CBC Television 2 and Télé-2 were proposed second television services to be operated by the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is the Canadian Public broadcasting, public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster, with its E ...

(CBC)/Société Radio-Canada (SRC). These were to have been the Canadian equivalents to

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...

in the United Kingdom, itself the second television channel of the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

History

In the late 1970s, the CBC/SRC created a plan that would make two additional channels available to Canada's 3.5 million

cable Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...

subscribers. These two channels, CBC-2 and Télé-2, would have potentially bumped U.S. commercial stations carried on the cable system because, at the time, there was a lack of extra channel capacity on most cable systems. The CBC/SRC made a formal application to the

Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; ) is a public organization in Canada tasked with the mandate as a regulatory agency tribunal for various electronic communications, covering broadcasting and telecommunic ...

(CRTC) in August 1980 for a licence to create a network that would replay programming in English and French (Télé-2), with the formal hearing taking place over three days, beginning on January 14, 1981. The two new services would commence broadcasting in January 1982. In response to the application, the CRTC received 82 interventions, of which 25 individuals or organizations would make in-person presentations. Among those opposed to the creation of the networks were

Canwest Broadcasting Canwest Global Communications Corporation, which operated under the corporate name Canwest, was a major Canadian media conglomerate based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with its head offices at Canwest Place (now called 201 Portage). It held radio, te ...

(owner of

CKND-TV CKND-DT (channel 9) is a television station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, part of the Global Television Network. The station is owned and operated by network parent Corus Entertainment, with studios on the 30th floor of 201 Portage in downtow ...

), four Progressive Conservative MPs, the

Canadian Association of Broadcasters The Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) is a trade association representing the interests of commercial radio and television broadcasters in Canada. It is co-located with the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council in Ottawa. It was first ...

(CAB), B.C. Television Broadcasting System Ltd., and the

Ontario government The Government of Ontario () is the body responsible for the administration of the Canadian province of Ontario. The term ''Government of Ontario'' refers specifically to the executive—political ministers of the Crown (the Cabinet/Executive ...

. Among the supporters of the application were various arts groups. The networks would air Monday thru Friday between 6:45 p.m. and 11:05 p.m. On weekends, the schedule would air between 6:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. Operational costs in the first year for both networks would be C$27.5–30 million. The corporation had proposed that CBC-2 would: * be non-commercial * be a basic, must-carry service * feature programming from CBC and provincial educational broadcasters * feature regional programming broadcast to a national audience * feature arts and culture, drama, news

License denial

In CRTC Decision 81-353, the governing body denied the CBC's applications, citing concerns over funding, audience erosion, and the services' limited reach. The commission sought to have the original CBC television network be completed first.

References

CBC Television Proposed television channels and networks {{Canada-tv-station-stub

History

License denial

Further reading

References