By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC on Friday launched a show-cause proceeding requiring Bell to show why its practice of selling locked devices isn’t a violation of the Wireless Code.
In the meantime, the regulator is suspending section F.1 of the Wireless Code, which explicitly states that carriers must sell devices in an unlocked state. As a result, carriers will be allowed to sell locked devices provided they automatically unlock them within two business days after purchase.
“Service providers must also make reasonable efforts to inform customers about how long devices will be locked for, what receiving a locked device…
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The CRTC on Monday announced it has administratively renewed the broadcasting licences for various television programming undertakings, networks and broadcasting distribution undertakings from Sept. 1, 2026 to Aug. 31, 2027.
These licence renewals cover the large broadcasting groups of Bell, Rogers, Quebecor, Corus and Blue Ant, as well as smaller broadcasters including APTN, Accessible Media, Cable Public Affairs Channel (CPAC), OUTtv, Pelmorex Weather Networks, Stingray, Super Channel, TLN Media Group, TV5 Quebec Canada and ZoomerMedia, and BDUs operated by Cogeco, SaskTel and Telus.
The broadcasting regulator said the administrative renewals are necessary to allow the various undertakings to…
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By Ahmad Hathout
The News Forum (TNF) is alleging Cogeco and Quebecor’s Videotron are not giving it television package treatment demanded by CRTC regulation.
The independent national news service, which broadcasters must offer to their subscribers under the 9.1(1)(h) rule, claims in separate but nearly identical Part 1 applications that the aforementioned broadcasters are excluding it from packages that include incumbent news networks CBC and CTV, thereby giving those services an advantage over it.
“Broadcasting Order CRTC 2022-297 requires BDUs to distribute TNF, CBC News Network, and CTV News Channel, and to include those services in…
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A year after launching a bring-your-own-device mobile service — which uses the mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) regime to operate — Cogeco announced last week a strategic collaboration with Assurant Inc. to provide a digital-first mobile device solution for its Canadian customers.
Leveraging Assurant’s device ecosystem and retail relationships, the partnership gives Cogeco Mobile customers exclusive access to a curated selection of network-compatible devices, including new, refurbished and certified Open Box models from Best Buy Canada via BestBuy.ca.
In addition to device access, Cogeco Mobile customers can take advantage of flexible…
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Execs optimistic about future with Welo, wireless bundling, AI
By Ahmad Hathout
Cogeco executives said Thursday that the company’s U.S. business, Breezeline, is going through “significant turbulence” as it grapples with competition and inflation.
“The competitive environment has gotten further elevated versus the beginning of our fiscal year,” CEO Frederic Perron said on a third-quarter earnings conference call Thursday.
On top of that, he said Breezeline has had to grapple with inflation that’s over four per cent. “As customers see a higher cost of living on fuel, on groceries, on living in general, we see that they’re trying to optimize their wallets and…
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The CRTC is asking the major telecoms to provide updates on their subscriber numbers, both in and out of their operating territories, as well any network upgrades they have made — part of the regulator’s monitoring of market conditions following the final wholesale internet access framework from August 2024.
In a July 10 letter sent to incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs) Bell, Telus and SaskTel and cable carriers Rogers, Videotron, Cogeco and Eastlink, the CRTC asks for by-province summaries of the carriers’ total retail residential wireline internet subscribers — including standalone, those bundling a…
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By Connie Thiessen
As excitement around the FIFA World Cup continues to grip audiences, Stingray is attempting to unite global soccer fans with the launch of a new pop-up music channel dedicated to the world’s biggest sport.
Running through July 31, with launch dates varying by platform, Stingray Soccer Anthems features “the world’s most iconic stadium songs, global hits, and fan-fueled chants that define the spirit of the game.”
Tailored to local audiences, outside Canada and the U.S., the channel will be branded as Stingray Himnos del Fútbol in Mexico and Spain, and Stingray Hinos de futebol in Brazil.
Musical selections will span…
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President says organization will submit a comprehensive application “promptly”
By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC has denied Vues & Voix a three-cent increase in the rate broadcasters must pay to carry its 24-hour French-language radio station Canal M, saying there is insufficient evidence to justify it.
The discretionary service, which provides news and current affairs programming for the accessibility community and for people with disabilities, requested a three-cent rate increase – from four cents to seven cents per subscriber, per month – due to financial pressure. The not-for-profit said it has had to implement significant budget cuts, which resulted in…
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The Supreme Court of Canada has dismissed an application for leave to appeal from Canada’s largest broadcasters regarding a Federal Court of Appeal ruling that supplanted a Copyright Board decision regarding rate setting for the retransmission of distant television signals.
The high court does not provide reasons for rejecting leave to appeal applications.
The group of broadcasters who brought the leave to appeal application to Canada’s highest court include Bell, Rogers, Telus, Videotron, Cogeco and the Canadian Communication Systems Alliance (CCSA).
They sought clarification about whether a relatively new judicial…
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By Ahmad Hathout
The attorney general, on behalf of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED), is asking the Federal Court of Appeal to intervene in SaskTel’s challenge to the CRTC’s fibre access mandate, arguing the outcome could impact the ability of the federal government to shape telecom policy and impair its cabinet direction power broadly.
Late last week, the AG filed a motion for leave to intervene in SaskTel’s challenge to the CRTC’s decision to force the legacy telcos to open their bundled fibre networks to competitors. SaskTel is arguing there is an inherent conflict between Continue Reading
