OTTAWA – The dispute between Bell Media and a group of independent distributors known as the Canadian Independent Distributors Group (CIDG) will go to final arbitration on June 29, the CRTC said Thursday.
As Cartt.ca has reported, Cogeco Cable, Telus, EastLink, MTS and the Canadian Cable Systems Alliance have balked at the terms of carriage offered to them by Bell Media for its 30-some specialty channels. Alleging undue preference against Bell, the CIDG object to packaging, penetration, and other terms offered to them by Bell Media. Bell says that its wholesale costing model, a penetration based rate card that it says has already been signed by a number of other distributors, rewards stable packaging with stable long-term rates for distributors.
The two sides have been negotiating for more than a year in a process that has included mediation sessions with the Commission and an expedited hearing into dispute resolution processes. In April, the CRTC released its dispute resolution terms in setting the stage for this final process, which we analyzed here, to which Bell responded here, then the CIDG, here.
The public hearing will begin at 9:00 AM on June 29 at CRTC headquarters in Gatineau. If the two sides do not come to an agreement this month and the battle actually makes it to the hearing, it will be the first such dispute settled in this way by the CRTC.
