Time to revisit Matthew Fraser's book, Free For All: The Struggle for Dominance on the Digital Frontier, now that it's available in paperback. The book is a fascinating, forward-looking tale about Canadian communications -- with a particular focus on the television, cable, satellite industries, and the Ottawa regulators who attempt to control these businesses in an increasingly open global marketplace.

Fraser is a Ryerson School of Journalism professor who writes weekly columns in The National Post. Years ago he was an arts reporter at The Globe and Mail, before going off to do a communications doctorate in France, then returning to Ottawa to work for the government on a task force looking into the satellite business.

I read Free for All last summer, when it was issued in hardcover. At the time, I thought he focused too much on the business side of things, ignored the cultural questions, and was too pro-business. Plus he wrote about the heads of major Canadian companies -- like CTV's Ivan Fecan and the cable guy Ted Rogers -- as though they were the equals of international wheeler-dealers like Ted Turner and Rupert Murdoch.

But since hardcover publication, events have unfolded. Fecan sold CTV to BCE (the big Canadian phone company) in a deal billed as pure "convergence," Rogers consolidated his empire and really started selling high-speed modem access, and suddenly Fraser was starting to seem quite prescient. It really is all about the deal.

Fraser is fairly dismissive of the tax break system that allows Canadian film companies to produce American-style pap at Cdn. dollar expenses ... Again, quite prescient, considering the Cinar scandal that has emerged since he wrote this system off.

Another player in Free For All is Robert Rabinovitch, who later became president of CBC and is starting to treat the public broadcaster like just another bottom line biz. Almost a year after publication, Fraser's book is highly debatable, but provides valuable insight into what's happening in the Canadian television and film industries.

Krieghoff Stop
There are several great cultural outings in the offing in Quebec. First stop -- Cornelius Krieghoff. An exhibition of the artist's masterpieces, assembled by the Ontario Art Gallery, is currently on show at the Musee du Quebec in Quebec City. This is the first great retrospective Canada's most famous 19th century artist.

Musee du Quebec
Quebec City
(514) 985-2258

Big on Bach?
Tonight kicks off a four-day festival observing the anniversary of the composer's death 250 years ago. Bach 2000 is presented by Calgary International Organ Foundation and Calgary Bach Festival Society.

Bach 2000
June 15 to 18
Calgary International Organ Foundation
Toll Free: 1-800-213-9750

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