In their wisdom and looking down from their ivory tower back east, the good old boys at the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) have decided it wouldn’t be fair to have a local FM station broadcasting throughout the South Cariboo.
Therefore, the CRTC (Can’t Really Take Competition) denied co-applicant Gerhard Loeffeler’s licence application because, according to the commissioners, it would negatively impact CKBX’s viability by capturing some of the existing AM radio’s “listenership” and advertising revenue.
So what is the Can’t Really Take Competition’s (CRTC) mandate when sitting in judgment over these licence application?
Are the commissioners there to ensure one company has a monopoly in each broadcast area regardless of the quality of its programming that, in turn, directly affects the bottom line of its advertising revenues?
If that is the case, the CRTC has outlived its usefulness, or, perhaps, lost sight of its real mandate to protect, enhance and encourage Canadian content and political, musical, social and cultural diversity.
The Can’t Really Take Competition should not be in the business of protecting monopolies.
Radio broadcasting is a business, and business is based on the principle of free enterprise.
The marketplace drives whether a business survives or flourishes.
If the radio station captures and captivates a large listener base (everybody is dialed in day and night), then businesses will want to advertise with that station to ensure their business messages are getting out to the public.
Essentially, great programming attracts lots of listeners and advertising dollars, so the radio station thrives and grows.
However, that shouldn’t stop another radio station from setting up shop and competing for the listening audience and those advertising dollars.
It’s the same reason we don’t have Can’t Really Take Competition groups for restaurants, financial institutions, gas stations, food outlets and other businesses – both big and small.
In reality, competition is what makes all businesses provide better services and better costs, and that is all the consumers can ask for.
It is also the catalyst for making the competing business change for the better.
