42. Overduplication is good for the economy

Unpublished
September 5th

Re: CRTC awards 23 TV licences - September 5th
Hands up all those who have memorized this line from the revised version of our national anthem: “the overduplication of government services is a waste and wasteful of our tax dollars” ?
“We should run government like a business”, warble those give-up-that-loving-feeling righteous brothers, Klein and Harris ,“and provide the best service for the best price”.
The real ‘free market’ appears inept at building a domestic TV service except perhaps in its extraction of 23 new TV licenses from the CRTC. For those major TV companies who have already consistently failed to provide what they have repeatedly promised surely these fresh opportunities cannot be based upon merit? If market research indicates that there are audiences for history, documentaries, mini-series, more comedy and services for the Greek and South Asian communities then why hasn’t this been available from the existing licencees?
When it comes to the ‘best price’ why - given their untrustworthiness - are cable companies (who also won new licences) still thought capable of guaranteeing consumer satisfaction?
Report on Business (soon to be a TV station) sub-captioned it right: “Most of the big broadcasters come home with a prize”. A headline of a less announced truth would have have read: “Overduplication is good for the economy.”