tv(Submitted by Mike Lloyd) How you buy your TV service might be about to change.

There will be an announcement in Ottawa today that could reshape not only how channels are bundled and sold but possibly the specialty channel landscape in Canada, as well.

Our broadcast regulator, the CRTC, will be making a statement this afternoon on what it calls “measures to maximize choice for Canadian viewers.”

Bloomberg spoke with industry analysts who believe it will be about unbundling your TV, which for years has seen programmers pair their weaker channels with stronger ones to promote new shows and boost revenue.

Analyst Maher Yaghi with Desjardins believes if the CRTC does allow freedom to “pick and pay” for individual channels or scaled-down bundles, it may lead to a $5 to $10 reduction in your monthly cable or satellite bill. But he says many of the weaker specialty and niche channels would become unprofitable.

A report from ratings company Nielsen in the US found the average home receives 189 TV channels but only watches 17 of them.

In the US, Apple and Dish are working on “skinny bundles” or web services that offer just a few popular channels at a lower price.

The whittled-down packages are putting pressure on programmers who have relied on the 500-channel pay-TV universe to carry their less-popular niche networks.

The Harper government has been pushing for a pick-and-pay system that would bill you only for the channels you choose, but the CRTC has hinted it may still want to see a stripped-down basic package.