CRTC shakes up CanCon rules

November 18, 2025

The CRTC has released the first of a hugely consequential two-part ruling on video streaming and television.

The famous “10 point” headcount of key Canadian creative talent that is required before the CRTC will recognize a “Canadian program” as fulfilling a broadcaster’s CanCon budget gets a make-over.

The most significant changes are:

• The “minimum six points” rule that requires Canadian directors and/or screenwriters and lead actors remains intact. But other key Canadian talent can be displaced for up to half of those six points if the screenplay is based on a Canadian fictional or non-fiction written work; the screenplay features Canadian characters or locations; or the soundtrack features previously recorded Canadian songs.

• Netflix and the foreign streamers have been cleared to own majority copyright in a Canadian program acquired from a Canadian producer for distribution on their services. The ruling essentially allows streamers to buy that copyright by hiring Canadians in both Director and Screenwriter roles, either worth two points, to reach a minimum of eight instead of six points overall.

The CRTC did not previously have a Canadian copyright rule because it did not regulate non-Canadian broadcasters or streamers until now.

Nevertheless the CRTC’s new copyright rule is significant because it leaves a gap between CRTC policy governing a streamer’s CanCon expenditures and, on the other hand, federal government and media fund rules that gate keep supplemental subsidies for making CanCon.

Those subsidy rules, administered by Heritage Canada and the Canada Media Fund, maintain 100% Canadian copyright to support long-term economic opportunity for independent Canadian producers who typically make Canadian programs and sell them to broadcasters and streamers.

The Commission has stated that it expects the streamers to treat Canadian producers fairly when negotiating the economic opportunity flowing from shared copyright but has not stated if or how it will enforce that.

The second part of the Commission’s ruling, to be released “in the near future,” will “focus on the funding and support for Canadian programming, including funding for news and at-risk programming.”

That’s a reference to overall “Canadian programming expenditures” expected of the streamers, in addition to the 5% cash contributions already levied in favour of independent Canadian Media funds, as well as potential funding for public service media and local news.

More to come.

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This blog post is copyrighted by Howard Law, all rights reserved. 2025.