“MELS or nothing” for Quebecor projects

Quebecor forces the hand of independent producers so that they use the rental and post-production services of its MELS studio, often at costs higher than the market, denounce around twenty actors in the television and cinematographic sector who confided in The Press.

Many point out that Bell Media, for its part, directs production houses to Grandé Studios – in which it acquired minority shares in 2020 – which rents filming equipment and develops its post-production offering.

While the phenomenon is not new, the leadership of Quebecor and Bell in the projects they broadcast has increased in recent years, according to documents we have obtained and numerous sources involved in the agreements. Significant public funds – emanating from the Media Fund or Telefilm Canada, for example – thus land in the coffers of large companies rather than enhancing the quality of the projects on screen, denounce these sources.

These specify that it is not so much the quality of the work that is at stake, but rather the negotiating power, autonomy and flexibility of the production teams.

“Five or six years ago, using MELS for Groupe TVA and Grandé for Bell Media was suggested, but no more than that,” explains a post-production supervisor, who observes a tightening of requirements.

The majority of artisans and producers who spoke to The Press in the context of this report requested anonymity for fear of losing contracts, or even being “barred” from the profession.

“Winning conditions”

In the industry, we talk about “winning conditions” when it comes to meeting the broadcaster’s requirements, a long-time producer tells us. At Quebecor, these include the rental of studios and filming equipment from MELS – owned by Groupe TVA – and the use of its post-production services such as mixing, sound and coloring.

If a company refuses to comply with these requirements, the television or cinematographic project risks never seeing the light of day, according to consistent testimonies and email exchanges between producers and Quebecor Content that we have obtained.

For projects broadcast by the TVA Group, which includes the generalist channel of the same name and eight specialized channels, “it’s MELS or nothing,” summarizes an independent producer.

In emails viewed by The Pressa Quebecor manager explains to a producer, for example, that the use of MELS for post-production is a condition for triggering a project and that it is impossible to authorize the use of a competing service company.

“MELS prices are not negotiable,” laments a producer who is well aware of the mechanisms in place.

At Bell, which owns the Noovo and Crave channels, using Grandé for postproduction is strongly suggested rather than required, according to two producers and two technical crew chiefs who are not related to each other.

Almost all of our speakers specify that they are denouncing a “system” and a “business model”, but are not questioning the work of the employees with whom they deal directly.

“Producers have no contractual obligation to engage the services of Grandé Studios,” says Veronica Sylvestre, senior manager, communications and public relations at Bell Media, by email. “We put them in contact with the Grandé team to see if they can offer their services at competitive prices. »

“To continue to build important infrastructures, so that our industry shines and prospers, Grandé Studios has always had good commercial relations with all producers and other stakeholders in the industry,” said Suzanne Mckenna, spokesperson. of the company, in an email.

Neither Quebecor nor MELS responded to our interview requests.

Independent studios under threat

David Pierrat, producer at Because film, is founder and co-owner of Studio Notre-Dame, a third “microscopic” player in the rental of filming spaces. He claims to have been told on numerous occasions by independent producers that, despite their wishes, a project had to be done in the MELS studios under pressure from Quebecor.

The managers of two independent post-production companies also say they lost contracts worth tens of thousands of dollars because the use of MELS was required by Quebec’s largest broadcaster.

However, the submissions were less expensive than their competitor’s, we were able to see in documents provided by producers.

“MELS is really more expensive than the competition,” notes an independent producer who works with several post-production companies. She even speaks of “inflated invoices” for services that are not invoiced by competitors, for example data hosting.

“If we find ourselves in two or three years with a duopoly, we will no longer have the means to negotiate,” fears another independent production source who collaborates with Bell and Quebecor. “It’s going to come up on screen at some point. »

Freelancers left behind

Quebecor’s requirements also give freelance artisans a hard time. Three colorists, for example, emphasize The Press having recently lost work because long-time collaborators turned their backs on them in favor of MELS, due to the broadcaster’s demands.

“It affects me a lot,” tells us an independent colorist who requested anonymity to avoid losing the little work he has left.

Normally, half of his calendar for the year is already full at this time, he says, but right now he has “almost nothing.” “MELS took everything from me. »

Independent producers and post-production directors corroborate these testimonies. “Just yesterday, I had to tell a colorist that for the second season of a project, there was a circular economy restriction” on the part of the broadcaster, explains a source in post-production management.

If producers want to hire a particular freelancer for a service offered by MELS, it is sometimes possible for them to work in studios owned by Quebecor, email exchanges show. Production must then pay for the use of the facilities.

AQTIS 514 IATSE, a union that represents many freelancers who spoke to us for this report, did not respond to our numerous interview requests.

Several speakers see a bright spot: Quebecor tends to give up to Quebec producers when international productions are running at full capacity and monopolize MELS services. The relaunch of foreign filming in Quebec, galvanized by the increase in the “tax credit for film production services” in the latest Quebec budget, could ease the pressure in the coming months.

With the collaboration of Jean Siag, The Press

READ FRIDAY: Artisan entrepreneurs deprived of essential income

What does the Competition law ?

Pierre Larouche, vice-dean at the faculty of law at the University of Montreal and an expert in competition law, is of the opinion that Quebecor’s practices in terms of rental and post-production – which are akin to “sales related” – fall into a “gray area” of Canadian law.

According to the Competition Bureau of Canada, tied selling is considered contrary to the Competition law if “such a practice is applied by a major supplier or is widespread in a market” or if it “is likely to result in a significant lessening of competition”.

Mr. Larouche observes that the notion of “significant supplier” generally sticks to that of “company in a dominant position”. It is neither obvious nor excluded that TVA Group, which has 41% of the television broadcasting market share in Quebec, corresponds to the definition of “significant supplier” according to case law, specifies Mr. Larouche.

The Competition Bureau treats complaints confidentially, and it was not possible to determine whether it was interested in the situation exposed in our investigation.

“Apart from the legal in the strict sense, the fact remains that this conduct is close to the type of conduct that would go against competition law and that it also raises issues in terms of cultural policy,” underlines the specialist Pierre Larouche.