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For permission to reproduce the information in this publication for commercial purposes, please fill out the Application for Crown Copyright Clearance or contact the ISED Citizen Services Centre mentioned above. © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Industry, 2020 Cat. No. Iu-37-14/2020E-PDF ISBN 978-0-660-33365-6 Aussi offert en français sous le titre L’avenir des communications au Canada : le temps d’agir 3 Letter to the Honourable Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry and the Honourable Minister of Canadian Heritage January 29, 2020 Dear Minister Bains and Minister Guilbeault, On behalf of the members of the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel, I am pleased to submit to you our final Report with recommendations on modernizing the legislation governing Canada’s communications sector. This Report is the product of a review of Canada’s communications laws including the Broadcasting Act, the Telecommunications Act, and the Radiocommunication Act. This is the first time that the three statutes are reviewed together in a comprehensive and integrated fashion. Therefore, Canadians can be confident that the legislative framework is a unified whole, relevant in the digital age. As an independent panel, we were given the freedom to think broadly and openly about how best to build communications legislation for the future, and we are grateful to the government for this opportunity. Our Panel knew that we had to think big and consider what would serve Canadians today and years into the future. We feel strongly that, while our laws need to respond to the issues of today, a lasting legislative framework must be resilient, flexible, and adaptable to the unforeseen but inescapable changes of tomorrow. We believe that our recommendations will provide policymakers and regulators with the legislative framework and regulatory tools necessary to realize the promise of communications technologies. The single most important message to convey on behalf of Canadians is one of urgency. I encourage your government to move promptly to consider this Report and engage with Canadians to implement the necessary changes to ensure that Canada is positioned for success. It has been a pleasure and a privilege to have travelled across the country and met with a wide range of stakeholders, governments, experts, and members of the public. They hosted us in their communities and territories, and we appreciate this. This Report has been greatly influenced by their views and the perspective of those who responded to our Call for Comments on how legislation should be updated to reflect the rapidly changing environment. I would like to thank everyone who participated in the consultation process. I would like to recognize and thank my fellow panelists Peter Grant, Marina Pavlović, Monique Simard, Monica Song, and Pierre Trudel for their expertise, their passion and their unwavering determination 4 and commitment to address the issues and questions posed in our Terms of Reference. Hank Intven also brought his in-depth expertise and experience to our work during his time as a panelist, and I would like to extend my appreciation for his contribution. I would also like to thank the distinguished team of advisors who assisted the Panel in this process and whose wise counsel and advice was appreciated and considered. The Panel was fortunate to have received the support of the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Secretariat. They are an extraordinary team of public servants whose contributions enriched the development of the Report and ensured its successful completion. They were aided along the way by a team of enthusiastic and bright students. I would like to highlight the leadership of Helen C. Kennedy and James Nicholson in their role as co-leads as well as Special Advisor Kelly Beaton and thank them for their invaluable efforts, encouragement, and support throughout this process. Finally, on a personal note, I would like to thank you for your confidence in my leadership. It has been an honour to serve Canadians on this critically important matter. Sincerely, Janet Yale Chair Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel TABLE OF CONTENTS OVERVIEW 9 LIST OF RECOMMENDATIONS 19 1. RENEWING THE INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK 19 2. AFFORDABLE ACCESS TO ADVANCED TELECOMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS 22 3. CREATION, PRODUCTION, AND DISCOVERABILITY OF CANADIAN CONTENT 29 4. IMPROVING THE RIGHTS OF CANADIANS AND ENHANCING TRUST IN THE DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT 36 1. RENEWING THE INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK 39 1.1 INTRODUCTION 39 1.2 THE CURRENT INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK 39 1.3 A REIMAGINED CRTC 41 1.3.1 A Proactive and Forward-Looking Style of Regulation 41 1.3.2 An Enhanced Focus on Research and Data 42 1.3.3 Appointment and Role of Commissioners 44 1.3.4 Transparency 46 1.3.5 Oversight 46 1.4 ENHANCING INSTITUTIONAL COOPERATION 50 1.5 ENABLING BROAD PARTICIPATION 54 1.5.1 Stable, Predictable Funding 55 1.5.2 Equitable Opportunities for Consultation 58 2. AFFORDABLE ACCESS TO ADVANCED TELECOMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS 61 2.1 INTRODUCTION 61 2.2 REDEFINING THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS ECOSYSTEM 62 2.2.1 Scope of the Legislation 63 2.2.2 Foreign Ownership 68 2.2.3 Better Information on Network and Network Ownership 69 2.3 REALIZING AFFORDABLE ACCESS TO BROADBAND SERVICES TODAY 70 2.3.1 Broadband Deployment in Rural and Remote Communities 72 2.3.2 Fostering a Competitive Market 77 2.3.3 Identifying and Addressing Barriers to Competition 82 2.4 UNLOCKING THE ADVANCED NETWORKS OF TOMORROW 88 2.4.1 Network Deployment and Investment 88 2.4.2 Spectrum Management 95 2.4.3 Communications Equipment 101 2.5 ENSURING FAIR AND SECURE ACCESS 104 2.5.1 Network Security and Reliability 104 2.5.2 Net Neutrality 107 2.6 A NEW SET OF POLICY OBJECTIVES FOR THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT 113 3. CREATION, PRODUCTION, AND DISCOVERABILITY OF CANADIAN CONTENT 115 3.1 INTRODUCTION 115 3.2 ASSERTING CULTURAL SOVEREIGNTY THROUGH MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS 117 3.2.1 Broadening Our Horizons—Types of Content and Platforms 117 3.2.2 Setting Policy Objectives for the Sector that Reflect the Changing Environment 124 3.3 EMBRACING THE GLOBAL MARKET 128 3.3.1 Defining Actors and Activities 129 3.3.2 Regulating in a More Open and Global Environment 134 3.3.3 Guiding the Regulator 136 3.4 REIMAGINING SUPPORT FOR CANADIAN MEDIA CONTENT 137 3.4.1 Digital Disruption of Regulatory Funding Models 138 3.4.2 Modernizing the CRTC’s Regulatory Framework 143 3.4.3 Ensuring Public Support to Canadian Creators 149 3.5 SUPPORTING DIVERSE, ACCURATE, TRUSTED, AND RELIABLE NEWS 152 3.5.1 Recognizing the Crisis in Traditional News Media 152 3.5.2 Ensuring the Creation of Diverse, Accurate, Trusted, and Reliable News 155 3.6 ENHANCING THE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY TOOLKIT 158 3.6.1 Improving Regulatory Impact and Efficiency 158 3.6.2 Monitoring and Compliance 159 3.6.3 Consequential Amendments 159 3.6.4 Copyright and Piracy 160 3.7 STRENGTHENING THE NATIONAL PUBLIC BROADCASTER 162 3.7.1 Updating the Mandate of the Public Broadcaster 162 3.7.2 A Revised Funding Model 166 3.7.3 Governance and Accountability 169 3.8 RECOGNIZING THE URGENCY TO ACT 172 3.8.1 Requiring Internet Media Content Undertakings to Contribute 172 3.8.2 Applying Sales Tax on Foreign Media Content Undertakings 174 4. IMPROVING THE RIGHTS OF CANADIANS AND ENHANCING TRUST IN THE DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT 175 4.1 INTRODUCTION 175 4.2 ACHIEVING BARRIER-FREE ACCESS TO COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES 177 4.2.1 Ensuring Affordability of Telecommunications Services for Marginalized Canadians from Diverse Social Locations 177 4.2.2 Improving Accessibility of Communications Services for All Canadians 179 4.2.3 Fostering Digital and Media Literacy 183 4.3 ADDRESSING THE IMPACT OF DATA COLLECTION AND USE 185 4.3.1 Individual Data: Protecting Privacy 185 4.3.2 The Collective Interest in Monitoring and Regulating Big Data 187 4.4 ADDRESSING SOCIAL HARMS IN THE DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT 190 4.5 ILLEGAL CONTENT AND CONDUCT 193 4.6 EMPOWERING AND PROTECTING CONSUMERS OF COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES 194 ANNEX A – COMMISSIONED RESEARCH 199 ANNEX B – TERMS OF REFERENCE 201 ANNEX C – LIST OF WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS 215 ANNEX D – LIST OF STAKEHOLDER MEETINGS 223 ANNEX E – MEMBERS OF THE BROADCASTING AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS LEGISLATIVE REVIEW SECRETARIAT 231 ANNEX F – ABBREVIATIONS 233 Overview | 9 OVERVIEW Our Panel was tasked in June 2018 by the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (now the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry) and the Minister of Canadian Heritage to review Canada’s decades-old communications legislative framework.