CHANGE AT THE VERY top of the CRTC may be only the tip of the iceberg.
It’s been an open secret-slash-assumption for a while that the Conservative government was not keen on extending Konrad von Finckenstein’s stay as CRTC chairman. While the chair had made it known in the summer he would like to stay on for a few more years at least (a shorter, three year term was discussed, according to people with knowledge of the situation), Federal Cabinet has decided a new person will take the reins come January 25, when von Finckenstein’s mandate ends.
On Tuesday, he sent a short memo to staff outlining the Commission’s goals for the fall and noted in it he is in his last four months as chairman:
“My priorities for the final four months of my term are to:
• work with staff and my fellow Commissioners to reach a decision on wholesale Internet services (i.e., usage-based billing)
• improve our understanding of over-the-top programming services through discussions with the industry
• chair the public hearing on network interconnection, and
• hold a public hearing to develop a regulatory framework for the French-language television market and renew the licences of the private French-language ownership groups.
Although this is an ambitious list, we work in a rapidly changing environment that requires our constant attention. It is important for Canadian consumers and businesses that we continue to step up the plate and fulfill our mandate as best we can.
The government has a well-established process to fill senior positions in the public service. A notice will soon be published to solicit interested candidates for the position of Chairman of the CRTC. There will likely be some speculation about my successor in the media, and I trust this will not serve as a distraction.
I know that I can count on your dedication over the next four months,” reads the memo.
We’re not going to speculate on the reasons why the government will soon hire someone else (there’s more than enough of those silly scribblings available elsewhere online) but we will note that von Finckenstein’s time as chair were the five most tumultuous, divisive, and bewildering years ever seen in the world of communications. The next five look to be fraught with at least as much change – and conflict.
We at Cartt.ca acknowledge that the chairmanship of the CRTC has become an utterly thankless job requiring the thickest of skins and the sharpest of minds, the desire to do much of your work in the public eye (while being second-guessed by thousands, often in the most vulgar terms, in real time) as well as an ability to help divine and define the future of all media – all while swimming some of the deepest seas of hyperbolic, shark-infested BS at the same time dodging innumerable political torpedoes. We think von Finckenstein did a pretty good job as chair. The next man or woman has big shoes to fill.
The names of four men in particular have circulated throughout Ottawa this summer and this month as potential successors: former Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon, Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association president and CEO Bernard Lord, former Quebecor Inc. senior vice-president communications Luc Lavoie, and current CRTC vice-chair, broadcasting, Tom Pentefountas.
(Ed note: As you can see, this is a “sources say” story. We talked to a LOT of people over the past number of weeks and feel pretty confident about our speculation and conclusions here, even if we agreed not to out our sources to our readers.)
But before we get to analyzing that quartet, von Finckenstein isn’t the only commissioner whose term is concluding in 2012. In fact, Manitoba and Saskatchewan regional commissioner Candace Molnar’s term expires before von Finckenstein’s, on January 5th. Then, Ontario regional commissioner Rita Cugini’s is up April 10th, national commissioner Michel Morin’s expires August 5th and vice-chair telecommunications Len Katz’s term expires October 11.
While some have said Morin is a candidate to replace Sylvain Lafrance as EVP French Service at the CBC, still others say he could also be a candidate to be ombudsman for Radio-Canada.
As for Molnar, Cugini and Katz, it’s not known what the government plans, nor are the commissioners publicly discussing their hopes as yet. What additional sources have told us, however, is that the Federal Government wants to trim the number of CRTC commissioners from its current 13 to under 10. The expiring four would let the feds do that, but it would leave two regions (Ontario and the Prairies) without their traditional regional rep without shifting some of the other commissioners into those roles. Plus, an existing commissioner would have to be promoted to vice-chair, telecom.
Again, we should stress that no decisions have yet been taken and all of these commissioners could end up staying on.
As for the four potential replacements as chair, all have varying levels of experience. Cannon, the name most often mentioned, was swept out of office in the NDP surge in Quebec during the last election. His mother, Rosemary “Posie” Power is considered a TV pioneer in Quebec and Cannon was the province of Quebec’s Minister of Communications from 1990-94 in the Robert Bourassa Liberal government. He also worked for a time in the communications industry as vice-president of Unitel. And, if location means anything, he lives in Gatineau.
While Cannon is said to be the Feds number one choice, there is one problem according to people who have talked with him: He’s not sure he wants the job.
Bernard Lord has been the president and CEO of the CWTA for three years and has earned a reputation as a very smart leader who represents the Canadian wireless industry well in Ottawa. Prior to joining the CWTA, he was senior counsel at law firm McCarthy Tetrault and prior to that was the PC premier of New Brunswick from 1999 to 2006. Lord’s name is often brought up for many high profile Ottawa jobs but it’s not known if he is interested in the CRTC gig.
Luc Lavoie has been in and around Quebec TV, Quebecor Inc. and Ottawa politics for decades. He is the former spokesman for Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and had been executive vice-president of corporate affairs at Quebecor for a number of years before stepping down in 2008. He now has a reduced role with Quebecor as spokesperson for its English news station Sun TV News. While often promoted as a potential CRTC chair or commissioner over the years, it’s also thought that due to his relationship with Brian Mulroney, closeness with Quebecor CEO Pierre Karl Péladeau and involvement with Sun News, that his candidacy is a very long shot. It’s just too hot, politically.
Finally, vice-chair, broadcasting Tom Pentefountas is also thought to be in the mix, even though of the four, he has the least experience in the industry and in Ottawa. Appointed just in April of this year by the federal government, Pentefountas was a lawyer from 1996 to 2011 at Silver Sandiford and hosted a radio show for a few years. While he has the least experience, he has made it plain to those who know him in Ottawa that he covets the job.
Other than a public tweet from Minister of Canadian Heritage James Moore (right), the government has said little about the job opening, which hasn’t actually been listed yet.
As we always say, stay tuned…
