The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has issued a report called Harnessing Change: The Future of Programming Distribution in Canada.

The “digital-only, interactive” report makes fascinating reading, particularly the Market Insights pages and its charts.

The report concludes:

“To ensure a vibrant domestic market and be equitable to all players, it will be essential to develop better regulatory approaches that engage all audio and video services and for each to participate in the most appropriate ways in creating and promoting content by and for Canadians. Accordingly, if legislative change is to take place, it should clearly and explicitly make any video or audio services offered in Canada and/or drawing revenue from Canadians subject to the legislation and incorporate them into the broadcasting system.”

That sounds an awful lot like a Netflix tax to me.

Some telling quotes:

“Virtually all genres of content benefit from direct and indirect financial support. Absent this support, domestic production of virtually all genres of programming would not be sustainable at current levels.”

“The most direct concern is that, driven by the shift to online consumption, continued declines in traditional TV advertising and subscription revenues — the broadcaster revenues on which the bulk of current financing is based — will reduce the money available for production by Canadians. If creators and producers do not find alternative types of financing, less content will be made by Canadians and Canadians will see less of themselves, their culture and their values reflected.”

“A vibrant domestic market is not possible unless it engages all players in the system and ensures that each participates in the most appropriate and equitable ways. The current regulatory approach to audio and video content establishes benefits for traditional players, as well as related obligations. Neither these benefits nor these obligations are applied to the many online international services also operating in Canada and playing increasingly important roles in the broadcasting system.”

My take: the CRTC posits that this new system would be revenue-neutral and not cost Canadians more. The only way that’s going to happen is if cable TV and wireless providers lower their rates to balance the inevitable rise in Netflix rates. When pigs fly.