Canadian perspectives on the development and introduction of HDTV services

At the present time in Canada there exist well developed telecommunications and broadcasting networks and thus Canada is well positioned to take the next steps towards the information age by the introduction of HDTV services for both broadcasting and private uses. These services will have much in common with HDTV services developed for the USA, Japan, and Europe but the unique Canadian environment will also strongly influence the choices and strategies selected, thus exerting considerable leverage on decisions concerning North American standards. The critical factors include technical, regulatory, policy, economic and cultural concerns. These have led to Canadian positions on production and programme exchange that are strongly `internationalist´ in character, while in emission the position favours an evolutionary approach, that is both economic for viewers and deals equitably with the integrated programme delivery network formed from terrestrial broadcasting, cable, satellite, fiber and pre-recorded media