MONTREAL – Another day, another Quebecor-Bell dispute.
While Bell Media announced today a new bi-lingual Crave service – which includes its French-language pay-TV channel Super Écran – Vidéotron is calling the move “another anticompetitive maneuver by Bell.”
The Quebecor-owned cable company said in a press release Tuesday afternoon it “has been forced to discontinue on-demand access to Super Écran content for its customers,” and that “as of today. Bell is also blocking access to its Super Écran Go app… for Videotron customers who subscribe to Super Écran.
“Videotron is disappointed that Bell is again using its market dominance to place its…
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LONDON — Non-profit regional rural broadband project SWIFT (Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology) made a slew of announcements Monday that will see $19 million in provincial and federal funding invested to increase access to broadband services in several Southwestern Ontario communities.
SWIFT is making the investments through the New Building Canada Fund – Small Communities Fund (NBCF-SCF), a joint federal and provincial infrastructure funding program, and in partnership with its member municipalities.
Starting with its announcement for Wellington County, SWIFT has signed agreements with Cogeco Connexion, EH!tel Networks and North Frontenac Telephone Corporation (NFTC) to expand high-speed broadband infrastructure access to…
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By Denis Carmel
GATINEAU – When the Competition Bureau filed in November its intervention to the CRTC’s wireless policy review, it was expected that the reactions would be spirited, and they are.
First, some objected because the Bureau (and its specially commissioned Matrix Report) reached conclusions based on confidential information and asked that some information be shared. In that regard, Bell and Rogers got what they wanted while CNOC and Telus are still waiting for word from the Commission when it comes to that data. Telus has warned the Bureau’s intervention should be deleted from the record for…
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QUEBECOR’S GROUPE TVA FORMALLY filed in December its appeal in Federal Court against a CRTC decision that forced it to continue to provide a sports channel signal to Bell customers.
But the submission to the court came before the Supreme Court of Canada determined in a set of cases late last month how it would exercise its ability to review decisions made by administrative bodies such as the CRTC – otherwise known as the standard of review. Bell was successful in having the highest court in the land reverse a 2016 decision by the CRTC that said it could…
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HAMILTON — Cable 14 announced Monday it will provide both live broadcast and online streaming coverage of the first two meetings to be held in the Red Hill Valley Parkway Inquiry (RHVPI), which is investigating the circumstances surrounding the failed disclosure of a six-year-old safety report regarding the roadway.
The RHVPI will hold a public meeting in Hamilton on January 9, 2020, where the inquiry’s commissioner, Justice Herman Wilton-Siegel, will speak about the status and process of the inquiry, and the public will have a chance to ask questions about the timetable and procedures, including the participation of the public….
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TORONTO — With the much-anticipated premiere of Star Trek: Picard scheduled for January 23 and the return of Doctor Who on New Year’s Day, CTV Sci-Fi Channel is giving viewers an early Christmas present with the launch of a nationwide freeview that starts December 19 and runs until January 30. CTV Sci-Fi Channel also has a number of blockbuster marathons scheduled to wrap up 2019.
The all-new Star Trek: Picard series will see Patrick Stewart reprise his iconic role as Jean-Luc Picard. During the 10-episode first season, Stewart will be joined by other familiar faces from the Star Trek franchise,…
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No surprises in the documents
By Denis Carmel
GATINEAU – As expected, Rogers, Shaw, Vidéotron, Cogeco and Eastlink have filed an official Review & Vary application with the CRTC, requesting changes to Telecom decision 2019-288—the final rates for aggregated wholesale high-speed access services (HSA).
The themes are similar to what was filed with their appeals to the courts and to federal cabinet.
The cable carriers focused on “new facts and circumstances and on errors of fact and principle” that questions how the Commission arrived at its much-delayed decision.
“The Commission has announced an imminent review of its approach to setting…
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MONTREAL — TTP Media, the independent broadcaster which has been trying for almost a decade to launch two news-talk AM radio stations here, has faced yet another setback. A windstorm in late November has knocked both stations off the air, and it will be several weeks before they're transmitting again.
Nicolas Tétrault, a real estate agent and former politician who is one of three partners behind the company, told Cartt.ca that the storm caused damage to a lot of equipment at the transmission site on the Kahnawake Mohawk reserve south of Montreal. This included damage to the power supply,…
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GATINEAU – A number of companies are worried about Bell getting bigger.
In July 2019, Groupe V Media announced it was selling for $20 million its five conventional stations to Bell Media. V, previously known as TQS, has had a long story of financial and regulatory problems and its acquisition by Bell had been rumoured for quite some time. (Photo at right are the stars of the V show Ne Jamais Faire à la Maison, or Never do this at Home, Marie-Soleil Dion and Jonathan Roberge.)
On October 29th, the CRTC issued it Notice of Hearing with a short intervention period ending…
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OTTAWA – The Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS) said today it received nearly 19,300 complaints from Canadian telecom and TV customers, an all-time high in the organization’s 12-year history.
Given we’re also at an all-time high for wireless and broadband customers in Canada, not to mention how recent news and noise surrounding telecom companies in Canada have likely helped more Canadians realize the CCTS can help, such an increase is not surprising.
Canadians, said the CCTS annual report (which tallies complaints for the 12-months ended July 31), complained most often about…
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