The new president and CEO of the CRTC, Vicky Eatrides, is betting on seduction. Taking office two weeks ago, she wants to become the ally of consumers. producers and suppliers. Anglophones and Francophones. Even when everyone disagrees.
Arriving in office on January 5, Vicky Eatrides clearly does not lack ambition. He will need it to lead an organization which, these days, accumulates tasks that send him in all directions. The administrative tribunal for the television and radio sectors must also manage access to the infrastructures of the Internet network and wireless networks. Soon, he will ensure that the YouTubes, Netflixs and Spotifys of this world give sufficient prominence to Canadian content.
It must do all this while respecting the Anglophone and Francophone cultural industries, which often oppose each other in their vision of the digital universe.
Prices need to come down
Perhaps to prepare the ground, and certainly to make people forget five years of decisions in favor of the country’s main telecommunications companies and where access to digital services has lagged behind the rest of the world, Ms.me Eatrides, who worked for the Competition Bureau for several years, spent the end of last week meeting with the media.
Her message was repeated often enough to sound like a slogan: “I want to get results for Canadians,” she said in an interview with The duty. Prices need to come down, she adds. ” It’s clear. »
“We are going to review our policies. Decisions will be made in the next few months, not the next few years. »
For residential Internet, these decisions could still come late. Wholesale prices charged by national network owners were raised by the CRTC in 2021. Some of the most annoying independent providers for the national giants have disappeared or been bought out. Otherwise, they have reduced their development or raised their prices to a level that makes them less competitive than some big companies.
If we need other resources, I will request them
For wireless, the settlement of the proposed takeover of Shaw by Rogers, which would place the Freedom Mobile network under Quebecor ownership, is not finished. The CRTC is on the sidelines, the case is before the Competition Tribunal. Its role will be to facilitate the arrival of a fourth national player, and to force the entry into the scene of regional suppliers such as, perhaps, Cogeco.
“In wireless, our decision [sur les opérateurs virtuels] was taken in October. It’s only been three months. We’ll see, but I’d like to update the suppliers,” says M.me Eatrides.
The two digital solitudes
Bill C-11 on online broadcasting platforms will be another priority for the Ottawa leader. The government wants to give the CRTC the means to regulate the presence in Canada of global digital giants that will have an impact on what thousands of users of YouTube, TikTok and other networks produce.
Naturally, these oppose each other. Google has been carrying out a huge advertising campaign against C-11 for months. This worries people who make a living from producing online video content.
The role of the CRTC in all this is not yet clear. Its president wants to consult the public. It risks falling on divergent opinions in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada. Like other topics that affect cultural industries, the position on how to promote local creation is not the same from one language to another.
Mme Eatrides wants to be reassuring. “I know the difference between the two cultures, the two markets and their main players,” she says. “I plan to meet with stakeholders across the country. My first stop will be in Quebec, in the coming weeks. »
More resources?
That’s not all. Bill C-18 is another that may require additional oversight efforts from the CRTC. This bill aims to regulate how digital platforms use content created by Canadian media organizations to generate revenue.
The federal body already has some 550 employees. At the rate things are progressing, he will need more. Fortunately, Vicky Eatrides has her entries into the government. The lawyer by training was in her previous role Assistant Deputy Minister at Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada.
“If we need other resources, I’ll ask for them. The files are large and complex, so yes, it is complicated. I don’t know if we have all the necessary tools, we’ll see. We are an independent administrative tribunal, but I hope to develop a good relationship with the government. »
An ever more intimate relationship, given the growing variety of roles that the CRTC will be called upon to play over the next five years. Mme Eatrides hopes to take advantage of the effervescence of the moment to transform its organization: more modern, more inclusive and faster in its execution.
So the question inevitably arises: will the CRTC have too much on its plate? Its president dodges: after all, she has only been there for two weeks… “But I can already see that we are going to be very busy! »