In Saskatchewan the CBC purchased CJFB-TV Swift Current from the Forst family, CKOS-TV Yorkton and CKBI-TV Prince Albert from CTV Inc.

2005
CBLT began digital operations on channel 20 from the CN Tower. The inaugural weekend schedule on March 5 and 6 included a premiere of the Nature of Things: Nature Bites Back – The Case of the Sea Otter. CBC HD then broadcast highlights from past and upcoming HD projects, including Hockey: A People's History, which was still in production at the time. . HD programming was based on the regular network schedule, with HD and wide-screen programming simulcast when available.

At 12:01am on August 15th, the CBC and Radio-Canada locked out their 5500 employees. Months of negotiations had failed to achieve agreement between the Corporation and the Canadian Media Guild on the key matter of the Corporation's wish to significantly increase the number of contract employees to replace staff as attrition occurred. When the membership ratified a new Agreement early in October, the Canadian Media Guild said that 3,514 ballots were cast and 88.4 per cent voted in favour of ratification.

Under the agreement, wages would increase by 12.6 per cent over the life of the contract, which would remain in effect until March 31, 2009.

2006
On February 1st, the CRTC approved an application by Jim Pattison Broadcast Group Limited Partnership, to amend the broadcasting licence for the television programming undertaking CFJC-TV Kamloops and its transmitters, in order to delete the condition of licence requiring that the station be operated as an affiliate of the CBC's national, English-language television network.

2007
On April 7th, the CRTC approved an application by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation to amend the broadcasting licence for the television programming undertaking CBNT St. John's in order to operate transmitters at Hopedale, Makkovik, Nain and Postville. The transmitters would enable viewers in the above-mentioned communities to receive programming originating from CBNT St. John's.

The transmitters were at the time operated by the CBC as a radiocommunication distribution undertaking (RDU), which rebroadcast the programming of the CBC Northern Television Service.

The CBC had advised the Commission that improvements in satellite feed technology now permitted it to provide these communities with the full CBNT St. John's program schedule. The CBC noted that it was thus no longer necessary that it hold a separate RDU licence for these transmitters and asked that the licence be revoked.

Accordingly, the Commission revoked the broadcasting licence issued to the CBC with respect to the above-noted RDU.

On November 5th, Hubert T. Lacroix was appointed President and CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada on November 5, 2007, for a five-year term, commencing on January 1, 2008. He succeeded Robert Rabinovitch.

Before joining CBC/Radio-Canada, Mr. Lacroix had been with Stikeman Elliott, a law firm, and prior thereto, he had acted as Executive Chairman of Telemedia Corporation and of the other Boards of Directors of the various companies in the Telemedia corporate structure. Before joining Telemedia, he had been a Senior Partner at McCarthy Tétrault, a major Canadian law firm.

2008
On February 28 the CBC announced that it welcomed CBC/Radio-Canada: Defining Distinctiveness in the Changing Media Landscape, the report issued on that date by the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.

"It's positively encouraging to see the Committee recognize the value of public broadcasting to Canadians – on all platforms, old, new and emerging," said Hubert T. Lacroix. "In the face of sweeping cultural, technological and industrial change, Canadians need a place for distinctive Canadian content. This report to the Government asserts the meaning and importance of public broadcasting for all Canadians, and shows how it improves our democratic and cultural lives."

From the report itself: "The Committee regards CBC/Radio-Canada as an essential public institution that plays a crucial role in bringing Canadians closer together… The vast majority of the evidence stressed the distinctiveness of CBC/Radio-Canada, reflected in the quality, originality and creativity of its programming. Being distinctive should not however mean being inaccessible. Its services must be accessible to the various elements of the Canadian public."

On June 28th, the CRTC approved an application by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation to acquire the assets of the French-language television programming undertakings CKSH-TV Sherbrooke, CKTM-TV Trois-Rivières and CKTV-TV Saguenay and its transmitter CKTV-TV-1 Saint-Fulgence, Quebec, from TQS Inc, and for new broadcasting licences to continue the operation of the undertakings under the same terms and conditions as those in effect under the current licences.

2009
On February 2nd 2009, it was reported that members of the Canadian Media Guild had voted overwhelmingly in favour of a new five-year collective agreement with CBC/Radio-Canada. A full 93 per cent of members approved the historic deal, which had been reached in late 2008, four months ahead of the expiry of the previous agreement.

"The new agreement is based on the principle that people are the foundation of everything that CBC/Radio-Canada does," said Hubert T. Lacroix. "We're working together to strengthen our ability to deliver as the national public broadcaster."

On September 14th, CBC Television announced that it had joined with other major conventional Canadian broadcasters, CTV, Global and others, to create Local TV Matters, an alliance aimed at informing Canadians about critical issues affecting local television programming specifically and the conventional broadcasting model in general.

The CRTC had announced its intention to set up a framework to permit conventional broadcasters and cable and satellite companies to negotiate a value for local signals.

With the CRTC deadline to receive submissions on these and other related issues becoming due on that day, "the broadcasters, in an unprecedented move, have determined the need to come together to reinforce the importance and value of diversity and choice within the Canadian media landscape", said Steven Guiton, CBC/Radio-Canada's chief regulatory officer.

On November 17th, the CBC appeared before the CRTC to ask for an end to the "free-riding" by broadcast distribution undertakings (BDUs) on conventional television services. The CBC said that the system had become so imbalanced that the CRTC acknowledged that it could not afford to sit idly by, given the threat to the future of high-quality, local Canadian programming.

"The conventional television financial model in Canada is collapsing," said CBC/Radio-Canada President Hubert T. Lacroix. "Without a major correction that will allow conventional broadcasters to get a fair price for their signals, Canadians will have to start getting used to seeing stations shut down and high-quality programming disappear."

The CBC presented the CRTC with a proposed regulatory framework for correcting the current inequities in the system, which it said would ensure the future of conventional broadcasting and the survival of local content for the benefit of all Canadians. As was customary, the Commission reserved its decision.

2010
On March 22, the CBC responded to a just-announced CRTC decision regarding value-for-signal, by stating that, in its view, the CRTC had " today failed to fulfill its responsibility to maintain a healthy broadcast system that serves the interests of Canadians."

In its newly announced framework for conventional broadcasting, the CRTC had allowed private broadcasters to negotiate a fair value for their signals with cable and satellite companies, but denied that same right to CBC/Radio-Canada.

On August 6th, with Canada's switch from analogue to digital over-the-air television just over a year away, CBC/Radio-Canada released the details of its plan for the transition.

CBC/Radio-Canada would be installing digital transmitters in all of the markets in which it produced original television programming, for a total of 27 transmitters. Fifteen of the 27 transmitters would be operational by August 2011, with the remaining twelve to be operational by or before August 2012.

The Corporation would continue to offer analogue service beyond the August 31, 2011 shut-off date established by government in all markets not identified by the CRTC as mandatory for digital transmission. It had also filed a request to the CRTC to allow a temporary extension of analogue service in those markets not slated for transition until after the August 2011 deadline.

Also on August 6th, CBC President Hubert T. Lacroix announced the departure of Richard Stursberg, executive vice-president, English services, from CBC/Radio-Canada. Kirstine Stewart, general manager, CBC Television, would take on the position of executive vice-president, English services, on an interim basis.

On August 9th, the CRTC renewed the broadcasting licences for the stations in the CBC Television Network from 1 September 2010 to 31 March 2011, subject to the terms and conditions in effect under the current licences.

2011
On January 10th, the CBC announced that Kirstine Stewart, who since August 2010 had been the interim Executive Vice-President of English Services, had been confirmed in the position, responsible for the national public broadcaster's English Services. The change was effective immediately.

On March 21st, the CRTC renewed the broadcasting licences for the CBC Television Network stations from 1 April 2011 to 31 August 2012, subject to the terms and conditions in effect under the then-current licences.

On June 17th, the CRTC announced that it would hold a hearing on September 12th, to consider the CBC's applications for the renewal of all their various English and French radio and television networks. However, on July 8th the CRTC announced that it was postponing the licence renewal hearing for the CBC until June 2012.

The Commission advised that the decision had been made for two reasons. First, it was made further to a request by the Quebec English-language Production Committee (QEPC) for the same data that had been available for the group-based licence renewals for private English-language television, held in April 2011.

Second, the CBC/SRC had that day advised that the federal government had not yet established the future operating budget for the CBC. The CRTC believed therefore that it would be inappropriate to impose licence conditions given this uncertainty. Consequently, the CRTC had decided to postpone the renewal hearing until June 2012. A revised notice of consultation would be issued in due course, with new procedural dates.

On August 16th, the CRTC announced that it would allow the CBC to continue to operate 22 of its analog television rebroadcasting transmitters in cities in Alberta, Ontario, Saskatchewan, Quebec and New Brunswick, until August 31st 2012. In announcing their decision, the CRTC said that approval of the CBC's proposal, and its related technical amendments, would provide additional time for affected households that relied on over-the-air service in mandatory markets to find other means to access the CBC's television services. Approval of the proposal would also provide an opportunity for the Commission to discuss the CBC's plans for its over-the-air transmitter system at the time of the CBC's licence renewal hearing, now scheduled for June 2012.

On August 18th, the CBC had its Television Network licence renewed to August 2012, subject to the terms and conditions in effect under the then-current licence.

On December 15th 2011, the CBC filed with the Commission the additional data that had been requested.

2012
On January 31st, the CBC wrote to the CRTC, requesting more time to establish its future operating budget before being faced with the imposition of any new licence conditions.

On February 1st, the CRTC published a Notice of Consultation that stated that the Commission considered that it would be inappropriate to set a hearing date for the renewal of the CBC’s licences until the CBC had had an opportunity to establish its future operating budget. The Commission was therefore postponing the licence renewal hearing until further notice.

See also attached article from Broadcast Dialogue,
and follow this link to a detailed history of CBLT-TV News personalities:
http://www.attheplate.com/cbc/
(courtesy of compiler Jay-Dell Mah)