Calling U.S. commercials an “integral element” of the Super Bowl telecast, the CRTC has issued an order to remove simultaneous substitution, or simsub, from the telecast beginning in 2017.
The order means Canadians will now be able to view U.S. commercials on U.S television stations carried by the country’s various BDUs. Canadians will still be able to watch the Canadian telecast, complete with Canadian commercials, on Canadian channels.
The CRTC announced its intention to eliminate simsub from the Super Bowl telecast early last year, a decision that was roundly criticized by industry organizations including the Association of Canadian Advertisers and Television Bureau of Canada.
The order comes despite the fact both the NFL and Bell Media, which owns Super Bowl rights through 2019, are currently challenging the simsub ban in the Federal Court of Appeal. A decision on the case is expected sometime this fall.
Announcing the order last week, the Commission said it received 458 complaints regarding simsub in 2014, 20% of which – about 92 complaints in total – were related to commercials broadcast during the Super Bowl, with viewers preferring to see U.S. commercials.
The federal regulator countered Bell Media parent Bell Canada Enterprises’ argument that the decision was made “in isolation” and based on the preferences of a “very small number” of Canadians by saying simsub for the Super Bowl is not a right, but an exception to the general requirement set out in the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations.
“As such, the Commission’s proposal is a modification to this exception, through which authorization to perform [simsub] for the Super Bowl is removed,” it said.
The CRTC also argued the relatively low number of complaints regarding simsub during the Super Bowl could be explained by several factors, including the fact that missing a portion of a program is nothing more than an “inconvenience” for viewers, and that the complaint process itself is inconvenient as it requires subscribers to provide the Commission with a “significant amount” of information.
The CRTC also said no new evidence had been provided that demonstrated the elimination of simsub meant Canadian advertisers would no longer have the ability to reach a mass audience in Canada or “relevant local markets” during the Canadian Super Bowl broadcast.
“Further, no new evidence was provided to demonstrate that the Canadian broadcaster of the Super Bowl would not continue to benefit from the ability to sell advertising or to promote Canadian programming to a very significant portion of the Canadian audience watching the Super Bowl,” said the CRTC. “Or if and how any reduction in audience to the Canadian broadcast of the Super Bowl would negatively affect the various stakeholders in the Canadian broadcasting industry.”
The CRTC said simsub is “not in the public interest,” and said it is not convinced it should change its policy decision to exclude the event from the simsub regime.
