Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (French: Société Radio-Canada), commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster. Radio-Canada is the national French-language broadcast arm of the corporation.

Although some local stations in Canada predate CBC's founding, CBC is the oldest existing broadcasting network in Canada, first established in its present form on November 2, 1936. Radio services include CBC Radio One, CBC Radio 2, Première Chaîne, Espace musique and the international radio service Radio Canada International. Television operations include CBC Television, Télévision de Radio-Canada, CBC News Network, le Réseau de l'information, ARTV (part ownership), Documentary and Bold. The CBC operates services for the Canadian Arctic under the names CBC North and Radio Nord Québec. The CBC owns 20.2% of satellite radio broadcaster Canadian Satellite Radio Holdings, operator of Sirius Canada and XM Radio Canada, which airs additional CBC services including CBC Radio 3 and Bande à part.

CBC/Radio-Canada television stations are currently in the process of an over-the-air digital television transition. However, the transition will result in the loss of either or both CBC TV or Télévision de Radio-Canada over-the-air in many cities.

CBC/Radio-Canada offers programming in English, French and eight Aboriginal languages on its domestic radio service; in nine languages on its international radio service, Radio Canada International; and in eight languages on its Web-based radio service RCI Viva, a service for recent and aspiring immigrants to Canada.

The financial structure and the nature of the CBC often place it in the same category as other national broadcasters, such as the British broadcaster BBC, although unlike the BBC (and more like the Irish network RTÉ), the CBC employs commercial advertising to supplement its federal funding on its television broadcasts. The radio service employed commercials from its inception to 1974. Since then, its radio service, like the BBC, has been commercial-free.