Hugh McLennan's ''Spirit of the West'', the last of which is also carried by several U.S. stations. American syndicated series are usually played in "off peak" and weekend hours. A notable exception to the majority-Canadian spoken word programming came in 2012 when
Astral Media Astral Media Inc. was a Canadian media conglomerate. It was Canada's largest radio broadcaster, with 84 radio stations in eight provinces. Astral was also a major player in premium and specialty television in Canada, with 23 specialty channels ...
introduced
CKSL CKSL was a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 1410 AM in London, Ontario, Canada. The station aired a comedy radio format branded as ''Funny 1410''. The station broadcast with a power of 10,000 watts from its transmitter site located on Sco ...
and
CHAM Cham or CHAM may refer to: Ethnicities and languages *Chams, people in Vietnam and Cambodia **Cham language, the language of the Cham people ***Cham script ***Cham (Unicode block), a block of Unicode characters of the Cham script *Cham Albanian ...
, two stations in southern Ontario, as full-time affiliates of 24/7 Comedy Radio, a service of the U.S.-based
Cumulus Media Networks Cumulus Media Networks was an American radio network owned and operated by Cumulus Media. From 2011 until its merger with Westwood One, it controlled many of the radio assets formerly belonging to the American Broadcasting Company (ABC), which w ...
. CHAM meets its studio requirement by maintaining a locally based interstitial host.


Film and television

To an even greater extent than on radio, Canadian television programming has been a perennially difficult proposition for the broadcast industry, particularly dramatic programming in prime-time. It is much more economical for Canadian stations to buy the Canadian rights to an American prime-time series than to finance a new homemade production. Perhaps more importantly, given the reach of the major U.S. broadcast networks in Canada, it is virtually impossible to delay or modify a U.S. program's broadcast schedule, as regularly occurs in other foreign markets, to weed out failures or to otherwise accommodate homegrown programming. In English Canada, presently only the public network,
CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...
, devotes the vast majority of its prime time schedule to Canadian content, having dropped U.S. network series in the mid-1990s. The French-language industry, centered in
Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
, similarly places a larger emphasis on original productions, due to viewer preferences over dubs of imported English-language programming, and to prioritize its "star system" of local talent. The English commercial networks ( CTV,
Global Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...
and
Citytv Citytv is a Canadian television network owned by the Rogers Sports & Media subsidiary of Rogers Communications. The licence of the original Citytv station, granted the callsign of CITY-TV by the CRTC on November 25, 1971 to Cable Television Ass ...
), conversely, rely on news and information programs for the bulk of their Canadian content while running mostly American network series, but have still occasionally commissioned domestic productions for prime time broadcasts. Some have suggested that Canadian content minimums be enacted for movie theatres, in order to improve the visibility and commercial viability of
Canadian film Cinema in Canada dates back to the earliest known display of film in Saint-Laurent, Quebec, in 1896. The film industry in Canada has been dominated by the United States, which has utilized Canada as a shooting location and to bypass British fil ...
, although none have ever been put in place. Most
film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upon ...
s in Canada devote at least a portion of their schedules to Canadian films, although this is by choice rather than government regulation; a few film festivals are devoted exclusively to Canadian films, although most screen a mix of Canadian and international films. However, as movie-based premium television services such as Crave, Super Channel, Hollywood Suite and
Super Écran Super Écran is a Canadian premium television network owned by Bell Media. It airs a mix of commercial-free films and television series. Films are primarily sourced from the United States and Canada, while the television series mostly consist of ...
operate on television and thus must follow Canadian content regulations, they do acquire and program Canadian films; this often still represents a Canadian film's best opportunity to attract an audience beyond the film festival circuit.


Criteria

What is considered Canadian content is determined by either the CRTC, or the Canadian Audio-Visual Certification Office (CAVCO) for film and television productions that are seeking its
tax credit A tax credit is a tax incentive which allows certain taxpayers to subtract the amount of the credit they have accrued from the total they owe the state. It may also be a credit granted in recognition of taxes already paid or a form of state "disc ...
. The CRTC's requirements for a television program to be certified as a Canadian content include that: * The producer of the program must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, and hold "full responsibility" in overseeing development, creative and financial control, and financing. The producer must also receive a renumeration that exceeds the aggregated renumeration of all foreign producer-related positions. * The production must employ a minimum number of Canadian citizens or permanent residents in key creative positions, as determined by a points system. ** The director or screenwriter for live-action productions, or the scriptwriter or storyboard supervisor for animated productions, and at least one of the two highest-paid lead performers, must be Canadian. ** For animated works, the key animation must be performed in Canada. ** Non-Canadians may not be credited as a producer, co-producer, line producer, or production manager * At least 75% of all costs incurred for production services, as well as 75% of all costs incurred in post-production, must be for services provided in Canada. * The program must fall within a CRTC-defined program category.


Examples

Early Canadian programming was often produced merely to fill content requirements, and featured exceedingly low budgets, rushed production schedules, poor writing and little in the way of production values and as a result did not attract much of an audience. One Canadian series, ''
The Trouble with Tracy ''The Trouble with Tracy'' is a Canadian television series produced by CTV for the 1970–1971 television season, with intended distribution by the U.S.-based National General Pictures. It is considered by some to be one of the worst situation c ...
'', is sometimes claimed as one of the worst television shows ever produced. However, even given these limitations, some productions managed to rise above the mediocre – both '' SCTV'' (originally on
Global Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...
) and '' Smith & Smith'' (
CHCH Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River ...
) grew from local low-budget productions with a limited audience to large production companies with a North American audience. ''SCTV'' also lampooned the Cancon rules, as well a request by the CBC for a filler segment featuring distinctively Canadian content, by developing the characters of
Bob and Doug McKenzie Bob and Doug McKenzie are a pair of fictional Canadian brothers who hosted "Great White North", a Sketch comedy, sketch which was introduced on ''Second City Television, SCTV'' for the show's third season when it moved to CBC Television in 1980 ...
—a caricature of stereotypical Canadians played by cast members
Rick Moranis Frederick Allan Moranis (; born April 18, 1953) is a Canadian actor, comedian, musician, songwriter, writer and producer. He appeared in the sketch comedy series ''Second City Television'' (''SCTV'') in the 1980s and several Hollywood (film indu ...
and
Dave Thomas Dave may refer to: Film, television, and theater * Dave (film), ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver * Dave (musical), ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film * Dave (TV channel), a digital ...
. Bob and Doug became the program's most popular characters, and spawned spin-offs such as comedy albums, commercials, the feature film ''
Strange Brew ''Strange Brew'' (also known as ''The Adventures of Bob & Doug McKenzie: Strange Brew'') is a 1983 Canadian comedy film starring the popular '' SCTV'' characters Bob and Doug McKenzie, portrayed by Dave Thomas and Rick Moranis, who also served a ...
'', and the animated series '' Bob & Doug''. In the 1980s and early 1990s, distinctly Canadian drama series such as CBC's '' Street Legal'' or CTV's ''
E.N.G. ''E.N.G.'' is a Canadian television drama, following the staff of a fictional Toronto television news station. The show aired on CTV from 1989 to 1994. The series ran for 96 episodes, produced by the Alliance Entertainment Corporation. Plot ...
'' consistently drew hundreds of thousands of viewers each week. In the latter part of the 1990s and the early 2000s,
Global Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...
's '' Traders'' and the CBC dramas ''
Da Vinci's Inquest ''Da Vinci's Inquest'' is a Canadian dramatic television series which originally aired on CBC Television from 1998 to 2005. While never a ratings blockbuster, the critically acclaimed show did attract a loyal following, and ultimately seven seaso ...
'' and ''
Republic of Doyle ''Republic of Doyle'' is a Canadian comedy-drama television series set in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, which aired on CBC Television from January 6, 2010, to December 10, 2014. The show stars Allan Hawco as private investigator and fo ...
'' completed long runs, buoyed by critical approval if not overwhelming viewer success. As for CTV, after short-lived runs of planned "flagship" drama series such as '' The City'', '' The Associates'' and '' The Eleventh Hour'', the network later found ratings success with series such as ''
Corner Gas ''Corner Gas'' is a Canadian television sitcom created by Brent Butt. The series ran for six seasons from 2004 to 2009. Re-runs still air on CTV, CTV2, CTV Comedy Channel, Much, MTV, E! and are streaming on Crave and Amazon Prime. The seri ...
'' (a sitcom set at an eponymous Filling station, gas station in rural Saskatchewan, filmed in the town of Rouleau, Saskatchewan, Rouleau), ''Flashpoint (TV series), Flashpoint'', and ''Motive (TV series), Motive''. The CBC dramedy ''This is Wonderland'' was a moderate success with a loyal fan base, but was nonetheless cancelled in 2006 after three seasons. Specialty channels also naturally produce Canadian content, some of which, most notably Showcase (Canadian TV channel), Showcase's mockumentary series ''Trailer Park Boys'', have been able to generate a strong mass appeal. To complement their airings of American or British versions, Canadian networks have also produced local versions of unscripted television formats, including reality television series such as ''The Amazing Race Canada'', ''Canadian Idol'', and ''MasterChef Canada'' (CTV), ''The Great Canadian Baking Show'' (CBC), ''Big Brother Canada'' (Global), ''The Bachelor Canada'' and ''Canada's Got Talent'' (Citytv), and ''Canada's Drag Race'' (Crave (streaming service), Crave and OutTV). Canadian networks have sometimes fulfilled Cancon requirements by commissioning series filmed in Canada, but intended to be sold to broadcasters in larger foreign markets such as the United States and United Kingdom, such as CTV's ''Saving Hope'', ''Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye'', ''Mysterious Ways (TV series), Mysterious Ways'' and ''Twice in a Lifetime (TV series), Twice in a Lifetime'', and Global's ''Wild Card (TV series), Wild Card'' and ''Rookie Blue.'' International co-productions such as ''Orphan Black'' (Space (Canadian TV channel), Space and BBC America), ''Copper (TV series), Copper'' (Showcase and BBC America), ''Killjoys (TV series), Killjoys'' (Space and Syfy), ''The Tudors'' (CBC, Showtime (TV channel), Showtime, BBC and Virgin Media One, TV3), and the early seasons of the current incarnation of ''Doctor Who'' (partially funded by CBC) are also common. A few Canadian drama series, including ''Due South'', ''The Listener (TV series), The Listener'', ''Motive'', ''Flashpoint (TV series), Flashpoint'', and ''Saving Hope'', have also been picked up by American networks and aired in prime time, although the majority of Canadian TV series which have aired in the United States have done so either in syndication, on cable channels, or on minor networks such as The CW and Ion Television. ''SCTV'' aired in a late night slot on NBC in the early 1980s. CBS aired a late-night block of crime dramas in the late 1980s and early 1990s which included a number of Canadian series, including ''Night Heat'', ''Hot Shots (Canadian TV series), Hot Shots'', ''Adderly'', ''Forever Knight'' and ''Diamonds (Canadian TV series), Diamonds'', and later aired ''The Kids in the Hall (TV series), The Kids in the Hall'' in a late-night slot as well. ''The Red Green Show'' was also a success, being imported into the United States via Public Broadcasting Service, PBS member stations. That show's cast often did pledge drive specials and received strong viewer support on PBS stations in the northern part of the United States, such as Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New Hampshire and New York. The CBC sitcom ''Schitt's Creek'' was co-produced with U.S. cable network Pop (American TV channel), Pop (as its first original scripted series), but its later addition to the streaming service Netflix helped to bolster wider public awareness and critical acclaim of the series in the United States and worldwide. This culminated at the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards in 2020 following its final season, where ''Schitt's Creek'' became the first series to sweep all seven major awards in their respective genre in a single year, and Dan Levy (Canadian actor), Dan Levy became the first to win awards for acting, directing, producing, and writing in the same year. Canadian commercial television networks schedule a large percentage of their Canadian productions to air in the summer season; although traditionally a season of low viewership, this practice has actually been beneficial for Canadian television productions, influenced by widespread viewer preference for new programming over off-season repeats, as well as an increased chance of gaining a lucrative sale to one of the big four American networks—a revenue stream which is generally unavailable during the fall and winter television seasons. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on television in the United States provided a major exception, with NBC importing the CTV medical drama ''Transplant (TV series), Transplant'' (which premiered at midseason in Canada) for its fall primetime lineup, filling the timeslot normally filled by its own medical drama ''New Amsterdam (2018 TV series), New Amsterdam'' (whose premiere was deferred to 2021). NBC subsequently picked up another Canadian medical drama from Global, ''Nurses (Canadian TV series), Nurses'', and ordered the second season of ''Transplant'' for a mid-season premiere in 2022. The CW similarly imported two Canadian programs—''Coroner (TV series), Coroner'' and ''Fridge Wars—''to pad out its summer schedule.


Children's programming

Canadian studios have had a significant presence in the Children's television series, children's television market, the domestic studio Nelvana has had interests in both children's television and publishing, and was acquired by Canadian broadcaster Corus Entertainment in 2000. In the 1990s, Nelvana made several major deals for educational programming with U.S. broadcasters such as CBS and PBS Kids (taking advantage of E/I, new U.S. mandates for educational programming), with all of them being adaptations of children's books. The Montreal-based studio Cinar, CINAR was well known for producing and distributing animated series with tie-ins for the educational market, such as ''Arthur (TV series), Arthur—''which was distributed on U.S. public television by Boston's PBS station WGBH-TV, WGBH. The company collapsed in 2001 following an CINAR scandal, accounting scandal, and had also faced allegations that it paid American writers to Ghostwriter, write for its shows under the names of Canadian citizens, while continuing to accept Canadian federal tax credits. The company was later purchased in 2004 by former Nelvana executives, and renamed Cookie Jar Group. The company was in turn acquired by Halifax-based WildBrain, DHX Media (now WildBrain) in 2012, which made it the largest independent owner of children's television content in the world.


Regulations

The CRTC presently requires that at least 55% of all programming aired annually by broadcast television stations, and at least 50% of programming aired daily from 6:00 pm to midnight, must be of Canadian origin. In May 2011, the annual CanCon requirement for private television broadcasters was lowered from 60% to 55% yearly. The CBC remains subject to the 60% quota. Historically, much of these requirements have been fulfilled by lower-cost non-scripted programming, including networked talk shows (including daytime lifestyle shows such as ''CityLine'' and ''The Marilyn Denis Show'') and Entertainment journalism, entertainment news programs (such as ''ET Canada'' and ''eTalk''), local newscasts and public affairs programming, and reruns of Canadian-produced library programs. As described above, often the remaining domestic content are scripted co-productions produced in partnership with a foreign broadcaster, or more recently, Streaming service provider, streaming services. Further complicating matters for Canadian content is the existence of simultaneous substitution, a regulation that allows over-the-air broadcasters to require the substitution of feeds from American broadcast channels on local multichannel television providers if they are airing the same programming in simulcast, thus protecting their exclusive rights to earn revenue off such programming whenever it is broadcast in Canada. Therefore, Canadian networks have made significant effort to import popular American series to take advantage of the rule, which in turn crowds out Canadian programming to less-desirable time slots. Over the years the CRTC has tried a number of strategies intended to increase the success of Canadian programming, including expenditure requirements and time credits for productions with specific requirements. In 1999, the CRTC mandated that stations owned by the largest private groups air at least eight hours of Canadian "priority programming" per-week between the hours of 7 and 11  p.m.; priority programming included scripted programs, documentaries, entertainment news, and variety programs. In 2011, as part of its new "group-based" approach to licensing of television services owned by the largest private broadcasters (such as Bell Media, Corus Entertainment, and Rogers Media), the CRTC instituted new policies with a stronger focus on expenditures made into high-quality Canadian content (especially within genres that are more costlier to produce), as opposed to quantity and scheduling. At least 30% of a group's revenue (which is officially aggregated across all of a group's television services, based on their individual revenue and historical expenditure mandates) must be spent on Canadian programming expenditures (CPEs). CPEs can be reallocated between a group's individual discretionary services, and up to 25% of CPEs for local stations can be allocated from a discretionary service. The priority programming rule was replaced by a requirement for each service to invest 5% of their revenue towards "programs of national interest" (PNI), which include comedy, drama, long-form documentaries, children's programming, and qualifying awards presentations honouring Canadian creative talent. In 2017, the CRTC, furthermore, instituted a requirement that 75% of the PNI expenditure be used to fund productions by independent companies. The CRTC also added credits on CPE for the involvement of indigenous (50%) and Languages of Canada#Official language minority communities, official language minority community (25%) producers (French outside of Quebec, and English within).


Trans-Pacific Partnership

There is concern about the Trans-Pacific Partnership Intellectual Property Provisions of the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership, TPP in terms of CanCon. In October 2012, Canada formally became a TPP negotiating participant. In order to enter into the TPP agreement, Canada had to accept the terms agreed upon by the nine original signatory countries: Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, Singapore, Australia, Malaysia, Peru, United States, and Vietnam. According to MP Don Davies, Canada had no veto power over these terms and accepted the "existing unbracketed text, sight unseen and without input." In September 2012, the International Intellectual Property Alliance, a U.S. private sector coalition representing over 3,200 U.S. producers and distributors of copyright protected materials, sent a submission to the U.S. Trade Representative's office requesting that the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement "be comprehensive in scope, strictly avoiding any sectoral carveouts that preclude the application of free trade disciplines. We note that several market access barriers [in] Canada involve, for example, content quota requirements for television, radio, cable television, direct-to-home broadcast services, specialty television, and
satellite radio Satellite radio is defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)'s ITU Radio Regulations (RR) as a ''broadcasting-satellite service''. The satellite's signals are broadcast nationwide, across a much wider geographical area than ter ...
services." After the replacement of the TPP with the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership in 2018, it was reported that Canada had secured an exemption from a clause in the agreement that prohibits discriminatory rules on foreign audio-video services in order to ask services to financially support the creation of Canadian content.


Theatre

In 1971, a group of Canadian playwrights issued the Gaspé Manifesto as a call for at least one-half of the programming at publicly subsidized theatres to be Canadian content. The numerical goal was not achieved, but the following years saw an increase in Canadian content stage productions.


Reception

Michael Geist has criticized the current requirements for film and television production to qualify as Canadian content as being outdated, citing that its requirements being largely dependent on Canadian involvement in specific roles (such as the producer, lead actors, directors, screenwriters, and composers) has led to situations where productions filmed in Canada, using Canadian personnel and talent, or adapted from works by Canadians (such as ''The Handmaid's Tale (TV series), The Handmaid's Tale'') may not necessarily qualify as "Canadian content"—instead being a "foreign location and service production" (FLSP) that uses Canadian resources. Geist noted in some cases that these productions were "frequently indistinguishable" from certified Canadian content, such as ''All or Nothing (sports docuseries), All or Nothing: Toronto Maple Leafs (''which was filmed by Canadian crews, narrated by Canadian actor Will Arnett, and followed a Canadian sports franchise), and films such as ''The Decline (film), The Decline'' and ''Turning Red'' (which both include a number of Canadian actors, personnel in prominent roles, and are set in Canadian locations). He also pointed out that ''Gotta Love Trump''—a Canadian-produced documentary on former U.S. president Donald Trump—was able to receive the CAVCO certification despite only featuring one Canadian citizen as an interview subject.


See also

*Music of Canada *Canadian cultural protectionism


References


Further reading

* * {{citation , last = Edwardson , first =Ryan , year =2008 , title =Canadian content: culture and the quest for nationhood , url =https://books.google.com/books?id=IxVuSFLo8fAC&q=Canadian%20content&pg=PP1 , publisher= University of Toronto Press, isbn=978-0-8020-9759-0


External links


MAPL system
(Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, CRTC)
CBC Archives
Sam Sniderman (Sam the record man) talks about his support for CANCON in 1971 1971 in Canada Television in Canada Radio in Canada Canadian music Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission Canadian identity Protectionism Cultural policy