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The Canadian Radio Television and Telecommunications Commission has granted “must offer” status to Out TV, the only service to provide programming for, by and about the LGBTQ community.
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According to a story in Blacklock’s Reporter, in Decision 2022-23 this week, the CRTC said television distributors should classify Out TV as a “must offer” (rather than a “must carry”) service in the English language market as of March 1, 2023.
CRTC Commissioner Claire Anderson, a Whitehorse lawyer, said, “I would have made it mandatory,” meaning Cable and satellite TV customers in Canada should be required to pay for Out TV.
But a majority of federal regulators rejected mandatory carriage for Out TV Network Inc. of Vancouver, the self-described “world’s first LGBTQ network,” opting for “must offer” instead.
As Anderson wrote, “Out TV is the only service to provide programming for, by and about the LGBTQ community. The LGBTQ is a historically marginalized group which is even more apparent by the fact this group has not been specifically mentioned by the Broadcasting Act.”
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Out TV has one million subscribers as an optional cable service, by company estimate.
Statistics Canada says Canadians who identify as gay, lesbian and bisexual number 898,900 or about 3% of the population over age 15.
Paid TV distributors have 9.9 million cable and satellite customers in Canada, according to the CRTC. Mandatory carriage would see customers pay 20 to 50 cents a month for Out TV, a potential multi-million dollar revenue stream.
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“Out TV plays an important role in the Canadian broadcasting system as it is the only service in Canada that targets LGBTQ communities with all its programming,” wrote the Commission.
“Out TV responds to the needs and interests of these communities and contributes to raising greater awareness and understanding by all Canadians.”
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The CRTC continued, “It is in the public interest and consistent with the policy objectives of the Broadcasting Act to grant must-offer status to Out TV.
“The Commission considers this would be an appropriate means of ensuring the service is available to Canadians.”
In their 2021 submission to federal regulators, Out TV said its programs would “educate, enlighten and provide direct access to non-LGBTQ Canadians.”
“Heterosexual viewers can enjoy and relate to content centred on LGBTQ characters and stories, but due to lack of exposure to those stories many straight viewers don’t know that yet,” said the company.
The huge success of Netflix’s Queer Eye program attests to the truth in that.
