# This just in... Sirius & XM approved for Canada.



## Richard King (Mar 25, 2002)

Both sat radio services may now be sold in Canada. Established rules are that total content must be at least 10% Canadian material. This could be a great new market.


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## syphix (Jun 23, 2004)

According to this article, there's a bit more to it:

# At least eight original channels produced in Canada. A maximum of nine foreign channels may be offered for each Canadian channel;
# At least 85% of the musical selections and spoken word programming broadcast on the Canadian channels must be Canadian;
# At least 25% of the Canadian channels must be in the French language;
# At least 25% of the musical selections on the Canadian channels must be new Canadian musical selections;
# A further 25% of the selections must be by emerging Canadian artists.


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## syphix (Jun 23, 2004)

Also:


> The licensees must also contribute at least 5% of their gross annual revenues to initiatives for the development of Canadian talent, such as FACTOR or MusicAction funds which assist the development of new musical artists. These contributions will be contributed equally to the development of English and French-language talent.


I don't think XM & Sirius do this even in the U.S., why do it in Canada?? I hope they pass on this.


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## Richard King (Mar 25, 2002)

> # At least eight original channels produced in Canada. A maximum of nine foreign channels may be offered for each Canadian channel;


Glad you found the official notice. I just posted what I heard on CNBC and Googled for a notice but it wasn't up yet.
The numbers above translate pretty closely to the 10% that CNBC mentioned on the air. I think this could add some very interesting programming... "The Guess Who All Day Every Day Channel"? :lol:


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## Richard King (Mar 25, 2002)

> The licensees must also contribute at least *5% of their gross annual revenues * to initiatives for the development of Canadian talent, such as FACTOR or MusicAction funds which assist the development of new musical artists. These contributions will be contributed equally to the development of English and French-language talent.


 Ah, Socialism at it's finest. THAT is NUTS. I don't even know if there is a total of 5% profit margin on total revenues, there CERTAINLY isn't yet.


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## syphix (Jun 23, 2004)

That 5% would come from Sirius Canada, not Sirius U.S., from what I recall hearing.


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## obrienaj (Apr 8, 2004)

Full release

CRTC approves satellite radio
Last Updated Thu, 16 Jun 2005 18:04:36 EDT
CBC Arts 
The CRTC on Thursday approved applications for three subscription-based radio services, but imposed strong Canadian content rules. 


INDEPTH: Satellite Radio: FAQs 


Delphi XM radio is used to pick up satellite radio. (CP photo) 
"These licences will harness new technologies for Canadians and give Canadian talent exposure to listeners across Canada and indeed, North America...through new Canadian channels and airplay on U.S. channels," said Charles Dalfen, chairperson of the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission. 

The commission placed Canadian content rules on two of the services, which include two of the largest U.S. satellite radio companies. 

Services from Canadian Satellite Radio and the CBC, partnered with Sirius, must offer: 

At least eight original channels produced in Canada. A maximum of nine foreign channels may be offered for each Canadian channel. 
At least 85% of the musical selections and spoken word programming broadcast on the Canadian channels must be Canadian. 
At least 25% of the Canadian channels must be in the French language. 
At least 25% of the musical selections on the Canadian channels must be new Canadian musical selections. 
A further 25% of the selections must be by emerging Canadian artists.
Canadian Satellite Radio has partnered with Washington-based XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc., while the CBC and Standard Broadcasting have partnered with New York-based Sirius. 

The third pay service, to be run by CHUM and Montreal-based Astral Media, will use land broadcast towers to broadcast their digital service. 

That service must comply with current regulations under the Broadcasting Act, including 35% Canadian content and for French channels, a minimum of 65% French music. 

The lobby group Friends of Canadian Broadcasting opposes the decision, saying it may appeal to federal cabinet or through the courts. 

"Today's decision creates a pipeline for U.S. radio programs direct to Canada, with little in return for our country," said group spokesperson, Ian Morrison. 

High-quality, cross-country service 

Satellite radio offers commercial-free, near CD-quality sound no matter where listeners are in the country. It's delivered by a network of satellites, and not through the AM or FM band, which have distance and quality limitations. 

Listening to satellite radio requires specialized equipment, such as a receiver for your home or car. In the United States, where satellite radio has been in operation for several years, receivers are a dealer option in some cars. 

The proposed subscription fees are around $13 per month. 

Laura Nenych, with Ryerson University's communications department, said the niche channels appeal to people who spend a lot of time in their vehicles, such as commuters or salespeople.


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## obrienaj (Apr 8, 2004)

Richard King said:


> Ah, Socialism at it's finest. THAT is NUTS. I don't even know if there is a total of 5% profit margin on total revenues, there CERTAINLY isn't yet.


Nothing to do with Socialism, alas the Martin Govt is nothing but a Liberal govt with lots of capitalist agenda.


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## obrienaj (Apr 8, 2004)

Richard King said:


> Both sat radio services may now be sold in Canada. Established rules are that total content must be at least 10% Canadian material. This could be a great new market.


I hope so, it would be GREAT to get the CBC in the USA. One of the finest radio networks in the world.

Anyone know when/how USA Sirius subscribers will be able to get this ?

Andy


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

Would the FCC have to approve of Canadian broadcasters broadcasting directly into the US?

I'm kind of curious where Sirius is finding the bandwidth to do this plus their upcoming video service. Maybe they're going to follow D*'s lead and do Sirius-Lite


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## compubit (Jun 8, 2004)

I would think as long as the CBC owns all of the (US) rights to their programming (which I believe they do), and don't (significantly) overlap existing programming, they would be able broadcast it in the US - granted CBC has (had) several clear channel stations, that covered significant parts of the US - I recall listening to CBC Saskatchewan and CBC Manitoba driving across the northern plains. I don't know if they've moved the Prairie stations to FM like they have many other places in Canada (Toronto & Montreal in particular).

If they were to add several Canadian stations to Sirius (including CBC), I'd be signed up in a heartbeat!

Jim


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## obrienaj (Apr 8, 2004)

compubit said:


> I would think as long as the CBC owns all of the (US) rights to their programming (which I believe they do), and don't (significantly) overlap existing programming, they would be able broadcast it in the US -!
> 
> Jim


They do allow NPR/PRI stations in the USA to broadcast "As It Happens", that is the only show I am aware of that routinely airs on US stations. One other problem might be that CBC (at least CBC Radio One -Toronto) relays various internation programmes via the World Radio Network during the very early morning hours. Since Sirius already carries the World Radio Network, that might be an issue.


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## alebowgm (Jun 12, 2004)

http://www.pulse24.com/Business/Top_Story/20050616-002/page.asp

With the fact that for every 9 US stations, there needs to be 1 Canadian in a programming package, with a minimum of 8 Canadian stations being broadcasted, can't both XM and SIRIUS just launch a bird in a Canadian Orbital slot and fill it only with Canadian Programming, then just add it as tiers...

Will be interesting to see if those south of Canada will be able to pickup the Canadian Content, and what will that mean when travelling to Canada? I know that both Sirius and XM have reception in Canada because they need to transmit in both Alaska and northeast USA (being that Ontario is more south than some states, so they get carry over), also what will happen to the sports programing...


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## Steve Mehs (Mar 21, 2002)

I never liked this idea from the start. If XM or Sirius want to get into Canada they should launch separate services. Bandwidth is limited and I don’t want channels to be axed or sound quality to get worse because of a bunch of Canadian stations have to be added.


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## alebowgm (Jun 12, 2004)

While I agree with that, I believe that in order for Sirius or XM to get into Canada, they also need to operate some of their programming from a Canadian DBS Slot. Hence, any of the Canadian stations that have to be added can be added only from the Canadian satellites that will be launched. 

Moreover, the Canadian content may be of interest, depending on what they decide to go with for every 1 of 9 stations...


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## obrienaj (Apr 8, 2004)

alebowgm said:


> While I agree with that, I believe that in order for Sirius or XM to get into Canada, they also need to operate some of their programming from a Canadian DBS Slot. Hence, any of the Canadian stations that have to be added can be added only from the Canadian satellites that will be launched.
> 
> Moreover, the Canadian content may be of interest, depending on what they decide to go with for every 1 of 9 stations...


Canadian content is generally more varied than US radio content. Certainly, CBC's networks are significantly different than most US broadcast stations carrying a wide array of entertainment and news, much broader than NPR. "Regular" (Non-CBC) Canadian stations sound similar to US stations but often have a broader play list, feature a few more unfamliar/new artists, don't beep out swear words as much. French language Canadian stations will have more European feel to their music, not just songs in French, more Europop in English. Sports Networks in Canada sound the same as the USA stations.


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## Art7220 (Feb 4, 2004)

Steve Mehs said:


> I never liked this idea from the start. If XM or Sirius want to get into Canada they should launch separate services...


The problem would be, we would have to get new equipment if we want to hear the Can channels. Then, it would be like DirecTV and Dish, who have zero Canadian content, which is why I dropped them except for the supers. There's cable, if you really want to see American channels. But anyway...

I'm now thinking of going Gray Market for Stern next year. Saves a couple bucks off the subscription. Expect a lot of grays from the US now.

-A-


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## SamC (Jan 20, 2003)

What you will hear (XM version) IMHO:

On the music side, they will have to come up with 8 Canadian stations in order to offer all of the so-called US musical channels. So look for one Canadian channel per basic genre, such as Canada Rocks, Canadian Country, etc. Plus a couple of these will have French DJs, which covers the French requirement. These will NOT be offered to US subscribers. 

On the talk/sports/other side, look for nothing on the sports menu other than NASCAR (until it goes away) and the baseball package, probably with the Blue Jays always having their announcers on (rather than the current system of always using the home team). Then they will look for Canadian versions of sports talk networks or produce their own. Maybe one or two of these. On the talk side, the only ones that would show up would be ASK, Radio Classics, Sonic, Discovery, Open Road, and the two comedy channels. Probably with Toronto, and maybe Montreal and Vancouver, added to the traffic system. None of the US news channels will make it, rather you will get probably a national feed of CBC, plus whatever they can hodgepodge together as a Canadian political talk channel out of syndication, plus CPAC.

Other than perhaps CBC, the effect of this on US subscribers will be zero. US units will "see" the current US line up, plus perhaps the CBC. Canadian units will "see" the line-up I describe above. Unauthorized channels on both sides of the line simply won't appear.


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## SAEMike (May 29, 2004)

alebowgm said:


> http://www.pulse24.com/Business/Top_Story/20050616-002/page.asp
> 
> With the fact that for every 9 US stations, there needs to be 1 Canadian in a programming package, with a minimum of 8 Canadian stations being broadcasted, can't both XM and SIRIUS just launch a bird in a Canadian Orbital slot and fill it only with Canadian Programming, then just add it as tiers...
> 
> Will be interesting to see if those south of Canada will be able to pickup the Canadian Content, and what will that mean when travelling to Canada? I know that both Sirius and XM have reception in Canada because they need to transmit in both Alaska and northeast USA (being that Ontario is more south than some states, so they get carry over), also what will happen to the sports programing...


Sirius and XM do not offer service in Alaska.


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