Ontario championed its growing cultural sector today in the third week of Canadian Radio and Television Commission (CRTC) hearings being held to determine whether changes need to be made to the country's broadcasting system. Culture Minister Aileen Carroll urged the Commission to stay the course and reaffirm its regulatory commitment to Canadian programming.

Minister Carroll and Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC) Chair Kevin Shea told the commission in a joint presentation that current CRTC policies have helped foster investment in the production and showcasing of innovative Canadian content.

Minister Carroll and Shea said that Ontario's cultural industries have benefited substantially from the current regulatory environment. The presentation also emphasized how Ontario is strengthening the province's cultural industries to help them succeed in the global economy.

Since last fall, Ontario has announced over $100 million in new initiatives to support cultural industries over the next three years, including:

• Increasing the Ontario Film and Television Tax Credit rate to 35 per cent from 30 per cent
• Increasing the Ontario Production Services Tax Credit rate to 25 per cent from 18 per cent.
• Increasing the Ontario Interactive Digital Media Credit to 25 per cent for larger producers and maintaining the 30 per cent rate for small companies creating their own intellectual property.