NASA TV - why can't we get coverage in Canada?
When the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opporunity made their historic landings on Mars in January 2004 I went looking for NASA tv on Canadian television.
No luck...Unfortunately NASA tv isn't available in this country so we make do with webcasts. (http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/index.html).
I recently received a letter from the federal government which explains the reasoning behind the decision not to carry NASA television in Canada. Please write to the CRTC address listed below if you wish to have NASA tv added to the roster of channels available in this country. Your voice DOES count!
The letter received Feb 10, 2004:
The Office of the Prime Minister has
forwarded to the Minister of
Canadian Heritage, Ms. HélPne Chalifour Scherrer, a copy
of your
correspondence of January 5, 2004, regarding the possibility of
a temporary
licence for the viewing of the NASA television channel in Canada.
I am
replying on behalf of Ms. Chalifour Scherrer.
The Minister appreciates being advised
of your views and has
carefully noted your comments with respect to this matter.
While the
Department of Canadian Heritage is responsible for overall broadcasting
policy and legislation, the Canadian Radio-television and
Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) is responsible for the licensing,
regulation and supervision of all aspects of the Canadian broadcasting
system. The Commission was established by Parliament under
the
Broadcasting Act as an autonomous body that operates independently
of the
Government and is responsible for its own day-to-day operations
and
decisions.
In view of the autonomy of the CRTC,
you might wish to share your
views directly with the Secretary General of the Commission at the
address
provided in the enclosure.
The CRTC recognizes that a diversity
of foreign programming is a
valuable supplement to Canadian programming. Foreign services
must be
approved by the Commission and become part of its Lists of Eligible
Satellite Services.
In January 1999, Shaw Cablesystems
Ltd. applied to the CRTC for
authority to add the signal of NASA Television as part of a digital
service
offering on its cable distribution undertakings serving Calgary,
Alberta.
However, in January 2000, in decision CRTC 2000-7, the Commission
denied
the application. To obtain further information with respect
to this CRTC
decision and CRTC policies, I suggest that you visit the Commission
Web
site at http://www.crtc.gc.ca.
I trust that this information is useful.
Please accept our best
wishes.
Yours sincerely,
Luc Rouleau
Director
Ministerial Correspondence Secretariat
Enclosure
ANNEX
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)
Secretary General
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0N2
Telephone:
(819) 997-0313
Toll-free:
1-877-249-2782
Facsimile:
(819) 994-0218
Electronic mail: info@crtc.x400.gc.ca
Web site: http://www.crtc.gc.ca
Webmaster: Joan Miller
luxe at techie dot com
Updated Feb 2004