TORONTO and OTTAWA – Reaction to this week’s new draft copyright legislation was swift and predictably varied.
A coalition of Canada’s telecommunications, retail, Internet and technology companies and organizations, known as the Business Coalition for Balanced Copyright, largely supported the bill. But some parts of the legislation unfairly restrict consumer freedom and need to be revised before being passed by Parliament, such as the inability to circumvent digital locks for private use, the organization said in a statement.
The group includes the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association, Bell Canada, Cogeco Cable, Rogers, Telus, Google, the CCSA and the Canadian Association of Internet Providers, among others.
The…
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GATINEAU – CRTC commissioners were given a lesson in basic cable architecture on Wednesday as Rogers, Shaw, Cogeco, Videotron and EastLink faced the panel considering CRTC 2009-261, the wholesale high-speed access services proceeding.
The overall message appeared to be a detailed reminder to the Regulator from cable that “we’re different. Cable is a shared network that can’t be unbundled.”
Some have asked, for example, that a single 6 MHz channel (the space in which one analog TV channel is transmitted but which can be crammed full of digital and IP data and is by MSOs) be set aside for wholesale access by…
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MONTREAL – Cogeco Cable has brought its new, faster high speed Internet service to the Trois-Rivieres area of Quebec.
Business customers who currently subscribe to the company’s ‘Business HSI Enterprise’ service will be upgraded to the ‘Ultimate 50’ package at no extra cost, while residential customers in the region may now choose either the ‘Ultimate 30’ or ‘Ultimate 50’ package.
Powered by DOCSIS 3.0 technology, a technology of data compression that allows a more efficient and economical use of bandwidth, the ‘Ultimate 30’ service offers speeds of up to 30 Mbps for downloads and up to 1.5 Mbps for uploads with…
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MONTREAL – Cogeco Cable has added 26 new high definition channels to its Ontario HD line-up.
Effective immediately, Cogeco’s HD television customers may access History Television HD, MovieTime HD, CBS College Sports Network HD, TLC HD, KTLA HD, WPIX HD, and WSBK HD.
The cableco also revamped its ‘Super Sports Pack’ to include 23 distinct HD channels, each one dedicated to a specific sport, including NFL Sunday Ticket, NHL Center Ice, MLB Extra Innings, NBA, OHL, Nascar and U.S. College Basketball and Football.
“Our HD Television service continues to draw new subscribers every month, which confirms that customers appreciate the variety, quality…
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LOS ANGELES – Since it went digital, the cable industry has been on a long, arduous search for a pair of improvements: a better remote control and an easier to use interactive program guide.
The on-screen grid guide and multi-buttoned remotes have gone about as far as they can in their ability to navigate the multichannel world. It’s a world not only with hundreds of linear TV channels but also thousands of video on demand titles (and in the case of Comcast, tens of thousands of titles).
Navigating through what’s on with a remote and the standard grid is not a customer-pleasing…
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MONTREAL – Cogeco Cable rolled out a new high speed Internet package Tuesday for its business customers in the Burlington, Oakville, Milton and Halton areas of Ontario.
Powered by DOCSIS 3.0 technology, ‘Business Ultimate 50’ replaces the company’s ‘Enterprise’ packages, offering an unlimited bitcap and a faster download speed of up to 50 Mbps, and an upload speed of up to 2 Mbps.
Cogeco’s customers who currently subscribe to the Business HSI Enterprise service in those areas will be upgraded to the Ultimate 50 package at no extra cost. The package costs $189.95 per month with a three-year commitment, $199.95 per month with…
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TORONTO – When the Apple iPad finally does make it to Canada, Cogeco Data Services says it will be ready.
Starting May 10th, the company will offer users a new One Zone WiFi service designed specifically for the hot new device, similar to its iPod Touch plan that it launched last year.
The plan will provide users with unlimited access to Cogeco Data’s One Zone network for $5 per month. Its One Zone network stretches throughout Toronto’s downtown core – from Front Street in the south to just north of Bloor in the north and from Jarvis Street in the east to Spadina…
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EXTON, PA – Three industry veterans have been named to the electoral slate to represent Canada on the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTE) board of directors for 2010.
The candidates for the position of Director-At-Large Canada (representing SCTE’s Canadian members) are:
– Boris Eventov, director, digital video engineering, Cogeco Cable;– Tony Faccia, vice president, wireline access networks, Rogers Cable Communications; and– Bruce Marshall, technical director, Shaw Cablesystems.
Rogers’ Dermot O’Carroll is the current Canadian board rep. Newly elected directors will begin their two-year terms on October 19th in conjunction with the SCTE Cable-Tec Expo 2010 set for October 20…
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TORONTO and MONTREAL – Corus Radio is officially exiting the Quebec radio market.
The company said this morning it has reached an agreement with Cogeco Inc. for Cogeco to purchase the Corus Quebec radio stations: Montreal French (CKOI 96,9, 98,5, CKAC Sports – including CKAC’s digital licence), Montreal English (The Q 92.5), Quebec City (102,9 Souvenirs Garantis, CKOI 102,1), Gatineau (104,7 Souvenirs Garantis), Sherbrooke (107,7 Souvenirs Garantis, CKOI 104,5), Trois-Rivières (106,9 Souvenirs Garantis), St-Jérôme (CIME 103,9) for approximately $80 million. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval.
“Corus Entertainment has made the strategic decision to divest of its Corus Quebec…
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MONTREAL – Add Cogeco Cable to the list of cable companies who feel that their community TV channels are working fine as is.
At its appearance Wednesday at the CRTC community TV poilcy hearing, Cogeco offered up independent surveys by Environics Research Group and Cible Recherche that found that approximately 41% of its Ontario households watch TVCOGECO on a weekly basis, and that 90% of the people served said that they believe that the channel “provides a valuable service to the community”.
In Quebec, 57% of Cogeco’s customers watch TVCOGECO every week, a rate that is higher than the 65% observed in…
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