\n\tOTTAWA: Canadian public broadcaster CBC has unveiled a new strategy to take it to 2020 and beyond, announcing headcount cuts, a reduction in in-house productions and a greater emphasis on digital and mobile distribution services.<\/p>\n
\n\t“A space for us all is a strategy to make CBC\/Radio-Canada the public space at the heart of our conversations and experiences as Canadians,” said Hubert T. Lacroix, president and CEO of CBC\/Radio-Canada. “We want to be a part of daily life. In the home, in the car, at work and at play—CBC\/Radio-Canada will be at your fingertips.”<\/p>\n
\n\tIn-house production outside of the news, current affairs and radio segments will be "significantly" reduced, CBC says, in favor of acquired or commissioned entertainment content from Canadian indies. By 2020, CBC aims to have "at least three dramas meeting the high critical and creative standard of premium cable," and cutting-edge scripted comedies, as well as more satire or sketch comedy. It also wants to offer the best imports to Canadian viewers. In addition, refreshing prime-time is a future priority: at present, almost 40 percent of prime time features shows that are five or more years old. Investments will be focused on high-end, high-profile drama series, cultural events and "high-impact" current affairs.<\/p>\n
\n\tCBC also intends to scale back on its technology and real-estate footprint across Canada and find long-term strategies to maintain its financial health. "In the past seven years, the most painful and frustrating task for me has been to implement one round after another of reductions to respond to a changing environment and balance the budgets," Lacroix said. "We need to find a path to sustainability. This time, these changes—and some of them will be difficult—will allow us to end up in a better place. They will allow us to ensure that we build a new CBC\/Radio-Canada that will be a great place to work, that will be a champion of Canada, and it will be sustainable."<\/p>\n
\n\tBy 2020, CBC will have 1,000 to 1,500 fewer employees. By then, it also intends to double its reach, reaching 18 million Canadians with its digital services each month; and wants to be cited as being personally important to three out of every four Canadians.<\/p>\n
\n\t“Implementing the strategy will require careful steps, balancing our relationship with Canadians and the needs of a new CBC\/Radio-Canada with the impact these changes will have on our people,” Lacroix added. “And we will ensure we develop and retain the skills necessary to thrive in this new era. Every change we are making through this strategy is designed to ensure we put as many of our resources into great content as possible. The creativity and passion of our workforce will always be critical to our success.”<\/p>\n
\tHe concluded: “The strategy itself doesn’t have all the answers, but it provides a solid framework that will allow us to face new challenges and seize new opportunities. I am confident that, come 2020, we will have secured our ability to serve future generations of Canadians, and we will be a model of modern public broadcasting worldwide.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
OTTAWA: Canadian public broadcaster CBC has unveiled a new strategy to take it to 2020 and beyond, announcing headcount cuts, a reduction in in-house productions and a greater emphasis on digital and mobile distribution services. “A space for us all is a strategy to make CBC\/Radio-Canada the public space at the heart of our conversations …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1867","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","","category-top-stories"],"yoast_head":"\n