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Simultaneous substitution
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Simultaneous substitution (known also as simsubbing or signal substitution) is a sometimes controversial practice mandated by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) requiring cable, direct broadcast satellite and multichannel multipoint distribution service television distribution companies to substitute a regional free-to-air television signal over a foreign or non-local signal when two or more stations are airing the same programming at the same time.
The practice, in effect since 1972, sometimes is erroneously called simulcasting, the name of a practice different from simultaneous substitution in that there is no signal replacement.
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Encyclopedia
Simultaneous substitution (known also as simsubbing or signal substitution) is a sometimes controversial practice mandated by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) requiring cable, direct broadcast satellite and multichannel multipoint distribution service television distribution companies to substitute a regional free-to-air television signal over a foreign or non-local signal when two or more stations are airing the same programming at the same time.
The practice, in effect since 1972, sometimes is erroneously called simulcasting, the name of a practice different from simultaneous substitution in that there is no signal replacement. A variant of simultaneous substitution, known as syndication exclusivity, also occurs in the United States.
According to the CRTC, the practice of simultaneous substitution is necessary "to protect the rights of broadcasters, to enable TV stations to draw enough advertising dollars and to keep advertising dollars in the Canadian market". Canadian broadcast television networks, who must request each and every substitution on an individual basis, have been criticized for exploiting the regulation and not investing enough money into Canadian content.
History
Through the 1950s, CBC was the monopoly broadcaster in Canada. In 1960, the Board of Broadcast Governors, predecessor to the CRTC, granted licenses for commercial stations in order to provide an alternative to CBC. These broadcasters began operating in 1961, and acquired Canadian rights to many US programs.
As approximately 30 percent of the Canadian population — those who were close enough to the US border — had access to over-the-air (OTA) broadcast signals from both Canadian and US networks, they could choose to watch their favorite American programs on either a Canadian or US network. Many of these Canadians chose to watch the US network (i.e. CBS, ABC or NBC) rather than the Canadian network feed. Consequently, many Canadian broadcasters began airing their US-purchased programs in advance of the US broadcaster to attract more viewers.
As cable television began to proliferate across Canada in the early 1970s, viewers far from the US border were beginning to obtain access to US signals that were once unobtainable. In 1972, as response to pressure from Canadian broadcasters, the CRTC introduced the simultaneous substitution regulation as a method to circumvent diminution of the value of Canadian networks' exclusive broadcast rights to US programs. Through the 1990s, as satellite television services gained popularity and were eventually licensed in Canada, simultaneous substitution became a requirement on these services as well.
By the late 1990s and into the 2000s, the simultaneous substitution regulation had reached its full potential, with Canadian broadcast networks airing mostly all of their US-purchased programming in sync with the US network's broadcast to ensure maximum eligibility to request substitution.
Effects
The high incidence of simultaneous substitution requests by privately-owned Canadian television networks to draw advertising dollars has had profound effects on various spectrums, ranging from Canadian network programming schedules to Canadian culture identity. While some effects are seen as positive, many are also seen as having a negative on Canadian television and culture.
Programming
Network schedules
As private Canadian broadcast networks such as CTV, Global, A and E! often rely heavily on US-originating programs, their programming schedules are often heavily affected by the schedules of corresponding United States network broadcasters. For example, if Fox, a US network, were to move their series House to a new timeslot, the Canadian broadcaster of first-run episodes of that program would — in order to be eligible for requesting simultaneous substitution — need to move their broadcast of House to correspond with the new Fox timeslot.
Many US networks air their most popular programming during primetime hours, meaning that Canadian private broadcasters are often unable or unwilling to air their own original programming during these hours to maximize simsub opportunities. As a result, Canadian content programming is commonly scheduled as a secondary concern, to fill holes where an American program cannot be placed for substitution.
Portions of programming lost
Due to the high number of simultaneous substitutions requested by Canadian broadcasters, there are frequent examples of portions of programming being lost due to the difficulties of accurately timing the carrying-out of substitutions consistently.
All substitutions are carried out by broadcast distribution undertakings (BDUs), meaning inaccurately-timed substitutions will vary by provider. There are widespread complaints that the portions of programming lost as a result of these substitutions is severely impacting television viewing pleasure for Canadians.
High-definition television
High-definition television (HDTV) feeds must also be simultaneously substituted, but due to the lack of local OTA HD transmitters outside of major markets (such as Vancouver and the Greater Toronto Area), HD simsubs are not very common outside of the aforementioned areas.
Although CRTC's policy regarding HD simultaneous substitutions do not require them to be applied if the quality of the Canadian feed is not equal or better than the US feed, there have been instances whereas inferior Canadian feeds were substituted over higher-quality US feeds regardless. In such cases, complaints can be , whereas the commission will confer with the applicable BDU and Canadian network about the issue.
On-screen graphics
Implementation of simultaneous substitutions can also cause issues involving digital on-screen graphics applied by the originating broadcaster. Some Canadian broadcasters (primarily stations owned by CTVglobemedia) overlay opaque bugs over the US bug, while others (such as Canwest-owned stations) add their own bug to a different area of the screen.
Exceptions
Enforcement, or lack thereof, of the regulations has led to instances where some Canadian cable and satellite subscribers are able to receive the original American channels in Canada without simultaneous substitution.
For example, many viewers in the Greater Toronto Area can pick up American channels from New York, Buffalo or Seattle in their original format. Many viewers from Toronto were able to watch these channels for events such as the 2008 Super Bowl where there are no Canadian commercial interruptions. However, following a complaint filed by CTVglobemedia in 2008, the CRTC has tightened up enforcement, issuing a statement that the 2009 Super Bowl standard and high definition broadcasts must be simsubbed for providers within range of CTV's OTA transmitters. This made it impossible to obtain the NBC feed for some people within range of the OTA transmitters.
Simsubs and satellite
In terms of satellite, the practice of simsubbing depends on the company. Star Choice invokes simsubs according to the subscriber's postal code, and is implemented by the subscriber's receiver; this method enforces simsubs only in areas where they are needed. Even in areas where they are enforced, some worked their way around this by unplugging their receiver at the start of the program and plugging it back in.
Bell TV invokes simsubs to all subscribers nationwide, implemented by its uplink centre; by doing so, simsubs for a particular channel are implemented nationwide, regardless of where the subscriber lives or which feed the subscriber watches. Bell TV has also simsubbed TSN feeds, even though legally they are not required to because it is a specialty service (however, Bell owns a minority share in the network).
See also
External links
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