For generations, Saturday nights meant gathering around the TV to watch Hockey Night in Canada on CBC. This fall, for the first time in decades, NHL games will no longer air on the CBC; a major change to one of Canada’s longest-running broadcasting traditions.
While Hockey Night in Canada is just one example, it highlights a much bigger issue: as global streaming services and broadcasters compete for exclusive rights, Canadians risk losing free or affordable access to the sporting and cultural events that bring us together.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
Countries like Australia, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and many European nations have adopted Anti-Siphoning policies to help ensure nationally significant sporting and cultural events remain widely accessible before exclusive subscription deals can put them behind paywalls.
Canada has no such protections.
That’s why we’ve published an explainer what an Anti-Siphoning policy is, why it matters, and how it could help protect access to the moments that shape our shared national experience. If you believe Canadians should continue to have broad access to the events that unite us, not just those who can afford another streaming subscription, write to your MP today.
It only takes a few minutes, but your voice can help ensure future generations don’t lose even more of the moments that connect us.