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What would Canada lose if the government privatized the CBC? At least $1.3-billion in economic activity, says a report prepared for the public broadcaster by Deloitte & Touche.

With the same analytical method used to measure the value of the BBC to the British economy, the accounting firm provided the CBC with a clearer gauge of the broadcaster's impact on the Canadian production industry and greater economy.

CBC's president and chief executive officer, Hubert Lacroix, described the study as a "benchmark and a model by which we can start monitoring and understanding even better the economic impact of the decisions that we make."

He added that he isn't looking for more money from Ottawa with this study, nor does he see a threat at the moment to the CBC's current level of government funding.

The report, released Wednesday, is the first major study of the CBC's economic role commissioned by the public broadcaster and pegs its overall economic impact at $3.7-billion. The CBC (which includes Radio-Canada) receives $1.1-billion in government funding every year toward its budget of $1.7-billion - the difference is mainly made up from TV ad revenue - and Deloitte, using standard measures of direct and indirect impact, estimates that budget generates $3.7-billion of activity in the Canadian economy.

A privatized CBC that would commission less Canadian content, spend more money on foreign programming and compete more heavily with existing broadcasters for ad revenue would generate only $1.16-billion in overall economic activity. Meanwhile, the economic impact of redirecting the CBC's grant back into general revenues would be $1.8-billion, assuming the money was used according to the government's current spending profile. But other private broadcasters and media would take a $500-million hit to their economic impact as they faced a new commercial competitor. So Deloitte's final measure is that privatization would leave the Canadian economy with a loss of about $1.3-billion - or, in the language of the report, the CBC's net value added is $1.3-billion.

The report, based on activity in 2010, estimates that 70 per cent of the CBC's value is generated by television, which also accounts for the lion's share of the corporation's budget, while radio and various specialty services make up the remainder. While the report credits the CBC with being an important player in regional centres, such as Halifax and Winnipeg, the broadcaster's economic impact is heavily concentrated in Ontario and Quebec, where TV production is centred.

As well as the economic impact, the report lists several "spill-over effects," other key areas where the CBC's presence is felt, including the independent production community, where the broadcaster spends millions of dollars and promotes a variety of programming, and local economies, where the broadcaster's presence helps to create a creative cluster, particularly in Montreal. It also argues that the whole broadcasting sector benefits from the CBC's role in implementing new technology, promoting digital content and nurturing Canadian talent.

The report also noted that CBC polling conducted in 2010 shows a demand for more regional programming than the broadcaster is currently providing.

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