TV Signal Theft – Robbing Canadians

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 by: News Canada

(NC)—According to some recent ads, there's no such thing as 'free' cable or satellite TV.

The bottom line message: television signal theft is just that, theft.

It's all part of a recent campaign program by Canada's
broadcasting industry to try and educate the Canadian public to the
serious problem of signal theft.

The reason is simple: Hundreds of thousands of Canadian
households are estimated to be illegally accessing television services,
resulting in hundreds of millions of dollars being siphoned out of the
Canadian broadcasting system each year.

That translates into lost income and revenue for
Canadian actors, writers, directors, producers, technicians,
distributors, broadcasters, advertisers and many others employed in the
production and airing of Canadian television programming.

It means, simply, less money in the system, fewer
productions production, less investment and fewer jobs. Those millions
could be going to Canadian companies, paying for Canadian jobs,
producing quality Canadian programming and helping drive Canada's
economy.

The most direct result of signal theft is seen in its
impact on the Canadian Television Fund. Every time revenue drops for
Canada's broadcasting industry so does the 5 per cent of revenues the
industry contributes to support production of Canadian programming
through the Canadian Television Fund. It amounts to $4 to $7.5 million
lost annually. That's $4 million to $7.5 million fewer dollars
available to support the production of Canadian drama, children's
programming, documentaries and variety and performing arts programming.

The loss of funding is critical. It comes at a time when
the Canadian Television Fund should be striving to increase the number
of hours of programming it helps create and focusing on initiatives
that attract and build Canadian audiences – not scaling back.

Yet the law is clear on satellite signal theft. In the
spring of 2002, the Supreme Court of Canada unanimously ruled that
unauthorized reception of satellite signals is illegal. Since the
ruling, the broadcasting industry, led by companies like Bell
ExpressVu, has worked closely with the Government to stop signal theft.
Illegal equipment has been seized, charges have been laid, and dealers
supplying illegal equipment have been shut down.

But it will take more than just law enforcement to solve this problem.

It will take a change in perception on the part of the
Canadian public and an understanding that just like shoplifting, signal
theft is not a victimless crime.

More information on the issue can found by visiting: www.bell.ca/ exvuusignaltheft

- News Canada

About the Author

News Canada provides a wide selection of current, ready-to-use copyright free news stories and ideas for Television, Print, Radio, and the Web.

News Canada is a niche service in public relations, offering access to print, radio, television, and now the Internet media, with ready-to-use, editorial "fill" items. Monitoring and analysis are two more of our primary services. The service supplies access to the national media for marketers in the private, the public, and the not-for-profit sectors. Your corporate and product news, consumer tips and information are packaged in a variety of ready-to-use formats and are made available to every Canadian media organization including weekly and daily newspapers, cable and commercial television stations, radio stations, as well as the Web sites Canadians visit most often. Visit News Canada and learn more about the NC services.

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