The CBC Gets its One Time Funding.
Again.
For the eight year in a row, the CBC received its “one-time” funding of $60 million from the government today.
CBC President Hubert Lacroix confirmed the funding in a note to staff this afternoon. This year the funding announcement was confirmed quite quickly after the budget. Last year staff endured several weeks of nail-biting before we found out if we’d be getting the money.
I’m starting to think that the Conservative government may actually like the CBC.
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$60? I get more than that from my in-laws on my birthday!
keith, oops. I fixed that.
The sigh of relief may be premature that the bullet never found its target.
Jennifer Ditchburn (CP, March 4, 2010) cautions that “[t]here is not a single mention of the arts in either the throne speech or the budget. Television networks who might have hoped for a little help with next year’s expensive transition to digital broadcasts from analog might have to wait until the federal regulator finishes a series of studies on their industry.”
From our non-expert and casual glance at this Summary, the Corporation expected revenues to be down for 2009-2010, notwithstanding Stursberg’s flamboyantly grandiose statements last year, and it wants to borrow $25 million each year to make up some of the shortfall in revenues.
CBC/Radio-Canada is still in the crosshairs from what we can determine.
What do you think? Is this a fair albeit very cursory guesstimate of where CBC/Radio-Canada is at?
P.S. The entire “Corporate Plan Summary 2009-2010 to 2013-2014” is at http://www.cbc.radio-canada.ca/submissions/plan/2009/index.shtml ; see the Appendices for more up-to-date revenues and expenses forecasts or “estimations”, budgetary projections, or whatever else you want to call them.
See also the excerpts from the Summary below that refute what M. Stursberg wanted us to believe last fall:
Advertising: A Threatened Source
of Revenue
As a result of the economic downturn, we are
projecting a television revenue shortfall of
almost $65 million in 2008-2009. Moreover,
given that the current economic climate is
expected to continue, conventional television
advertising in Canada is expected to decline by
3.4 per cent in 2009-2010 (Conference Board
of Canada).
Our latest projection indicates that
CBC/Radio-Canada’s television services
will experience a shortfall of $71 million
in advertising revenue in 2009-2010. . .” (15).
The Broadcasting Act Sections 46.1(1) and 54(3.1)
confer on CBC/Radio-Canada the authority to
borrow up to $25 million by any means, subject
to the approval of the Minister of Finance. This
capacity for borrowing has been limited to short-term
investments and activities that promise an
attractive rate of return and is not to be used for
working capital requirements or to fund
temporary operational shortfalls.
The Corporation is hereby seeking the approval
of the Minister of Finance in principle, to
borrow money, not exceeding in the aggregate
$25 million. CBC/Radio-Canada will submit
specific borrowing proposals as required to the
Minister of Finance for approval (30).
Source: CBC/Radio-Canada, “Corporate Plan Summary 2009-2010 to 2013-2014” http://www.cbc.radio-canada.ca/submissions/plan/2009/pdf/plan-e.pdf (accessed March 15, 2010).
Gigi, Jennifer Ditchburn has it wrong. Page 305 of the budget mentions several arts organizations and says the “programs delivered by these organizations are aligned with the priorities of Canadians”
As for the idea to borrow money from the feds, they’ve already slammed the door on that one: http://www.insidethecbc.com/no-bridge-financing-no-additional-funding/