Amidst all the uncertainty surrounding the United States
election, it has been easy to lose focus on the domestic Canadian
political landscape. This is especially the case when the
domestic
legislation being passed by the
House of Commons is neither a particularly hot button
topic nor related to the all encompassing COVID-19 pandemic.
However, on November 3, 2020, as our southern neighbours cast their
votes,
Bill C-10, An Act to amend the
Broadcasting Act, was introduced to the House of
Commons.
Bill C-10's main purpose seems to be bringing online
streaming services, such as
Netflix, Amazon Prime and Apple Music under the
CRTC's authority by categorizing them as "online
undertakings", a distinct category of broadcast undertakings
which are subject to the CRTC's oversight. The bill would grant
the CRTC a broad new power to impose conditions on the carrying on
of broadcasting undertakings in the interests of its broadcasting
policies. The last major new power
