Cogeco Communications announced Tuesday it will launch internet services on Oct. 6 in Québec City, Châteauguay, Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Saint-Louis-de-France and Sainte-Marthe-du-Cap.
“We are entering five new Quebec markets with a strong commitment to offer an unparalleled customer experience,” said Nancy Audette, Cogeco’s chief growth officer, in a press release. “For nearly 70 years, Cogeco has connected Quebecers. We are excited to continue growing our presence throughout the province.”
Cogeco said residents of these five new markets can expect an easy-to-use digital experience, combined with simple and transparent pricing.
Cogeco is inviting customers to…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Cogeco and Eastlink are challenging cabinet’s decision not to intervene in the CRTC’s refusal to exclude the three largest telecommunications companies from accessing the internet networks of their competitors.
The basis of the judicial review request is simple: that cabinet, through the recommendation of Industry Minister Melanie Joly, allegedly did not provide the legally required justification for declining their petition to reverse a policy that they say creates an “existential” threat to their businesses.
“Instead of explaining and justifying its decision to sit on the sidelines, the had a Minister send out…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Canada’s largest broadcasters are asking the nation’s highest court to determine whether the Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) overstepped its authority when it effectively supplanted the Copyright Board’s decision in setting rates for the retransmission of distant signals.
Rogers, Bell, Telus, Videotron, Cogeco and the Canadian Communication Systems Alliance (CCSA) are named as applicants on a leave to appeal application, filed late last week, which seeks clarification about whether a relatively new judicial standard of review called Vavilov — which prioritizes the reasonableness of a tribunal’s decision on review and restrains courts from immediately jumping to correct issues…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Bell said Thursday it has agreed to sell its home security and monitored alarm assets, in a transaction that aligns with its efforts to focus on its core businesses.
The transaction to Toronto-based a.p.i Alarm Inc. is part of a strategy of focusing on its telecommunications, enterprise solutions and media businesses, the company said Thursday. Closing is expected in the second half of this year.
The deal, whose top-end value is estimated at $170 million, comes nearly eight years after it purchased Alarm Force for $166 million – a move that it said would boost its…
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Eastlink says it is suspending planned upgrades
By Ahmad Hathout
The federal government will not send back the CRTC’s decision to allow the three largest telecommunications companies to ride on the internet networks of others, pointing to competition and lower costs.
“Canada’s new government has a strong mandate to bring costs down and to build one, strong, Canadian economy – one that aligns with our core values as a nation,” Industry Minister Melanie Joly said in a statement late Wednesday.
“According to the policy direction, the CRTC is responsible for considering how its decisions affect all forms of competition and investment, as well…
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Telco previously hinted at a minority sale in its cell tower portfolio
By Ahmad Hathout
Telus announced Friday that it has agreed to sell to a pension fund a minority stake in a separate entity that will carry its wireless infrastructure.
La Caisse, one of the largest pension funds in the country, will spend $1.26 billion on the 49.9 per cent interest in Terrion, a newly created cell tower operator headquartered in Montreal and headed by long-time Telus executive Eros Spadotto.
Terrion will manage about 3,000 tower sites across British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec and will generate money through wholesale rental. Telus…
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Cogeco Communications on Wednesday announced the official launch of its mobile service in 13 markets in Quebec and Ontario, one more than it pre-announced during its third-quarter earnings conference call earlier this month.
Cogeco Mobile, which uses the mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) regime, is now available to new and existing Cogeco Internet subscribers who bring their own device in the following markets: Alma, Magog, Rimouski, Saint-Georges, Saint-Hyacinthe, Saint-Sauveur, Sept-Îles and Trois-Rivières in Quebec; and Brockville, Chatham, Cobourg, Cornwall and Welland in Ontario.
The launch of the service in these markets comes…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Rogers president and CEO Tony Staffieri said Wednesday that the company’s spending on networks is now at risk if the federal government doesn’t rescind a CRTC decision mandating that the three largest telecommunications companies be allowed to ride on the networks of others.
Last month, the CRTC turned away applications, including from Rogers, that asked the regulator to reconsider allowing Rogers, Bell and Telus – the “Big 3” – to use the wholesale internet regime because of the claimed negative impact on investments and on smaller service providers who, they say, will be crushed by…
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Telus announced Monday it is investing $2 billion over the next five years to expand its broadband services in Ontario and Quebec.
“This investment comes as a result of the CRTC confirmation of the wholesale fibre-to-the-premise (FTTP) framework and serves as a complement to our wholesale fibre access agreements, allowing TELUS to deliver national scale, accelerate network builds and drive investment, competition and affordability in Canada,” a Telus press release reads.
The Vancouver-based telecom said this investment will be part of its annual budget and will be supported by investments from its strategic…
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Telus ramps up public relations campaign
By Ahmad Hathout
Cogeco and Eastlink have filed Friday a legal challenge to a CRTC decision that allows the three largest telecoms to use the wholesale internet regime, a move that was teased in the aftermath of the June 20 ruling.
The legal arguments, filed in the Federal Court of Appeal, center on the decision’s alleged friction with the 2023 policy direction from cabinet: that the CRTC allegedly erred in characterizing Rogers, Bell and Telus – the Big 3 – as “new” service providers because they would be riding on…
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