(Ottawa) After asking the federal telecommunications regulator to waive local news and Canadian programming requirements for its television stations, BCE’s media division is seeking to appeal a decision by the Broadcasting Commission and of Canadian Telecommunications (CRTC) which renewed its broadcasting licenses for three additional years.
In a motion filed with the Federal Court of Appeal, Bell Media says the renewal occurred without a public hearing and could cause the regulator to prejudge issues raised in its applications to the CRTC last June.
On August 8, the CRTC made public its decision announcing the administrative renewal of the broadcasting licenses of large companies, including Bell, until August 2026.
Bell’s programming demands, which the CRTC has not yet ruled on, include reducing its Canadian content spending obligations and dropping requirements for a fixed number of hours per week of broadcasting local news.
Bell added that its local television stations and broadcast news services were experiencing financial difficulties that required regulatory action.
The CRTC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.