Broadcast sector remains profitable with exception of conventional TV, says CRTC

For the 2023 broadcast year, ended Aug. 31, 2023, the commission’s report says Radio, Discretionary TV, and Broadcast Distribution Undertakings (BDUs) remained in the black, while Digital Media Broadcasting Undertakings (DMBU), like Spotify and Disney+, experienced ongoing revenue growth. Conventional television continued to operate at a loss. In total, broadcasting revenues decreased by 0.37% from the 2022 to 2023 broadcast year.

Commercial Radio reported a revenue decrease of .55%, Conventional TV (-7.16%), Discretionary TV (-6.31%), and BDU (-5.37%), compared to 2022. Digital undertakings on the other hand, reported revenue increases of more than 14%. Profit Before Interest and Taxes (PBIT) stayed positive for Commercial Radio (4.6%), Commercial Discretionary TV (12.1%), and BDU (7%), while the Commercial Traditional Television sector reported a PBIT margin of -30.5%.

Revenue generated by English radio stations accounted for 77.9% of total commercial radio revenue, followed by French (17.9%) and Ethnic (4.1%) stations. Local ads comprised 66.7% of total commercial radio revenue, and for the second year in a row continued to recover, up 3.14%. English commercial stations reported the largest year-over-year increase in local advertising (3.35%), followed by French (2.62%) and Ethnic stations (1.75%). National ads comprised 29.5% of total commercial radio revenue, with commercial stations reporting a year-over-year decrease of 7.95% in national advertising.

Television
Commercial conventional and discretionary television services reported a decrease in revenue compared to the 2022 broadcast year, with advertising accounting for 92.2% of commercial television revenue, most of that generated through national ads (72.23%). The commission says its data suggests that national ad revenue is decreasing at a faster rate for English services than French services. Subscribers (66.92%) and advertising (31.2%) accounted for the majority of discretionary television revenue, with subscriber revenue down 4.20% and advertising revenue dropping by 11.38%.

Over the past year, BDU subscribers decreased 2.54% and revenue 5.45%. Cable and IPTV services grossed a larger share of total BDU revenue (81.2%) than DTH (Direct-to-home) (18.8%). Cable and IPTV subscribers fell by 0.76%, compared to 2022, as DTH decreased by 13.41%. Still, the CRTC says its returns suggest DTH services are more profitable with an operating income of $403 million, compared to $87 million for Cable and IPTV.

DMBU (Digital Media Broadcast Undertaking) audio service revenues decreased by 2.28% year-over-year, with an compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 30.6% since 2019. DMBU audiovisual service revenues increased by 19.05% year-over-year, with CAGR of 16.8% over the same period.

The commission says Canadians are shifting their subscription spending habits away from BDU subscriptions and steadily increasing spending on DMBU subs. Estimated monthly spending per household on BDU services have fallen from $38.37 in 2019 to $31.42 in 2023, while DMBU expenditures have increased from $20.39 in 2019 to $31.32 in 2023.

Television production growth has been fueled by foreign investment with total film and television production in Canada at $12.19 billion in 2023, up 4% over 2022. Foreign production accounted for 56% or $6.86 billion of total film and TV production in Canada. Of that $6.86 billion, $5.12 billion was invested in television productions, with 74% of foreign production projects originating in the U.S. Broadcast Dialogue