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Magazines and Community Newspapers
New in Canada's Economic Action Plan
Through Canada's Economic Action Plan, the federal government will support continued access by Canadians to magazines and community newspapers over the next two years. This initiative will cost an estimated $30 million.
About the Program
This initiative will be carried out in two phases. Funding in 2009-2010 maintained the budget of the Publications Assistance Program, which provides postal subsidies to publishers of magazines and community newspapers. The $15 million in new funding replaced the amount previously contributed by Canada Post, which ended on March 31, 2009, and was in addition to the $60 million the Department of Canadian Heritage already provides annually to support periodicals through the Publications Assistance Program and the Canada Magazine Fund.
In 2010-2011, the Canada Magazine Fund and Publications Assistance Program will be replaced by a new program called the Canada Periodical Fund. This fund will modernize and simplify the government's approach to supporting periodicals, while building on the success of the previous programs. Funding to individual titles will be based on the reading choices of Canadians, which means the more Canadians purchase copies of a magazine or periodical, the greater the support it will receive. The new fund will give publishers more flexibility in how they use support to reach readers. Publishers may use funding for distribution expenses, content creation, business development, or to support online activities. There will also be support for business development projects for small- and medium-sized enterprises and online-only magazines. The Canada Periodical Fund will have a budget of $75 million in 2010-2011, $15 million of which was committed in the Economic Action Plan.
How It Works
In 2009-2010, the Publications Assistance Program and the Canada Magazine Fund operated with no changes from previous years.
For 2010-2011, the Canada Periodical Fund has been launched, replacing the Publications Assistance Program and the Canada Magazine Fund. The fund will be delivered through three components:
- Aid to Publishers provides funding to eligible Canadian print magazines and non-daily newspapers, calculated using a formula based on eligible copies sold or distributed by verified request over a 12-month period. Publishers will be able to use funding to support the creation of content, distribution, online activities, or business development.
- Business Innovation offers support for projects to eligible small- and mid-sized printed and online magazines. This component encourages new developments in the industry and contributes to the diversity of content sought by Canadian readers.
- Collective Initiatives funds projects for associations are designed to increase the overall sustainability of the Canadian magazine and non-daily newspaper industries.
Applications must refer directly to one of the three program components.
Who Is Eligible
The Publications Assistance Program and the Canada Magazine Fund are no longer taking applications.
Eligible recipients under the Canada Periodical Fund include paid-circulation and request-circulation Canadian magazines and paid-circulation non-daily newspapers with at least 80 per cent Canadian content. Daily newspapers, free publications, and professional association publications will not be eligible. Industry associations may apply for support for industry-wide projects.
How to Find Out More
For more information on the Canada Periodical Fund, please visit the Canadian Heritage website. Information on the Publications Assistance Program and the Canada Magazine Fund can also be found on the website.
Initiative Update
The memorandum of Agreement with Canada Post for shared administration of the Publications Assistance Program in 2009-2010 has been completed. Applications are being received and $5M has been disbursed. Funds will continue to be disbursed in the coming quarters.
More Info:
http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/fcp-cpf/index-eng.cfm
For more information on the Economic Action Plan initiatives, follow the links below:
