Michele LeTourneau
Northern News Services

NNSL (Mar 01/99) - The Canadian Radio-television Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) announced last Monday that the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) will be carried on basic cable throughout Canada, effective September, 1999.

"We basically got everything we applied for," said the euphoric TVNC chairman, Abraham Tagalik.

Tagalik explained that they asked for and received mandatory carriage, which means APTN will be carried as part of the basic cable package. As well, a 15-cent subscriber fee -- how much APTN receives per cable subscriber -- was requested and granted.

"That means seven million subscribers in year one, building to a little over eight million by the time our seven years is up," Tagalik said.

Tagalik -- who hopes to play a leading role in the transition from TVNC to APTN -- went on to make the point that the weather channel has a subscriber fee of 22 to 23 cents, while Newsworld's is 55 cents.

"We have almost six million in the first year to acquire our Canadian content, which would be the programming that we carry. We'll be carrying all categories of programs, news, current affairs, youth programs, live shows, phone-in shows, events, cultural programming, sports and drama," he added.

Winnipeg has been fingered as the uplink site and the location of APTN's new Canadian production facilities, with administration in Ottawa.

"We will be hiring 40 people if not more right across the country. I think the spin-off jobs will certainly be there. We'll maintain our current Northern infrastructure. We have an uplink in Iqaluit, Yellowknife and Whitehorse," said Tagalik.

He also maintained that APTN would be more Canadian than CBC, with 90 per cent Canadian content.

"We're looking at 120 hours of programming -- 72 hours English, 18 French, and 30 in Aboriginal languages" Tagalik continued, outlining APTN plans.

Programming will be gathered from across Canada, with potential for all native voices to be represented. Currently TVNC broadcasts in 15 different languages. Tagalik sees no limits and insists there will be no exclusion.

"We're looking at 60 per cent gross revenue channelling back into programming so that programmers will be the main part of our network."

APTN will also have a separate window for the North to break away when required, on a dedicated basis, allowing for flexibility in programming just for the North.

Asked what he felt would be the biggest challenge for the fledgling network, Tagalik said the time factor would be difficult, "to get it up and running, to get it manned."

One of several areas that will need to be ironed out is determining what exactly is aboriginal programming. Tagalik noted that they wouldn't be checking blood types, but, rather, proposals from programmers would be considered for their aboriginal content.

"When you look at North of 60, now is that an aboriginal production? I think if you look at the on air people, it certainly is. And I think if you look at the producer maybe it's not aboriginal," Tagalik said.

"The programming selection committee will have criteria set up ahead of time. We don't have that right now but for sure it will have an aboriginal proponent to it. I think not all of it will be done by aboriginal people. The main concept will be aboriginal people whether it be co-productions or otherwise."

Script and concept development, training and internships, will also be a priority for the new network.

For Northern programmers, such as the Inuit Broadcasting Corporation, the Native Communications Society and others, the CRTC ruling is good news.

"What APTN will mean to us is, first of all, a larger audience just in terms of numbers," said Debbie Brisebois, IBC's executive director. "And the opportunity for the stories and the concerns from the North to be relayed to the rest of Canada. Because there's a lot of really interesting stories, there's an incredible amount of talent that never gets seen. Hopefully also there will be some opportunity here to combat some stereotypes."

In terms of finances, Brisebois explained, the fact that APTN will eventually have enough money to pay IBC a licence fee for its programs, theoretically there would be more money to go into more programs.

Though the changes are positive, and will allow for other benefits -- enough funds for subtitling and versioning, not to mention that IBC hopes to contribute news from the North to APTN-planned daily newscasts -- Brisebois nevertheless has fears.

"I'm afraid that the government might see this as a way to get off the hook. You know, they can get funding elsewhere now so we don't need to fund it. But as much as CBC needs funding for programming, we're going to need it."

"This is where IBC saw things going certainly 15, probably almost 20 years ago," added Brisebois. "We felt that it was important that the rest of Canada get an understanding of the culture, of the language and of the issues. And in particular with Nunavut right around the corner I think there's a great demand for information from the North and from a Northern point of view -- not somebody who gets sent up on a press junket to do a couple of stories and that's it."

"It's a humbling experience," concluded Tagalik, who believes there are people who would like to see APTN fail, despite support from many quarters.

"I met a young girl in Vancouver. Once I told her about this she said that she would go tell her mum cause her mum doesn't understand any of the programming on TV and there will finally be a channel for her to watch. I think that is something that is very dear to what we're trying to do and I'm the happiest guy around and I guess I feel honoured that I could be a part of what we're doing here."