If you think TV ads are annoyingly loud or shrill, the CRTC wants to hear from you.
The federal regulator has invited viewers to offer opinions on the issue by April 18, with an eye to fixing the problem of commercials that sound louder than the programming they interrupt.
CRTC chairman Konrad von Finckenstein said in a Thursday news release that loud ads are a “significant annoyance.”
“Viewers should not have to adjust the volume at every commercial break, and we will work with the broadcasting industry to find an acceptable solution.”
In the last three years, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission has received over 600 complaints about the noise level of TV ads.
Last week, Conservative MP Nina Grewal tabled a private member’s bill to require broadcasters to ensure volumes match between commercials and the accompanying programming.
“It’s a common complaint, you’re watching a program at a comfortable volume, the program breaks for a commercial and suddenly you’re jolted out of your seat by the loudness,” she explained at the time.
On its web page, the CRTC lists a number of reasons TV ads may seem to scream while trying to sell.
They include production techniques, audio compression levels that are set at maximum loudness and in frequencies designed to grab attention and the fact a commercial may directly follow a tranquil moment in the programming.
There are currently no laws in Canada dealing with TV ad volumes, although the U.S. recently passed a regulation and the United Kingdom established rules against excessively noisy or strident ads in 2008.
The CRTC said it’s trying to determine the practical application of volume target levels recommended in 2009 by the Advanced Television Systems Committee, the standards agency for North American broadcasters.
The commission wants to hear from consumers and experts who can comment on possible “technical and regulatory measures” that would ensure adds are not perceived to be louder and the costs associated with making changes.
