Quebec Court Delivers Surprising Satellite TV Ruling

When authorities in Quebec decided to prosecute two Drummondville men who had advertised in a local newspaper the sale of satellite dishes to catch US television signals, it is unlikely that they expected Canada's entire satellite broadcast regulatory system to be challenged. In R v Thériault, a Quebec Court judge has ruled that federal restrictions on the provision of direct-to-home satellite signals are invalid because they infringed the freedom of speech provisions of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Charter). Judge Côté's decision, handed down October 28th, 2004, invalidates sections 9(1)(c) and 10(1)(b) of the federal Radiocommunication Act (RCA) because they are incompatible with section 2(b) of the Charter. The ruling would allow Canadians to legally subscribe directly to US satellite television services. These services are currently available only through grey-market distributors. Under those services, customers set up mailing addresses in the US but receive the signals in Canada, thereby allowing them to watch a wider range of channels free from CRTC regulation which, among other things, requires a minimum of Canadian-sourced content. Legal satellite television signals come only through a domestic dealer such as Bell ExpressVu or Star Choice. However, it will be a year before the Quebec ruling comes into effect, as Judge Côté suspended the declaration of invalidity for one year from the date of the judgment. There has been swift reaction to the ruling by analysts and industry players. The Chairman of the Coalition Against Satellite Signal Theft, a group comprised of broadcasters, producers and satellite distributors, warned that the ruling will mean "the end of the existing Canadian broadcasting system." Critics have called for a reintroduction of a proposed bill to amend the RCA and for an appeal by the federal government of the Thériault decision. However, a spokesman for the Department of Justice said that the government is reviewing the ruling and has not yet decided whether to appeal. For related news reports, see the following: http://makeashorterlink.com/?N2F313DB9; http://makeashorterlink.com/?E60435DB9; or http://makeashorterlink.com/?H41422DB9. For the text of the Radiocommunication Act, see: http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/r-2/text.html. Pour le texte de la décision en français, voyez: http://makeashorterlink.com/?B33421DB9. Summary by: Clare McCurley