aptn mission APTN is sharing our Peoples journey, celebrating our cultures, inspiring our children and honouring the wisdom of our Elders.

Transcription

1 communiqué 2017

2 aptn mission APTN is sharing our Peoples journey, celebrating our cultures, inspiring our children and honouring the wisdom of our Elders. about aptn APTN launched in 1999 as the first national Aboriginal broadcaster in the world, creating a window into the remarkably diverse mosaic of Aboriginal Peoples. A respected non-profit, charitable broadcaster and the only one of its kind in North America. Sharing our stories of authenticity in English, French and a variety of Aboriginal languages to approximately 11 million Canadian TV subscribers. With over 80% Canadian content, APTN connects with its audience through genuine, inspiring and engaging entertainment on multiple platforms. APTN / communiqué 2017

3 table of contents Message from Our Chairperson 2 Message from Our Chief Executive Officer 3 Year in Review 6 Aboriginal Production 8 Our People 16 Understanding Our Audience 22 Digital Drum 26 Advertising 28 Setting the Technological Pace 32 Uncovering the Stories that Others Won t 36 Conditions of Licence 42 Programming 52 Aboriginal Day Live 66 Appendix A Independent Production Activity (Original Productions) / 1

4 message from our chairperson JOCELYN FORMSMA Wachiya, This past year was a challenging, yet impressive one for Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN). Offering a truly unique perspective for all Canadians, APTN continues to share Aboriginal stories, cultures, and communities through awardwinning programming that is genuine, inspiring, engaging and, above all, entertaining. Our investigative reporting and daily news broadcasts continually look to place Aboriginal perspectives and concerns on the broader public agenda. APTN is looking forward to changing and expanding the operation of a modern news and multi-platform broadcaster into a digital space while remaining true to our mission to Share our Peoples journey, celebrate our cultures, inspire our children and honour the wisdom of our Elders. The APTN Board of Directors completed a three-year process of governance growth and evolution. The Board of Directors and the APTN Founding Members engaged in a process which included an in-depth review of its governing structure and best practices in governance. This process helped to determine a Board of Director composition that would be the most effective and best suited for the new era of media and APTN s ambitious upcoming plans to become a multi-platform broadcaster. Upon developing the new governing structure, the APTN Board developed a new set of corresponding by-laws. The APTN Founding Members approved the new by-laws at their Annual General Assembly in December The biggest change was to reduce the board size from 21 to 12, as well as to open the process for board member elections. An open call for board members ensued, focusing on bringing in individuals that met a wide range of competencies and best represented our diverse communities across the country. We announced our new Board of Directors on March 18, We had a ceremony for the departing board members, and I would like to take the opportunity to, once again, thank each and every one of them who selflessly participated in the process and for their instrumental contributions to APTN. APTN began over 25 years ago as Television Northern Canada and expanded to a national television network giving Aboriginal perspectives a home on the airwaves. When APTN launched in 1999, it became the first national Aboriginal broadcaster in the world and is still Canada s APTN / communiqué 2017

5 message from our CEO JEAN LA ROSE only independent Aboriginal broadcaster. We hope that we can maintain the same level of trailblazing growth over the next 25 years and beyond. On behalf of the APTN Board of Directors, I thank APTN s senior management team and all APTN employees for an exceptional year. Your outstanding skills, passion and service to APTN create dynamic Aboriginal content that is viewed across Canada and around the world. I am honoured to be a part of this broadcaster as we travel into this next chapter of our journey. Jocelyn Formsma, Chairperson APTN Board of Directors I am honoured to be part of APTN, the world s first Aboriginal broadcaster, as it continues to take its viewers on a journey through the lens of Aboriginal Canada and beyond. APTN has unleashed some very powerful multi-platform content, giving an authentic and important voice to those on the forefront. The network plays a major role in capturing and responding to the nationwide call to action through reconciliation. To engage with Aboriginal and non-aboriginal audiences across the nation through specialized, multi-platform programming, in a plethora of languages across all time zones, APTN continues to depend greatly on the Canada Media Fund (CMF) to meet the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission s (CRTC) expectations on the different genres of programming and languages to be broadcast. APTN s Performance Envelope (PE) again decreased in this fiscal year. Being a small independent broadcaster, APTN faces many challenges each fiscal year, but one obstacle is the constant battle against larger broadcasters for a share of the PE funding. Compared to the average decrease in PEs among all broadcasters, the network performed quite well. APTN has been recognized as one of Canada s Top 100 Employers, for the fifth time running, one of Manitoba s Top Employers, now the ninth year running and, significantly, one of Canada s Top Employers for Young People. This latter award is especially meaningful for the network since it reflects our commitment to developing skills in our communities and providing meaningful employment opportunities. APTN has also contributed to / 3

6 the career development of young Aboriginal journalists through a new fellowship program with Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) and continued its joint internship program with Journalists for Human Rights. These distinctions show APTN is committed to the ongoing success of attracting and retaining employees at all levels of the organization. Of distinction, APTN National News received the CAJ Charles Bury Award The highest award the CAJ can give, marking APTN as a significant contributor to Canadian journalism. Also, Paul Barnsley of APTN Investigates was awarded the Journalists for Human Rights Lifetime Achievement Human Rights Reporting Award Once again, the news team was nominated in four categories from the CAJ. At the Awards, APTN Investigates received a nomination for the Open Broadcast Feature Award for Forgotten Survivors and a nomination for Best Photography in a News or Information Program, Series or Segment for Defiance. APTN National News received a nomination for the Open Broadcast News Award for Black Tickle and a nomination for the Scoop Award for Police Admit Racism. Beyond recognition from the CAJ, APTN received an Honourable Mention for the Canadian Hillman Prize 2017 for Quest for Innocence and a Beyond Borders ECPAT Canada Media Award 2016 for Forgotten Survivors. APTN has also become involved in important media interventions and collaborations regarding the freedom of the press in cases involving Aboriginal Peoples. Members of the news team were appointed to the Boards of Directors for the CAJ and also the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression. Every year, the network works with hundreds of storytellers to bring the true and authentic voice of Aboriginal Peoples on multiplatforms. As the most influential Aboriginal storyteller in Canada, APTN offers a broad range of highquality programs recognized at industry award galas and festivals. RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World won a World Cinema Special Jury Award for Masterful Storytelling at the Sundance Film Festival, a Best Music Documentary at the Boulder International Film Festival, and two awards at Hot Docs (Hot Docs Audience Award, and Rogers Audience Award for Best Canadian Documentary). Another documentary; Rise, an APTN and Viceland series, was awarded Best Documentary Series at the Yorkton Film Festival. Also, Coyote s Crazy Smart Science Show was honoured with a Best Sound for Youth or Children s Program or Series at the 2017 Leo Awards for the episode Animal Habits. On June 21, 2017, National Aboriginal Day, APTN produced Aboriginal Day Live, its most ambitious live production since APTN first aired on September 1, The network, with many partners, supporters, artists and participants created all day celebrations of Aboriginal cultures, artists and Peoples in eight different Canadian cities to highlight the diverse cultures and achievements of First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples. All Canadians were welcome to join the celebrations and actively participate. Canadian television and Canadian audiences have never seen anything like this before: First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples together from East to North to West, all at the same time celebrating our cultures, our diversity and our resilient strength in Canada. It marked a new high point for APTN. It showed, in a tangible way, what the network has been able to achieve with the support and drive of our communities, leaders and many others since APTN launched. Cumulative attendance nationwide was just over 127,000. Viewer statistics reached 427,000, with 16,361 online viewers, and 10 radio networks broadcasting to 1,097,000 potential listeners for the total combined reach of over 1.5 million across all platforms. Aboriginal Day APTN / communiqué 2017

7 Live 2017 was the highest rated and most watched edition in its history and hosted a welcoming stage from Toronto in advance of the event to be held there in summer APTN faces its challenges head on and continues to adapt to digital spaces. The development of a digital transformation strategy will continue as APTN builds its multi-platform approach to the organization. APTN also continues to develop and exploit these forms of media to ensure that audio-visual programming is widely available to Canadians and to better position the network to meet evolving technology and audience demands. APTN is also pleased to report it has filed its broadcasting licence renewal application electronically on July 28, 2017, by the Commission s letter dated May 12, The network proposes to meet the same conditions of licence as currently apply to our service with the following two adjustments. Proposed modifications to the level of Canadian programming (from 75% to 70%) and on the level of independent production to be scheduled (from 80% to 70% exclusive of news, information and sports programming) on the network. Also, proposed is a 5 cent per subscriber per month fee increase (from 31 cents to 36 cents). First Peoples Radio Inc., a non-profit corporation established by APTN, was awarded two radio licences from the CRTC in June 2017 to operate English and Aboriginal-language Type B Native FM radio stations to serve the urban Aboriginal communities in Ottawa and Toronto. Information concerning this initiative will be available as the network moves further into the process. Regarding the announcement on assessing the feasibility of All Nations Network last fiscal year, APTN is currently negotiating with three major carriers in the USA, and the launch date is contingent upon the results of the negotiations with the carriers. APTN now plays a central role in the Canadian broadcasting system. From the many messages and stories we have heard from our audiences, community leaders and others, we know the network is making a difference in the lives of Aboriginal Peoples in Canada. I am proud to be a part of APTN as we share and represent an important and authentic collective Aboriginal voice in this Communiqué. Jean La Rose, Chief Executive Officer APTN / 5

8 year in review Highlights MORE THAN MORE 85 % THAN 97 % Canadian programming content broadcast HOURS* HOURS* Aboriginal-language programming broadcast TOP EMPLOYER AWARDS for Canada s Top 100 Employers, Canada s Top Employers for Young People, Manitoba s Top 25 Employers, and Canada s Best Workplaces for Employees Living with Arthritis Canadian programming broadcast was independently produced French-language programming broadcast 3 MONTHS of sustained daily coverage reporting from Standing Rock, ND, where thousands of Indigenous Peoples from all over the world gathered to oppose a controversial oil pipeline 40+ PARTNERED EVENTS including Dreamspeakers Film Festival; Movie Nights Across Canada Telefilm Canada; Eastlink East Coast Music Awards Indigenous Stage & Indigenous Artist of the Year Award; Vision Quest Conference; Manito Ahbee Indigenous Music Awards; Montréal First Peoples Festival; Anisabka Film & Media Arts Festival; imaginenative Film + Media Arts Festival; Winnipeg Aboriginal Film Festival; Talking Stick Festival 2017; BANFF World Media Festival 2017; Alianait Arts Festival; Reconciliation and the Media: Building Relationships for Better News Coverage; Night for Rights; 12 th Annual Dreamcatcher Gala; Soaring: Indigenous Youth Career Conference; 24 th Annual Indspire Awards; 2017 JUNO Awards Aboriginal Album of the Year; Science North Indigenous Outreach Program; and more *Average hours per week APTN / communiqué 2017

9 15 secured for TV and aptn.ca MORE THAN NEW ADVERTISERS 72 story views on APTN Facebook accounts 5 INDUSTRY AWARDS MILLION for top programming commissioned by the network Reached an audience of MORE THAN 1.5 at Aboriginal Day Live multi-platform delivery MILLION 65 % have Aboriginal ancestry 2.9 OF EMPLOYEES MILLION combined users on APTN and APTN National News websites 3 for participation in the national Take Our Kids to Work program 4 YEARS RUNNING JOURNALISM AWARDS including the highest award the Canadian Association of Journalists can give the CAJ Charles Bury Award 306 HOURS original programming commitments in English, French and 11 Aboriginal languages representing 31 television productions and 25 digital media components Announced APTN artist manager PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT GRANT in partnership with Canada s Music Incubator at Coalition Music Announcement to create an INDIGENOUS SCREEN OFFICE A collaboration between APTN, the CBC, the Canada Media Fund, Telefilm Canada, the Canadian Media Producers, the National Film Board and associated partners, Bell Media, the Harold Greenberg Fund and VICE Studio Canada / 7

10 aboriginal production For the past 18 years, APTN has been an enthusiastic participant in Canada s broadcast industry and is an essential player in the creation of new content, contributing 90% of our annual programming budget to commissioning original content. APTN / communiqué 2017

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12 Through its support of online content and linear television in a variety of formats, including documentaries, news and current affairs, dramas, entertainment specials, children s series and cooking shows, APTN celebrates the diversity of Aboriginal Peoples in Canada and throughout the world. In its celebration of Aboriginal diversity, APTN is supported by an equally diverse world of talented and creative producers, directors, writers, actors and crew. Every year, the network works with hundreds of these storytellers to bring the true and authentic voice of Aboriginal Peoples on multi-platforms. spotlight on success Accomplishments REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS In January 2017, on the theory that exclusive web content would not only appeal to a section of the network s audience but would also be a low-budget format that would give inexperienced producers a chance to obtain a broadcaster licence, APTN issued a Request for Proposals for licensing of an English/Aboriginal language linear web series. The genres of drama, documentary or children s and youth were all eligible. Three strong pitches were green-lit for production: True to the Land (documentary), The Lottery (drama) and Rachel (drama). In May 2017, a Request for Proposals to the Aboriginal production community was issued for feature film pitches. One of APTN s primary mandates has been to ensure that authentic voices be conveyed across our linear television broadcast, and the network felt strongly that it also needed to bring that opportunity to the big screen. One drama feature, Red Snow, was selected for development and has been green-lit for production by CBC and APTN. Another drama, Monkey Beach, was also licenced by APTN but requires other broadcasters to complete its financing. And a third drama, Wawatay, was offered development funding by the network. MULTI-PLATFORM CONTENT APTN also continued in 2017 to support interesting and innovative digital media components. Most commissioned programs offer stand-alone websites, including clips, recipes, air dates and behindthe-scenes footage. However, some programs create more enriched content. Once again the successful dramedy Mohawk Girls offered a second-screen experience, as did the youth series Méchant Trip! Children s series Tshakapesh built an interactive game for its young fans. The important Taken documentary series created a website, including a searchable memorial database of the missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls in Canada and an app is in the works to allow families to expedite reports of missing persons. AWARDS AND RECOGNITION APTN had several commissioned programs recognized for their high quality at industry award galas and festivals this fiscal year. RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World, a feature-length documentary developed by APTN and licensed as a second window, has received wide acclaim. This documentary won a World Cinema Special Jury Award for Masterful Storytelling at the Sundance Film Festival, Best Music Documentary at the Boulder International Film Festival and two awards at Hot Docs (Hot Docs Audience Award, and Rogers Audience Award for Best Canadian Documentary). Another APTN series (with Viceland), Rise was awarded Best Documentary Series at the Yorkton Film Festival. The network s exclusive children s series Coyote s Crazy Smart Science Show was honoured with a Best Sound for Youth or APTN / communiqué 2017

13 Children s Program or Series at the 2017 Leo Awards for the episode Animal Habits. In March, the stars of Mohawk Girls were selected by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television to be featured at its Family Fan Day. STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS APTN and imaginenative issued a web series open call in July 2017 to Aboriginal Canadian creatives. Three selected creative teams will learn how to conceive projects for the web, how to execute the components to a broadcast standard and how to pitch to industry decision makers for production funding. Following the conclusion of APTN s five-year partnership with the National Screen Institute (NSI) on their Aboriginal Documentary Program in 2016, APTN and NSI have initiated a new partnership with the launch of the NSI IndigiDocs program. The program will continue to provide mentorship and training to Aboriginal producer and director creative teams on the production of short documentary films. The network continued its longstanding involvement with the Montréal First Peoples Festival in 2017, and in August, APTN offered the fourth annual APTN Award to honour an Aboriginal filmmaker who has produced distinguishing work in the last year. This year s APTN Award went to Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, an Inuk filmmaker from Nunavut, for Angry Inuk. APTN also sponsored four master classes two in French and two in English. These classes featured industry veterans: Samian, Moving from the Rap Scene to a Movie Set; Ernest Webb, Making Your Way in TV and Film Production; Tracey Deer, Directing Beginner Actors; and Chloé Leriche, Making a Feature Film in an Indigenous Language. APTN also continued its involvement with the imaginenative Film + Media Arts Festival for a fourth year, once again offering a cash prize of $5,000 for a dramatic short film and $2,000 toward a short documentary film. The selected entrants were Sonya Ballantyne for her dramatic short Eagle Girl and Jamaine Campbell for her documentary short Bring It Back Home. For the third year, to encourage the growth of French-language Aboriginal content, APTN collaborated with TV5 on a call for web series production, Ma websérie sur APTN. APTN strives to commission programs through co-broadcasting partnerships whenever possible. New for this fiscal year: APTN and CBC have confirmed the second and third season of the important documentary series Taken. Société Radio-Canada and APTN united to support the one-off documentary Le procès de Duncan Campbell Scott, and also collaborated on the documentary series La terre en nous. The network continued its successful partnerships, including APTN and Shaw co-broadcasting the 24 th Annual Indspire Awards on July 1, Accessible Media Inc. once again joined APTN to cobroadcast the very successful annual Aboriginal Day Live concert on June 21, 2017, broadcast from eight cities across Canada, and this year Eastlink, Rogers and Videotron also picked up the broadcast for their community channels. TERMS OF TRADE The network has continued to abide by the Terms of Trade that have been signed between APTN and the Alliance of Aboriginal Media Professionals on August 28, The agreement came into effect as of September 1, 2014, and will expire with the network s next licence renewal. / 11

14 Aboriginal-Language Commitments Inuktitut 38% Cree 14% Innu 9% Ojibway 9% Dakota 5% Halkomelem 5% Maliseet 5% Mi kmaq 5% Northern Tuchtone 4% Oji-Cree 4% Mohawk 2% Also, Oscar-winning, blockbuster movies such as The Revenant, Casino Jack, and Men in Black movie series were secured. APTN will also broadcast: Te Ata, a historical drama inspired by the life of the honorary Chickasaw Nation performer; The Saver, a Canadian feature debuting young Aboriginal actor Imajyn Cardinal; Shana The Wolf s Music, a coming of age story about a First Nations girl overcoming obstacles; and Tales of the First People, a computer-generated imagery animated feature exploring Aboriginal creation myths. PROGRAMMING COMMITMENTS This fiscal year, APTN Programming committed to 31 television productions and 25 original digital media components, representing hours of original programming in English, French and 11 Aboriginal languages. ACQUISITIONS This fiscal year, Acquisitions secured 241 hours of programming, including eight premieres and seven titles exclusive to APTN. Highlights include Hell on Wheels, a gritty U.S.A. Western chronicling the construction of the transcontinental railroad; and Cleverman, a drama re-imagining Australian Indigenous Dreamtime mythology for contemporary audiences. This is APTN s first co-exclusive deal, acquired as a shared window with Blue Ant Media. Rounding out the mix are Canadian series Strange Empire, where three women rally together to survive in 19 th century Alberta; and Stories of Our Elders, an animated series drawn in Inuit shadow puppet-style featuring stories passed down by Inuit Elders. The latter series will be available in English, French and Inuktitut. One of APTN s flagship programs, Blackstone, will also premiere in French in addition to the English version. APTN has also obtained the right to version the critically-acclaimed BBC nature documentary series Planet Earth, Season 1 into an Aboriginal language. The network continues to support documentaries on relevant Aboriginal themes with four acquisitions, the feature-length We Can t Make the Same Mistake Twice by veteran director Alanis Obomsawin and three French documentaries: Hollywood et les indiens; Le souhait d Augustine; and Les grandes soifs. CANADA MEDIA FUND (CMF) PERFORMANCE ENVELOPES (PE) APTN continues to depend on CMF funding to meet its goals with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) on expectations for licensed programming genres and languages of broadcast. APTN s PE decreased in APTN s English PE decreased by 2.8% and French decreased by 0.1%. APTN / communiqué 2017

15 Being an independent broadcaster, APTN faces many challenges in its yearly operations, including competing each year against larger broadcasters for a share of PE funds. However, APTN remains committed to delivering highquality programming. Despite the challenges the network faces with ratings and having smaller marketing and licensing budgets, and compared to the average decrease in envelopes among all broadcasters, APTN performed quite well. The network was able to trigger the totality of its PE and green-light hours of new programming during the CMF s fiscal year, including English, French and Aboriginal-language versions. Summary of APTN s CMF Performance Envelopes: 100% of English PE triggered: 67.5 hours of programming to be produced; 100% of French PE triggered: hours of programming to be produced; hours of Aboriginallanguage programming will also be produced; $26,811,863 total production budgets to be triggered (English, French and Aboriginal Languages); APTN also triggered 100% of its CMF English and French development funds for APTN CMF English Performance Envelope Comparison Budget English and Aboriginal- Language Hours APTN CMF French Performance Envelope Comparison Budget French and Aboriginal- Language Hours APTN CMF French and English Performance Envelope Total Comparison Budget English, French and Aboriginal-Language Hours $5,719, $5,560, $552, $551, $6,271, $6,112, Budget Hours / 13

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17 CANADA MEDIA FUND (CMF) ABORIGINAL PROGRAM (AP) The AP budget for the fiscal year was $8 million. APTN continues to be the main broadcaster triggering AP funding and the only regulated broadcaster that has a specific Condition of Licence (COL) to broadcast Aboriginal-language programming. APTN broadcasts a minimum of 35 hours each week of Aboriginallanguage programming and strives to provide new and engaging content each broadcast season. Summary of APTN s AP (Production): 9.75 hours of French-language programming to be produced for APTN; 64 hours of English-language programming to be produced for APTN; $14,766,770 total production budgets to be triggered by APTN. Summary of APTN s AP (Development): APTN supported six TV projects through the AP development fund. All these projects included digital media components. 75% of projects supported by the AP were licenced by APTN; 70 hours of Aboriginal-language programming to be produced for APTN; hrs* hrs* Aboriginal-language programming broadcast *Average hours per week French-language programming broadcast / 15

18 our people APTN offers progressive employee programs and an exceptional workplace through the empowerment of its workforce. APTN / communiqué 2017

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20 We are proud of developing meaningful employment for Aboriginal Peoples in the broadcasting sector. spotlight on success Accomplishments COLLABORATIVE CULTURE A strong company culture with excellent benefits cultivates a positive and fulfilling work environment, fostering creativity and growth with our team on the forefront. The organization s benefits often exceed those offered by many other companies. Examples of successes in building the internal culture at the network included: The Employee Engagement Committee (EEC) continues to foster a culture of engaged employees in a manner that is collaborative. This year, the committee worked with employees and senior management to implement healthy changes within the workspace and introduced healthy eating vending machines. This will continue into the new fiscal year with the introduction to services that will deliver healthy meals to the Winnipeg employees. Traditional Elder Healing Services were made available to all employees in January 2017 through the existing Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP). Peer-to-peer recognition is the genuine expression of appreciation exchanged between co-workers. APTN developed the Recognize Appreciate Praise (RAP) Program to encourage and motivate employees to recognize their peers contributions and success. AWARDS AND RECOGNITION APTN Is committed to a nurturing work environment and to providing exciting career opportunities. Ultimately this contributes to the ongoing success of attracting and retaining employees at all levels of the organization. APTN was recognized throughout the year for its dedication to employees: Canada s Best Workplaces for Employees Living with Arthritis Award for the first time. Canada s Top Employers for Young People for the first time. Canada s Top 100 Employers for the fifth consecutive year. Manitoba s Top Employers for the ninth consecutive year. The Learning Partnership s Take Our Kids to Work program. TRAINING FOR THE FUTURE APTN is known as an incubator for Aboriginal talent and is committed to the professional development of employees in the broadcasting sector. All employees receive support for ongoing training inhouse and online to encourage growth within the organization. New employees to APTN received training in Understanding Aboriginal and Treaty Rights, Harassment in the Workplace, and Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS). APTN / communiqué 2017

21 TOP EMPLOYER awards For Canada s Top 100 Employers, Canada s Top Employers for Young People, Manitoba s Top 25 Employers, and Canada s Best Workplaces for Employees Living with Arthritis / 19

22 LEVERAGING LEARNING APTN is proud to play an important role in supporting the career development of Aboriginal students. The network helps students of vocational schools and post-secondary institutions with internships and practical work experience that will introduce them to the real world of TV broadcasting. Highlights included: Partnership with the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) that successfully placed one journalist to complete an Aboriginal Investigative Journalism Fellowship with the APTN Investigates team. Extensive Internship Program that placed 11 students over the fiscal year into placements throughout the network that allowed them to acquire valuable work experience. Three students from Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) participated in our internship and one has now received a permanent contract as a Reporter/Correspondent. The network s commitment to this annual program is to accept four interns dedicated to reporting on Aboriginal content online and on air. EMPLOYEE RECOGNITION Employees receive recognition for their commitments and accomplishments that contribute to the organization s business objectives and goals. Recognition also prepares the organization s potential future leaders, retaining APTN s workforce. This fiscal year, the organization presented eight employees with 5-year gifts, twelve employees with 10-year gifts and two employees with 15-year gifts INTERNSHIPS WORK EXPERIENCES FELLOWSHIP Institution Program Department # of Students Red River College Broadcast Technology Marketing/Digital Drum 1 JHR Broadcast Journalism News 3 University of King s College Bachelor of Journalism News 1 Herzing College Radio and Television Broadcaster News/Operations 1 Glenlawn Collegiate Grade 10 Work Experience Program News/Operations 3 Adam Beach Film Institute ABFI Skills Link Media Arts Program News/Operations 4 J.H. Bruns Collegiate Grade 10 Work Experience Program Operations 1 APTN/CAJ Fellowship Program Fellowship News/APTN Investigates 1 APTN / communiqué 2017

23 APTN S DIVERSITY UPFRONT As at August 3, 2017, 65% of employees are of Aboriginal ancestry. 28% 31% 26% First Nations Status First Nations Non-Status Métis Inuit 5% 1% 5% 4% Visible Minority Non-Aboriginal Ancestry Undeclared APTN S GENDER COMPARISON As at August 9, 2017, 51% of employees are female and 49% are male. 100% 67% 63% 67% 67% 53% Aboriginal Directors Female Directors 33% Male Directors Aboriginal Managers Female Managers 33% Male Managers Aboriginal Non-Managerial Female Non-Managerial 47% Male Non-Managerial / 21

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25 understanding our audience APTN will continue to play a leadership role in producing and broadcasting Aboriginal-language productions. / 23

26 The network has provided programming in 22 different Aboriginal languages over the current broadcast year. spotlight on success Accomplishments TAKING RESEARCH INTO OUR OWN HANDS To ensure the success of the network, it is imperative to fuel timely and relevant research despite shortcomings on existing datasets. Using a mixture of measurement tools developed in-house, the network works hard to deliver performance and perception information to its key stakeholders. The network has always faced limited access to industry measured data that adequately represents its audiences research methodology does not take into account our Peoples. The application and use of linear TV ratings present challenges. Being a specialized broadcaster, APTN is required to use them as a relevant source of information. Now that there is a major shift in the viewing behaviours of media consumers, there is more opportunity to build a digital-based measurement system for over-thetop (OTT) content a key initiative for APTN s future OTT system. NUMERIS Numeris ratings for APTN channels are an incomplete picture of its diverse audiences, and there have been some significant changes recently in the audience size that it typically draws each season. The network s speculation has varied for this changing trend. During an initial round of statistical testing, Numeris thought that there could be an issue with the data gathered. However, their team s analysis determined that this was not the case. Although a report provided to APTN showed the Numeris data was falling within their 90% confidence interval, APTN has remained doubtful this adequately measures its performance. NATIONAL SURVEY To complete the picture of tuning to APTN, Marketing has continued to enhance and develop an inhouse measurement in the form of a national survey among Aboriginal Peoples. This survey now runs in three waves throughout the year and asks respondents about programs viewed and media consumption behaviours in the traditional and digital landscapes. Results have garnered more valuable insights into market penetration and viewing behaviours than any other instrument available to APTN for audience research. APTN INSIDERS APTN has created its online panel of core viewers the APTN Insiders. Since 2010, this panel has participated in ongoing surveys about APTN programs and initiatives. Its primary purpose is to gather an inventory of opinions about the network s programs and initiatives and consider the views of the people the network serves. REACHING OUR AUDIENCE This fiscal year, APTN has worked with its agency of record, Think Shift, to produce exciting and remarkable campaigns that reach out to various segments of our audience and highlight key areas of programming. Here are some highlights: Entertainment Campaign Fall 2016 This campaign intended to challenge perceptions about APTN programming as we continue to acquire younger audiences and retain existing viewers. The campaign message You may think you know APTN, but you ve never seen this used strictly digital methodology which allowed us to react immediately to media and markets to achieve success. Aboriginal Day Live The Aboriginal Day Live 2017 concept of Eight Cities, One Great Gathering was the cornerstone to APTN / communiqué 2017

27 messaging for this year s bright and impactful media campaign. We exceeded our expectations to meet the demands of marketing nationally and locally to eight separate markets utilizing various tactics that were fully bilingual. The paid advertising included a mix of digital and traditional media and integrated with internal efforts via our owned and earned media and social channels. The outcome was a successfully attended event drawing over 1.5 million in viewers and listeners and over 30 million in reach via earned media and social media. Languages APTN featured unique language programming from many different Aboriginal cultures. While it is important to maintain and increase viewership of these programs, our goal for this campaign was to raise awareness with our audience that APTN supports language revitalization and reclamation. A motion graphics story expressed the importance of language revitalization. This campaign reached many new people, as 94% of the sessions were from users who had never visited aptn.ca. The campaign used social media, including YouTube, Facebook and Twitter, reaching over 2 million people nationwide. The viral nature and the level of engagement of this video reached over 700,000 additional people organically from shares and suggested activity on Facebook. It is clear that language programming and the revitalization of culture through languages is something that APTN and its audience share a similar passion for. Reached an audience of MORE 1.5 million THAN at Aboriginal Day Live / 25

28 digital drum Connective Expression Digital Drum is a music media platform that showcases innovative Aboriginal talent. APTN / communiqué 2017

29 Digital Drum reaches within its emerging communities to bring Aboriginal youth closer to music, engaging them with content that contributes to and celebrates their cultural pride. The in-house created marketing tool helps APTN grow its continually emerging youth audience. With the organization s ongoing commitment to reach that audience, Digital Drum provides a unique opportunity to engage with Aboriginal youth where they connect in a digital space. spotlight on success Accomplishments DIGITAL CONTENT FOR THE ABORIGINAL YOUTH AUDIENCE In keeping its finger on the pulse of Canada s Aboriginal music scene, Digital Drum provided live social media coverage and produced original content from some of the top award shows, concerts and music festivals across the country (The JUNO Awards, the Indigenous Music Awards, Aboriginal Day Live and more). The platform also expanded its reach and bolstered its reputation by building relationships with influencers, connecting with community programs and attending key industry events. From a content strategy perspective, Digital Drum continues to expand its storytelling through multiple production streams. In addition to the DD Spotlight series and the DD Blog, DD Studio Sessions and DD Xposed launches. The first DD Podcast First Listen Fridays features exclusive content from established and emerging artists across the country. Also, Digital Drum will continue to expand its audience with content creation (including second seasons of DD Studio Sessions and the DD Podcast). Event coverage, community involvement, influencer marketing and social media engagement will expand as well. We know from our analytics that this presence in the Aboriginal music scene is resonating with the youth we target. We know we are achieving our vision for Digital Drum. This vision was to be a mirror for Aboriginal youth and a window on diversity that connects the audience, both Aboriginal and non-aboriginal, to Aboriginal music; delivering the inspirational stories, interviews, coverage and musical content that speaks to self-expression, perseverance, pride and identity from their perspective. / 27

30 advertising APTN continues to generate revenue through advertising sales for the network. However, we are still faced with some of the same challenges that other broadcasters experience. APTN / communiqué 2017

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32 It continues to be increasingly challenging to generate TV advertising revenue due to the impact of competitive digital advertising platforms. Despite the wide reach of the network, measurement by Numeris data doesn t provide an adequate picture of our audiences. Based on our own internal survey of Aboriginal Peoples in Canada, we know that 79% of Aboriginal Peoples over 18 who receive APTN in their home are tuning in on a regular basis. spotlight on success Accomplishments The network continues to commission quality television programs comparable to what the other national networks broadcast, but has limited advertising resources to publicize these programs to a national audience, both Aboriginal and non-aboriginal, spanning from the younger audience and now growing online audience. Here are APTN s audiences identified for advertisers to maximize their reach. GENERAL CANADIAN AUDIENCE 2.1 million total weekly viewers* Age million Canadian adults reached each week during primetime* Age million Canadian adults reached each week in run of schedule* Age 18+ *Statistics based on weekly cumulative reach for fall 2016 quarter one ratings. YOUNG AND LOYAL AUDIENCE Available in over 11 million households across Canada. 5% are Aboriginal and 95% are non Aboriginal. 40% of Canada s 1.4 million Aboriginal Peoples are under the age of % are ages % of Aboriginal Peoples watch APTN at home on a regular basis. Age 18+ ONLINE AUDIENCE APTN.CA 250,000+ monthly users 500,000+ monthly page views CONTINUED PARTNERSHIP IN TV SALES Armed with the latest research and avail software systems Airtime Television Sales Inc. works closely with our in-house sales department and is equipped to handle national media buying in key urban Aboriginal and non-aboriginal markets. Airtime Television Sales Inc. are industry leaders in service and providing the resources APTN needs to succeed in the ever complex media landscape. It is imperative that APTN continues its efforts to diversify its sources of revenue. Therefore, APTN will continue to: APTN / communiqué 2017

33 Advertising on APTN is restricted to national advertisers. They range from private businesses to governmental organizations, representing a wide range of goods and services. This fiscal year, APTN continued its partnerships with many of its long-standing clients, and here are the new advertisers for linear television and aptn.ca: 7-Eleven Kingstar Tim Hortons UNICEF Canada Kellogg s Pfizer Canada Inc. The Salvation Army Premier Bathrooms Canada Ltd. Roche Diagnostics Square One Insurance Services Duracell Green Shield Canada Belron Canada Teeter (formerly Teeter Hang ups) Benefits One Group Integrated Network (BEGIN) Stay Current Update APTN s highlight reel, media kit and website regularly to keep clients and advertisers aware of the network s programming. Also, highlight APTN s role, successes and strength in the Canadian broadcasting landscape. Leverage Data Offer the latest data as it pertains to primetime programming, especially for established programs, as well as those newly acquired. Increase Awareness Promote APTN s new commercial availability of non-standard platforms among advertisers, including snipes and lower thirds. aptn.ca featured advertising includes: big box ad, leaderboard and video pre-roll. Utilize New Audience Tracking Tools Employ website audience demographic data to assist in selling aptn.ca for online advertising. Focus on Continuous Engagement Share information with media buyers and industry personnel through presentations, bulletins and events about Aboriginal Peoples and their cultures NEW ADVERTISERS secured for TV and aptn.ca MILLION combined users on APTN and APTN National News websites / 31

34 setting the technological pace The world of media is changing at a very rapid pace. APTN has identified the shift of content to a digital space as an opportunity to build a strong relationship with our audiences and to position the network to remain relevant and viable. APTN / communiqué 2017

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36 The explosion of highquality content on digital platforms and the erosion to linear TV viewing time are all contributing to major shifts in the media and broadcasting industry. LAUNCH OF IN-HOUSE DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION Through a series of interrelated projects, APTN will adapt its business model, operations, culture and technology to adjust to this new environment. Components of the transformation program will include a review of the rapidly changing broadcast landscape, an internal audit to identify APTN s ranking in the industry and discussion on where APTN should be operating on track and effectively, and devising a detailed plan and critical path to its success. EARLY STAGES: STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND RELATED SUBPROJECTS aptn.ca Update, enhance and optimize aptn.ca and other digital offerings through an integrated Internet strategy. Rebuild the sites with more modern and flexible tools and technologies to increase automation, and to improve the audience experience. Over the Top Product Develop an overall OTT (over the top) strategy, define the requirements, develop interfaces, build an OTT framework and launch an OTT offering in Customer Relationship Management Implement a User/Customer Management System which will allow the network to identify our viewing audiences choices and preferences and to increase their engagement. Asset Management System Develop an APTN-specific Asset Management system. A key outcome will be to develop a central repository for all digital assets to be stored, shared and preserved. This initiative will provide rapid access to content and information, bridge various systems, standardize workflows and help to automate critical processes. It also will set the stage for APTN to add a commercial Media Asset Management system (MAM) in the future. APTN / communiqué 2017

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38 uncovering the stories that others won t APTN National News launched in 2000 as the first Aboriginal television journalism team in Canada and the world. APTN / communiqué 2017

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40 Today, providing awardwinning and unprecedented perspective of news for Aboriginal Peoples and all Canadians. Reporting on more stories that focus on the political and social conversations either ignored, under-reported or misunderstood by mainstream news media. spotlight on success Accomplishments SPECIAL NEWS PROGRAMMING Reporters in bureaus across the country focused on special news programming and event coverage to provide a regional representation of all nations. Reported from Standing Rock, ND, where thousands of Indigenous Peoples gathered to oppose a controversial oil pipeline, which included sustained daily coverage over a period of three months, a live half-hour special, a special on-site edition of APTN Nation to Nation and an episode of APTN Investigates. Provided ongoing coverage on Kids in Care, particularly in MB and ON. Followed the story of Barbara Kentner, a woman in Thunder Bay, ON, who eventually died after a passenger in a moving car threw a trailer hitch at her. Reported on the larger issues of racism, including the failure of the Thunder Bay Police Service to investigate the violent deaths of Aboriginal Peoples, and ran a special series on high school students in Thunder Bay, following them for one year. Sustained coverage of the water protectors resistance at Muskrat Falls. The site, 30 km west of Happy Valley, Goose Bay, NL, has seen an endless stream of protests over the environmental damage the multi-billion dollar project will cause downstream. Host broadcaster for the World Indigenous Games 2017 and ran a special half hour of extra programming daily during the entirety of the games. Produced a series of vignettes for aptnnews.ca, which celebrated Aboriginal heroes and historical figures throughout National Aboriginal History Month. Releasing one per day, the vignettes went viral on social media and resulted in thousands of shares. APTN National News and APTN Investigates ran a special on aptnnews.ca and also broadcast series taking an in-depth look at the residential schools experience and subsequent settlement. APTN In-Focus became a onehour live interactive and livestreamed show on social media. MULTI-PLATFORM PROGRAMMING APTN National News, APTN Investigates, APTN InFocus, APTN Nation to Nation, APTN Face to Face and The Laughing Drum will all be expanding online and social media presence on new platforms including YouTube, podcasting and live streaming, and launching an app for iphone and Android. NEW NEWS BUREAU APTN will add a bureau in northern BC in the broadcast year. AWARDS AND RECOGNITION April 2017: CAJ Charles Bury Award 2017 The highest award the Canadian Association of Journalists can give, distinguishing APTN Executive Director of News and Current Affairs Karyn Pugliese, APTN National News, and APTN Investigates as significant contributors to Canadian journalism. APTN Investigates received a nomination for the Open Broadcast Feature Award for Forgotten Survivors. To this day, former students who attended residential schools in NL have never been officially acknowledged by Ottawa because the province joined Confederation in APTN / communiqué 2017

41 APTN National News received a nomination for the Open Broadcast News Award for Black Tickle, a remote southern Inuit community that struggled with basic services like water and healthcare. They say a land claim would offer security, and Trudeau made an election promise to negotiate. APTN National News received a nomination for the Scoop Award for Police Admit Racism, when police officers in Thunder Bay, ON posted online racist comments about Aboriginal Peoples, which led to the suspension of several officers. APTN Investigates received a nomination for Best Photography in a News or Information Program, Series or Segment for Defiance. The story of Freda Huson. She s so determined to stop a pipeline from crossing her clan s traditional territory; she s built her home right on the GPS coordinates of Chevron s proposed Pacific Trail Pipeline. Huson believes she s going to halt big business in their tracks. April 2017: Honourable Mention Canadian Hillman Prize 2017 Recognizes journalists whose work makes a difference to the lives of Canadians. Jorge Barrera, Mark Blackburn and Francine Compton of APTN Investigates received a collective Honourable Mention for Quest for Innocence. Through hours of police interrogations and a murder trial, Connie Oakes resolve never wavered; she did not kill Casey Armstrong in At her trial, there was no DNA, fingerprints, no motive presented as evidence. Only the testimony of Wendy Scott, a woman who admitted to lying to police during her interrogation, and under oath at trial. The Medicine Hat, AB, jury came back with a guilty verdict. January 2017: Beyond Borders ECPAT Canada Media Award 2016 Honours journalists covering the issue of child sexual exploitation. Cullen Crozier of APTN National News won in the category of English Electronic for Forgotten Survivors. October 2016: The Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) Lifetime Achievement Human Rights Reporting Award 2016 Celebrates journalists who have made a significant, lifetime contribution to human rights journalism. Presented to Paul Barnsley of APTN Investigates for a lifetime of work ensuring the voices and stories of Aboriginal Peoples in Canada are integral to the national conversation. HELPING TO DEVELOP JOURNALISM Team members of APTN National News participated on several panels at #CAJ17, the annual CAJ conference. APTN will be co organizing the next CAJ conference in JOURNALISM AWARDS including the highest award the Canadian Association of Journalists can give the CAJ Charles Bury Award 3 MONTHS of sustained daily coverage reporting from Standing Rock, ND, where thousands of Indigenous Peoples from all over the world gathered to oppose a controversial oil pipeline / 39

42 Panels at this year s conference included: Journalists discuss Canadian media s shortfalls and successes on covering our diverse society, while offering practical advice. Families voice their expectations for the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. How to get hired: A good cover letter and resume will get you in the door. Find out what you need to do and avoid from two people who hire journalists. Presentation of the CAJ Ethics Code. The committee s work to date identify the thorniest issues we have confronted and sought feedback and guidance from workshop participants. Tips on covering Aboriginal protests such as Idle No More, Muskrat Falls, and Standing Rock. A walkthrough on how to organize and plan, find good eyewitnesses and what to bring. How to turn daily news into investigative stories. Advice was given from two award-winning and long-time journalists who described some of their big stories and how they juggled the many demands on their time. APTN and CAJ s first Fellow John Murray screened his 22-minute documentary on First Nations Peoples accessibility to adequate health care on an off-reserve. MEDIA INTERVENTIONS AND COLLABORATIONS APTN intervention in the press freedom case regarding coverage of Muskrat Falls. APTN National News success in this would confirm the constitutional rights of media in these cases and persuade the court in cases involving Aboriginal Peoples. There are also further rights to be considered in the context of reconciliation and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). APTN is part of an eight media member coalition in ongoing media intervention regarding Vice Media and the RCMP and its production order issued to journalist Ben Makuch. He was ordered by the Crown to hand over all documentation of his story about Farah Shirdon, who left Canada to join the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) proving to be another important case in the freedom of the press. APTN National News collaborated with CBC, CTV, and Global News on a motion to broadcast portions of the trial for the murder of Colten Boushie, a 21-year-old man who was gunned down on a farm near Biggar, SK. Gerald Stanley pleaded not guilty in the shooting death of Colten Boushie on his farm. Stanley s trial is scheduled to start in January PARTNERSHIPS APTN National News has started to partner with Mindset to update reporting and to include guidelines for reporting on mental health in Aboriginal communities. News Media handbooks containing the results were published this past spring and have been widely distributed to newsrooms across Canada. Also, APTN National News is seeking to fill the gap in local news as noted by The Shattered Mirror: News, Democracy, and Trust in the Digital Age, produced by the Public Policy Forum. A partnership with JHR will develop citizen journalists in underserved communities, or where news service does not exist, and the APTN news team will be exploring local advertising and crowd-funding as options to finance a network of local online services. REPRESENTATION ON INDUSTRY BOARDS Staff were appointed to the Board of Directors for the CAJ, its ethics advisory committee and appointed to Board of Directors for the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression and named a Champion for JHR. APTN / communiqué 2017

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44 APTN / communiqué 2017 On August 8, 2013, the Canadian Radio television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) renewed APTN s mandatory carriage licence for a five-year term (September 1, 2013 to August 31, 2018).

45 conditions of licence / 43

46 The network is pleased to report APTN met all the mandated conditions, for a specialty channel, in the fiscal year. APTN is also pleased to report it has filed its broadcasting licence renewal application electronically on July 28, 2017, in accordance with the Commission s letter dated May 12, APTN CONDITIONS OF LICENCE STATUS REPORT, BROADCAST YEAR: SEPTEMBER 1, 2016 AUGUST 31, 2017 Condition of Licence 1 [CRTC ] The licensee shall adhere to the conditions of licence for specialty Category A services set out in Appendix I to Standard conditions of license, expectations, and encouragements for specialty and pay television category A services, broadcasting regulatory policy CRTC , 27 July 2011, as amended from time to time. Specialty Channel Conditions of Licence 1. The licensee shall adhere to the Equitable Portrayal Code, as amended from time to time and approved by the Commission. However, the application of the foregoing condition of licence will be suspended if the licensee is a member in good standing of the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council. APTN is a member in good standing with the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) and network employees have continued to donate their time as CBSC s Panel Adjudicators when selected. 2. The licensee shall adhere to the Broadcast Code for Advertising to Children, as amended from time to time and approved by the Commission. APTN abided by the Broadcast Code for Advertising to Children and continued to air commercial free programming in its children s block. 3. The licensee shall adhere to the Violence Code, as amended from time to time and approved by the Commission. However, the application of the foregoing condition of licence will be suspended if the licensee is a member in good standing of the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council. APTN is a member in good standing with the CBSC and network employees have continued to donate their time as CBSC s Panel Adjudicators when selected. 4. The licensee shall caption 100% of the English and French-language programs broadcast over the broadcast day, consistent with the approach set out in A new policy with respect to closed captioning, Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC , 17 May APTN captioned 100% of its English and French-language content. 5. Consistent with Accessibility of telecommunications and broadcasting services, Broadcasting and Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC , 21 July 2009, as subsequently amended by the Commission,[3] the licensee shall: ensure that advertising, sponsorship messages and promos in the English and French languages are closed captioned by no later than the fourth year of the licence term; adhere to the quality standards on closed captioning developed by television industry working groups, as amended from time to time and approved by the Commission; and implement a monitoring system to ensure that, for any signal that is closed captioned, the correct signal is captioned, the captioning is included APTN / communiqué 2017

47 in its broadcast signal and this captioning reaches the distributor of that signal in its original form. Original form means, at a minimum, that the captioning provided by the licensee reaches the distributor unaltered, whether it is passed through in analog or in digital, including in high-definition. APTN continued to caption all in-house content in advance of the required fourth year of the licence term and also all advertising content is closed captioned. APTN continued to adhere to the quality standards on all closed captioning developed by the industry working group. To ensure this COL is met, various monitoring methods are in place. They include: Playback: APTN monitors during playback using multiple banks of monitors for all four channels (aptn e, aptn w, aptn n and aptn hd). One bank shows what is on-air, and the other shows what viewers see at home. The network has a backup caption encoder in the event of equipment failure during live captioned programming. Post-Playback: To ensure the caption information is passing through its infrastructure in unaltered form, APTN regularly monitors its captioning from a variety of sources including satellite, cable and internet protocol television providers. Live Monitoring: Every month, two live programs are chosen at random for review of closed-captioned monitoring. The network compares what is captioned with what is spoken, and an accuracy rate is calculated using the formula determined by the Commission. 6. The licensee shall provide audio description for all the key elements of Canadian information programs, including news programming. For this condition of licence, audio description refers to announcers reading aloud the key textual and graphic information that is displayed on the screen during information programs. Audio description was provided via a narrator or voice-over for all APTN information programs, including news programming. 7. If the service devotes 50% or more of its program schedule to programming drawn from program categories 7 Drama and comedy or 2(b) Long-form documentary, set out in item 6 of Schedule I to the Specialty Service Regulations, 1990 (the Regulations), and/or to children s programming, the licensee shall provide described video for a minimum of four hours per broadcast week, of which two hours must be broadcast in described video for the first time on the service. The minimum four hours of described video programming broadcast during each broadcast week may be drawn from the following program categories, set out in item 6 of Schedule I to the Regulations: 2(b) Long-form documentary; 7 Drama and comedy; 9 Variety; 11(a) General entertainment and human interest; and 11(b) Reality television, and/or may be programming targeting children. APTN provided 2,397 hours of Described Video (DV) content, including repeats. Of those 2,397 hours, 104 hours were new. This averages out to more than 46 hours of DV per week, including two hours of new content. APTN continues to meet this COL and closely monitors DV content to ensure there are new DV hours each week. 8. In regard to the broadcast of advertising material: a) Except as otherwise provided in subparagraphs b) and c), / 45

48 the licensee shall not broadcast more than 12 minutes of advertising material during each clock hour. b) Where a program occupies time in two or more consecutive clock hours, the licensee may exceed the maximum number of minutes of advertising material allowed in those clock hours if the average number of minutes of advertising material allowed in the clock hours occupied by the program does not exceed the maximum number of minutes that would otherwise be allowed per clock hour. c) In addition to the twelve (12) minutes of advertising material referred to in subparagraph a), the licensee may broadcast partisan political advertising during an election period. d) The licensee shall not broadcast any paid advertising material other than paid national advertising. For the purposes of this condition of licence: The expression clock hour shall have the same meaning as that set out in the Television Broadcasting Regulations, The expression paid national advertising shall mean advertising material as defined under the Specialty Services Regulations, 1990 and that is purchased at a national rate and receives national distribution on the service. APTN did not exceed the 12 minutes per hour of paid advertising. 9. The licensee is authorized to make available for distribution both a standard definition and a high definition version of its service, provided that not less than 95% of the video and audio components of the high-definition and standard definition versions of the service are the same, exclusive of commercial messages and of any part of the service carried on a subsidiary signal. Further, all of the programming making up the 5% allowance shall be provided in high-definition. APTN abided by the 5% variation rule. In fact, all the content shown on our hd channel was available on our SD service except for 1%. Condition of Licence 2 [CRTC ] The licensee shall provide a high-quality, generalinterest television service offering a broad range of programming that reflects the diverse perspectives of Aboriginal Peoples, their lives and their cultures. The service will provide a positive window on Aboriginal life for all Canadians, whether living in northern or southern Canada. The schedule will include programming in English, French and various Aboriginal languages. APTN has continued to uphold this COL as a national Aboriginal television network with programming by, for and about Aboriginal Peoples to share with all Canadians. This is evident in APTN s mandate to reflect the issues and points of view of Aboriginal Peoples, and to act as a bridge to the broader Canadian society. Condition of Licence 3 [CRTC ] The licensee shall devote at least 75% of the broadcast year and at least 75% of the evening broadcast period to the broadcast of Canadian programs. Measuring Canadian Content Results from the most recently completed broadcast year are shown in the table on the next page. APTN exceeded the CRTC s Canadian content expectations that came into effect September 1, 2013, both over the broadcast day and broadcast evening. APTN / communiqué 2017

49 Canadian Content Results: Sept. 1, 2016 Aug. 31, 2017 Yearly Regulatory Expectations Broadcast Day (Mon. Sun., 6 a.m. 12 a.m.) Primetime (Mon. Sun., 6 p.m. 12 a.m.) 90.13% 75% 80.44% 75% Condition of Licence 4 [CRTC ] The Licensee shall broadcast a minimum of 35 hours of programming in Aboriginal languages each broadcast week. In this fiscal year, APTN broadcast an average of 55 hours of programming in Aboriginal languages each broadcast week, based on APTN n. That amounts to 2,852.5 hours annually in 22 different Aboriginal languages. It is also important to note that the hours of Aboriginallanguages programming fluctuates each season as a result of inventory levels. The following statistics illustrate the total annual hours of programming in the various Aboriginal languages offered this broadcast year. Language Total Hours Algonquin 9 Atikamekw Blackfoot 9 Chipewyan 9 Coast Salish 69 Cree Dakota 36 Dene 51 Innu 148 Inuktitut 1,130 Inuvialuktun 18 Kwak wala 8 Maliseet 21.5 Méchif 17 Mi'kmaq 16.5 Mohawk 357 Ojibway 51 Oji-cree 8.5 Saulteaux 9 Sylix 17 Tahaltan 8 Tsilhoqot'in 8 Total 2,852.5 / 47

50 Condition of Licence 5 [CRTC ] The licensee shall broadcast a minimum of 20 hours of French-language programming each broadcast year. APTN broadcast an average of 21.5 hours of French-language programming per week in this fiscal year. The average hours are based on the content aired on APTN e the channel reaching the highest French population in Canada. Condition of Licence 6 [CRTC ] In addition to the 12 minutes of advertising material permitted by subparagraph a: to condition of licence 8 set out in Standard Conditions of licence, expectations and encouragements for specialty and pay television Category A services, broadcasting policy CRTC , 27 July 2011, as amended from time to time, the licensee may broadcast infomercials (program category 14 set out in item 6 of Schedule I to the Specialty Services Regulations 1990). Regarding advertising material, APTN abided and continues to abide by the 12 minutes of advertising per hour condition. Condition of Licence 7 [CRTC ] The licensee shall broadcast at a minimum, an average of 8 hours of Canadian programs between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. in each broadcast week that are drawn from the following program categories set out in Item 6 of Schedule I to the Specialty Services Regulations, 1990: 2(b) Long-form documentary, 7 Drama and comedy, 8(a) Music and dance, 9 Variety and 11(a) General entertainment and human interest, or that are Canadian regional Productions. For the purpose of this condition of licence, regional productions shall have the meaning set out in Group-based licence renewals for English language television groups Introductory decision, Broadcasting Decision CRTC , 27 July APTN s weekly broadcast average of Canadian programs from categories 2b, 7, 8a, 9, and 11a between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. in this fiscal year was 13 hours; this is five hours more than the minimum requirement. It should be noted that each season the category levels fluctuate based on broadcast schedules and available inventory, but never drops below the required eight hours. Condition of Licence 8 [CRTC ] At least 80% of all Canadian programming broadcast on the service, other than news (program category 1), current affairs (program categories 2(a) and 3) sports (program category 6) (see Item 6 of Schedule I to the Specialty Services Regulations, 1990), shall be produced by independent production companies not related to the licensee. An independent production company is defined as a Canadian company that is carrying on business in Canada with a Canadian business address, that is owned and controlled by Canadians, whose business is in the production of film, videotape or live programs for distribution, and in which the licensee and any company related to the licensee owns or controls, directly or indirectly in the aggregate, less than 30% of the equity. In this fiscal year, 97.6% was the average of independently produced Canadian programming (excluding news and current affairs) broadcast on APTN. Condition of Licence 9 [CRTC ] The licensee shall have an adequate number of members on its Board of Directors, to APTN / communiqué 2017

51 represent northern and southern Canada, and at least one member who is selected by the Aboriginal broadcasting societies that make up the Northern Native Broadcast Access Program. APTN is governed by a 12-member volunteer Aboriginal Board of Directors with representation from all regions of Canada. Three members represent each quadrant: Northwest, Northeast, Southwest and Southeast. Condition of Licence 10 [CRTC ] The licensee shall file, by no later than 30 November in each year, a report signed by a senior officer of the corporation attesting that APTN has met the requirements set out in conditions of licence 5 and 6 above, as well as the requirements relating to the closed captioning of English and French language programs during the previous broadcast year. This report shall include the following information: Weekly amount (time) of programming in Aboriginal languages: Weekly and annual amount of French-language programs broadcast; Annual amount of Englishlanguage programming broadcast; and Annual amount of closed captioning of the Frenchlanguage and the Englishlanguage programming broadcast. APTN continues to file monthly logs to the Commission, as well as the annual report. Below are the fiscal year statistics: Weekly amount (time) of programming in Aboriginal languages: 55 hours (based on the APTN n) Weekly and annual amount of French-language programs broadcast: 21.5 hours per week (based on APTN e and broadcast day reporting hours Monday Sunday, 6 a.m. 12:00 a.m.) A total of 1,328 hours is broadcast annually based upon a 24 hour period. Annual amount of Englishlanguage programming broadcast: 6,264.5 hours MORE 85 % THAN Canadian programming content MORE 97 % THAN Canadian programming broadcast was independently produced / 49

52 Annual amount of closed captioning of the Frenchlanguage and the Englishlanguage programming broadcast. (Annual amount of hours based on a 24-hour reporting period.) French: 100% or 1,328 hours English: 100% or 6,264.5 hours Condition of Licence 11 [CRTC ] The licensee shall file, by no later than 30 November in each year, a report relating to its independent production activity that shall include: the name of the production for which APTN has entered into a new production commitment; the name of the production company; whether it is related ; the region of production; the length of production (episodes and program running time); and the budget of production (to be filed in confidence with the Commission). To view APTN s Independent Production Activity (Original Productions) for this fiscal year, with the exemption of the production budget that will be filed in confidence with the Commission, please refer to Appendix A: Independent Production Activity (Original Production) Condition of Licence 12 [CRTC ] The broadcasting undertaking licenced hereby is designated as a Category A service. For the purposes of these conditions of licence: All time periods shall be calculated according to Eastern Standard Time. Further, the terms broadcast year and evening broadcast period shall have the same meanings as those set out in the Television Broadcasting Regulations, Paid national advertising shall mean advertising material as defined under the Television Broadcasting Regulations, 1987, and that is purchased at a national rate and receives national distribution on the service. The term broadcast week shall have the same meaning as that set out in the Radio Regulations, APTN abided by the Category A service regulations under Condition of Licence 12. APTN / communiqué 2017

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54 programming What s On APTN connects with its audience through genuine, inspiring and engaging entertainment through multiple platforms. Here is a sample list of series from the broadcast season. APTN / communiqué 2017

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56 fall September to November APTN / communiqué 2017

57 THE CLEANER, SEASONS 1 & 2 aptn.ca/thecleaner Launched: September 7, 2016 Season 1 (Network Premiere English) December 7, 2016 Season 2 (Network Premiere English) 13 x 60-minute episodes Drama Series After hitting rock-bottom from his addictions, William (Benjamin Bratt) and his team use any means necessary to help people get clean from their dependence on sex, drugs, alcohol or gambling. LOUIS SAYS, SEASON 2 louissaystv.com Launched: September 11, 2016 (World Premiere Cree) 8 x 30-minute episodes Children & Youth Animated Series Follow the adventures of six-yearold Randy as he joins Louis, an Elder, on his mission to help people in his community. Completing meaningful tasks together, Louis reinforces important values while teaching Randy new words in Dene. MOHAWK IRONWORKERS mohawkironworkers.com Launched: September 6, 2016 (World Premiere English) (World Premiere Mohawk) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Celebrate the steely determination of the best ironworkers on the planet! Mohawk Ironworkers uses a mixture of dramatic high steel footage and archival material to show the reality of one of the most dangerous jobs on the planet. MOHAWK GIRLS, SEASON 4 mohawkgirls.com Launched: October 25, 2016 (World Premiere English) 8 x 30-minute episodes Drama Series What does it mean to be a modern day Mohawk woman? Mohawk Girls is a half-hour dramatic comedy about four young women trying to figure out the answer. MOOSEMEAT & MARMALADE, SEASON 2 moosemeatandmarmalade.com Launched: September 7, 2016 (World Premiere English) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Cooking Series From a muskrat to a goose, join two very different hunter/chefs one Canadian Cree and one Brit/ European to explore contrasting cultures and traditions in the way we access, cook and present our food. THE OTHER SIDE, SEASON 3 theothersidetv.ca Launched: October 27, 2016 (World Premiere English) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Lead by intuitive Jeff Richards; The Other Side is a thrilling series that seeks to find the most haunted corners of the Canadian prairies. With his team of researchers, and with the guidance of an Elder, Jeff hopes to reach out to these restless souls and bring them the peace they need to move on. / 55

58 URBAN NATIVE GIRL urbannativegirl.tv Launched: June 7, 2016 (World Premiere English) September 6, 2016 (World Premiere Dene) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Join Aboriginal fashionista, Lisa Charleyboy, as she follows her dream of transforming her online fashion blog into a glossy print magazine. TAKEN, SEASON 1 takentheseries.com Launched: September 9, 2016 (World Premiere English) February 1, 2017 (World Premiere Cree) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Riveting, spine-chilling, important television, Taken is a true-crime documentary series that confronts, head-on, the national epidemic of Canada s missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. LA VIE EST HOCKEY lavieesthockey.ca/accueil Launched: September 8, 2016 (World Premiere Atikamekw) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Follow eight minor hockey players from different Aboriginal communities in Quebec, on their ultimate quest: the National Aboriginal Hockey Championship. WILD ARCHAEOLOGY, SEASON 1 wildarchaeology.com Launched: September 6, 2016 (World Premiere English) February 9, 2017 (World Premiere Dakota) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Exciting never-before-seen adventures into Canada s ancient Aboriginal past. Twelve thousand years of human inhabitation vividly brought to life! KONNECTED.TV konnected.tv Launched: November 2, 2016 (World Premiere English) May 26, 2017 (World Premiere Cree) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Follow Pakesso Mukash on his quest into Indigenous cultures across the Americas to find a young generation of tradition keepers : those who have been chosen to preserve tradition, cultural and spiritual knowledge, and awaken others to find a place for themselves in a modern world. APTN / communiqué 2017

59 CLÉ DU STUDIO cledustudio.tv Launched: September 5, 2016 (World Premiere French) 13 x 30-minute episodes Variety Series Clé du studio welcomes young singer-songwriters to an informal jam in a private recording studio. Accompanied by the musicians of the house band, these music enthusiasts share their experiences and their musical skills in an atmosphere both joyful and relaxed. QANURLI?, SEASON 5 qanurli.ca Launched: September 5, 2016 (World Premiere Inuktitut) 13 x 30-minute episodes Comedy Series Unpredictable, hilarious and fun! This Inuktitut comedy show puts a playful and humorous spin on political, social and traditional issues relevant to the Inuit. WENTWORTH, SEASONS 4 & 5 aptn.ca/wentworth Launched: September 6, 2016 Season 4 (Canadian Premiere English) May 16, 2017 Season 5 (Canadian Premiere English) 12 x 60-minute episodes Drama Series Bea Smith (Danielle Cormack) is imprisoned for the attempted murder of her abusive husband and thrown into the hostile and unforgiving world of the Wentworth Correctional Centre. MOTETAN MAMO motetanmamo.com Launched: September 8, 2016 (World Premiere Atikamekw) September 5, 2016 (World Premiere French) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series The Atikamekw are a relatively unknown nation to Canadians. The two worlds live different realities, but they face similar challenges and issues. Motetan Mamo (Walking Together) will take you on an unfamiliar journey to familiar places. / 57

60 winter December to February APTN / communiqué 2017

61 HARD ROCK MEDICAL, SEASON 3 aptn.ca/hardrockmedical Launched: February 8, 2017 (Network Premiere English) 9 x 30-minute episodes Drama Series Set against a harsh Northern landscape at the most unusual medical school in the world. Multiple plot lines will gravitate towards one ultimate question: Do these students have what it takes to make it in the North? QANUQ ISUMAVIT 2017 Launched: January 17, 2017 (World Premiere Inuktitut) 13 x 90-minute episodes News/Current Affairs Qanuq Isumavit is a live call-in show on issues of concern in the Arctic. Viewers are invited to participate by phoning or ing to ask questions, disagree with the guest s view, offer a comment or just air their views. ILINNIQ, SEASON 6 aptn.ca/ilinniq Launched: January 3, 2017 (World Premiere Inuktitut) 13 x 30-minute episodes Lifestyle/Culture Series Our host this season, Myna Ishulutak, is an Inuktitut teacher and passionate learner of all things Inuk. In Season 6 we follow along on her journey to learning more about herself and being an Inuk woman in today s world. HIT THE ICE, SEASONS 4 & 5 hittheice.tv Launched: February 2, 2017 Season 5 (World Premiere English) February 9, 2017 Season 4 (World Premiere Cree) 13 x 30-minute episodes Children & Youth Series NHL-player-turned-coach John Chabot guides young players through the ups and downs of a competitive and elite all-aboriginal hockey team. Along the way, the hopefuls will grow not only as skilled players but as men. UNDEREXPOSED, SEASON 5 underexposed.tv Launched: January 3, 2017 (World Premiere English) 13 x 30-minute episodes Children & Youth Series Find out what it takes to capture extreme athletes in action. From the waves to the slopes, aspiring action sports photographer Grace Dove shows how it s done. NIQITSIAT, SEASON 11 aptn.ca/niqitsiat Launched: January 3, 2017 (World Premiere Inuktitut) 13 x 30-minute episodes Lifestyle/Culture Documentary Series Niqitsiat features the preparation and cooking of traditional Inuit foods. Healthy eating and living is promoted through the depiction of delicious and easy to prepare, locally available food. / 59

62 LE RYTHME, SEASON 3 lerythme.ca Launched: January 2, 2017 (World Premiere French) February 2, 2017 (World Premiere Innu) 13 x 30-minute episodes Youth Series Follow the journey of young Aboriginal musicians as they receive intensive training by industry professionals. After several weeks of living together, these young musicians will be given the opportunity to take their dreams to the next level. PRINCESSES nativeprincesses.ca/en Launched: January 4, 2017 (World Premiere Mohawk) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series This documentary style mini-series explores the shifting concepts of beauty among Aboriginal Peoples, from a distant past, when oral tradition was the primary form of history, to present day. WORKING IT OUT TOGETHER, SEASON 3 workingitouttogether.com Launched: January 18, 2017 (World Premiere Mohawk) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Join Olympian and health advocate Waneek Horn-Miller on a journey centered on wellness and creating positive change within the Aboriginal community. APTN / communiqué 2017

63 spring March to May / 61

64 TRIBAL POLICE FILES, SEASON 1 tribalpolicefiles.com Launched: March 3, 2017 (World Premiere English) 13 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Tribal Police Files takes the viewer on a journey into the action-packed and often dangerous world of Stl atl imx Police officers as they put their lives on the line to keep their communities safe, healthy and proud. CARRY THE FIRE carrythefire.ca Launched: March 30, 2017 (World Premiere English) 1 x 60-minute One-off Documentary An inspirational story about Dr. Raoul McKay and those who influenced him. He spent a lifetime as an educator, a community activist and a champion of the interests of First Nations, Inuit and Métis in North America. DENE A JOURNEY, SEASON 2 deneajourney.com Launched: March 7, 2017 (World Premiere English) 6 x 30-minute episodes Documentary Series Trek with Aboriginal urbanites on a journey to connect with their culture, discovering themselves along the way. GUILT FREE ZONE, SEASON 2 theguiltfreezone.com Launched: March 18, 2017 (World Premiere English) 13 x 30-minute episodes Music & Variety Series Guilt Free Zone is a comedy, variety and performance series featuring two-time Juno awardwinning musician Derek Miller, set in a fictitious urban speakeasy, and anchored by the comic stylings of some of Canada s best comedic/ improv actors. The situations that arise are anything but common. APTN / communiqué 2017

65 MÉCHANT TRIP!, SEASON 1 aptn.ca/mechanttrip Launched: May 1, 2017 (World Premiere French) 13 x 30-minute episodes Children & Youth Series Each episode of this youth series sets up an unlikely match between an Aboriginal teen and a wellknown personality, orchestrated by ever-friendly host Brad Gros- Louis. Laughter, extreme sports, and adrenaline make an explosive experience both on TV and online. SOLSTICE CONCERTS 2016 solsticeconcerts.ca Launched: May 6, 2017 (World Premiere English) 7 x 30-minute episodes Music & Variety Series Each episode features never before seen performances from the 2016 Aboriginal Day Live concert, plus exclusive backstage interviews with the artists. UNDEREXPOSED, SEASON 4 underexposed.tv Launched: May 5, 2017 (World Premiere Cree) 13 x 30-minute episodes Children & Youth Series Find out what it takes to capture extreme athletes in action. From the waves to the slopes, aspiring action sports photographer Grace Dove shows how it s done. / 63

66 summer June to August APTN / communiqué 2017

67 2017 INDSPIRE AWARDS ABORIGINAL DAY LIVE 2017 aboriginaldaylive.ca Launched: June 21, 2017 (World Premiere English) 1 x 7-hour Live Event Music & Variety Live Show Launched: July 1, 2017 (Network Premiere English) 1 x 90-minute episode Award Show Indspire presents a celebration of Canada s Aboriginal accomplishments, honouring 13 remarkable Aboriginal Canadians who have achieved outstanding success in their respective fields. The country unites for the nation s largest event in recognition of National Aboriginal Day. Eight cities, one great gathering. Captured in a special 7-hour live broadcast, featuring talented Aboriginal musicians and entertainers from across Canada. / 65

68 aboriginal day live Aboriginal Day Live is the largest celebration of National Aboriginal Day, a celebration of Aboriginal Peoples cultures and heritage and the summer solstice in Canada. APTN / communiqué 2017

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70 The 11 th edition brought Canadians together to acknowledge Aboriginal Peoples accomplishments, through cultural activities and live music while contributing to the nationwide movement of reconciliation. spotlight on success Accomplishments EIGHT CITIES, ONE GREAT GATHERING This year, Aboriginal Day Live was hosted in eight cities across Canada, including Halifax, Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto, Winnipeg, Yellowknife, Edmonton and Vancouver, making it the largest celebration of National Aboriginal Day this country has ever seen. The welcoming stage from Toronto was a head start on inviting audiences to come back and attend the event in summer The live multi-platform concert broadcast was available to all Canadians and beyond via APTN, radio waves and online. Viewer statistics reached 427,000 through the TV broadcast, with 16,361 online viewers, ten radio networks broadcasting to 1,097,000 potential listeners for the total combined reach of over 1.5 million across all platforms. Generous support from the Government of Canada through the Canada 150 Fund and national partners Public Service Alliance of Canada, Investors Group, TD Bank Group and countless regional partners helped make Aboriginal Day Live 2017 the highest rated and most watched edition in its history. The arts and culture communities worked together to fuse different genres, languages, styles and interdisciplinary arts from across the country. First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples came together on stage to create an unforeseen production of contemporary Aboriginal expression. Throat-singing and beat box mix-up in Inuktitut and French; artists from across the North creating the first ever Inuit throat singing choir; and hosts outfitted with the hottest jewelry and clothing from Aboriginal designers are but a few examples. Over 70 acts across 80 stages and highlights included: Charlie Major, Classified, Daniel Lanois, Derek Miller, Digawolf, Don Amero, Florent Vollant, George Leach, Iskwé, LightningCloud, Nelly Furtado, Neon Dreams, Radio Radio, Taboo and Zachary Richard. APTN / communiqué 2017

71 Making its debut in a park outside APTN headquarters in downtown Winnipeg in 2007, Aboriginal Day Live continues to expand its grassroots reach across the country. Here are the cities that have hosted Aboriginal Day Live. City Year Winnipeg Yellowknife 2008, 2017 Whitehorse 2009 Ottawa 2010, 2017 Regina 2012 Iqaluit 2013 Halifax 2014, 2017 Edmonton 2015, 2017 Vancouver 2017 Toronto 2017 Montréal 2017 Whitehorse Iqaluit Yellowknife Edmonton Vancouver Regina Winnipeg Halifax Montréal Ottawa Toronto / 69

72 Aboriginal Peoples Television Network 339 Portage Avenue Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 2C3 Canada P: F: Toll-Free: aptn.ca