OTTAWA – The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) today requested the CRTC immediately open an inquiry into the Rogers network outage impacting Canadians across the country starting around 4:30 a.m. ET this morning.
In a letter submitted to the CRTC, signed by PIAC’s executive director and general counsel John Lawford, and obtained by Cartt.ca, PIAC further requested the CRTC launch a public notice to examine whether Canadian telecommunications providers “should be required to provide a baseline of emergency planning, refund requirements, notice and transparency and other consumer protections, interconnection, wholesale and other requirements as conditions of service to operate…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – It has been a rough Friday morning for Rogers customers.
The telecom has been experiencing network issues across the country since early this morning, according to an online service map and London, England-based global Internet monitor NetBlocks.
A tweet from TekSavvy Assistance also indicates there is an incumbent outage impacting third-party providers with no timeline for things to be up and running again.
“Please note that there is currently a large spread incumbent outage that is impacting all internet and wireless (including cellphone) users, as well as third-party customers like TekSavvy,” the tweet says. “This also impacts…
Continue Reading
Mostly francophones from Québec
By Denis Carmel
OTTAWA – After a group of 60 people, including Radio-Canada personalities, sent an open letter to the CBC/Radio-Canada asking it to refuse to comply to the sanctions imposed by the CRTC on the use of the “N-word” on-air, more people and groups came out against the decision.
Some are asking the public broadcaster to pushback, some are demanding the Minister of Canadian Heritage or the Prime Minister to take a stand.
The Fédération professionnelle des journalistes du Québec, representing journalists in Québec, said through its president “All dialogue is healthy for a society, the…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – Bell Mobility is asking the CRTC to review and vary its recent decision directing Bell, Rogers and Telus to make changes to the proposed terms and conditions outlined in their GSM-based wholesale mobile wireless roaming tariffs that incorporate seamless hand-off and 5G roaming.
Telecom Decision CRTC 2022-102 was issued April 6, 2022, in connection with the tariffs filed by Bell, Rogers and Telus in relation to a previous CRTC decision (TRP 2021-130) on implementing a regulated mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) system, which included determinations regarding seamless roaming.
Bell is arguing CRTC 2022-102 reaches beyond the scope of the…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – The CRTC today launched a consultation on whether stock footage costs should continue to be included in the criteria used for Canadian program certification.
Both the Commission and the Canadian Audio-Visual Certification Office (CAVCO) have specific criteria for determining whether a production can be certified as “Canadian”. This includes (for both) a minimum 75% expenditure threshold paid to Canadians or Canadian businesses operating in the country for specific services costs.
Right now, the Commission categorizes stock footage as a “services” cost, which means it counts within the 75% expenditure threshold.
The Commission’s call for comments notes CAVCO announced in…
Continue Reading
TORONTO and CALGARY – Rogers Communications and Shaw Communications released a joint statement today indicating the early mediation with the Commissioner of Competition that took place earlier this week on Monday and Tuesday did not end in a resolution to the Commissioner’s objections to the proposed merger of the two companies.
“Rogers and Shaw intend to continue to work constructively with the Commissioner to highlight the many benefits of the merger to all Canadians, including maintaining a strong and sustainable fourth wireless carrier across Canada through the proposed divestiture of Freedom Wireless to Quebecor Inc.,” the statement says.
This news…
Continue Reading
By Geoff White
IN A COMMENT PIECE just under a year ago (Opinion, One of Canada’s most important institutions is failing Canadians, June 17, 2021) I argued that the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission — one of Canada’s most important institutions — is failing Canadians, by failing to respond to their needs.
Instead of fostering competition for telecommunications services, it has under the tenure of its chair and CEO slowly but surely rendered decisions that entrench and protect the largest companies. I argued that this contradicts the Liberal government’s 2019 direction to the CRTC to promote “competition, affordability and consumer…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – Mobile wireless pricing is trending downwards in Canada and fixed broadband Internet prices have mostly increased since 2020, according to the latest edition of the government commissioned report Price Comparison Study of Telecommunications Services in Canada and with Foreign Jurisdictions.
The report, prepared by Wall Communications Inc., was released recently but is dated February 15, 2022, and covers pricing from 2021.
A note on methodology
The price comparison study was designed “to provide a detailed comparative price analysis of telecommunications services within Canada, as well as an international comparison (G7 + Australia),” it says.
Data was collected on mobile wireless, fixed…
Continue Reading
60 persons, including leading Radio-Canada talent, ask the public broadcaster to disavow decision
By Denis Carmel
OTTAWA – Last week, between St-Jean-Baptiste and Canada Day, the CRTC issued a decision blaming the CBC/Radio-Canada for saying on the air the N-word, which is part of the title of an iconic book in Québec, written by Pierre Vallières, a prominent member of the FLQ, a separatist/terrorist group of the sixties.
A letter signed by 60 people including leading on-air talent and journalists of Radio-Canada was sent on Sunday to the higher echelons of the CBC/Radio-Canada and published in La Presse on Monday….
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – Last week, the CRTC issued a decision renewing the licence for ATN South Asian Television (SATV) from Sept. 1, 2022, to Aug. 31, 2027 and denied the licensee’s requests related to access rights and conditions of licence around accessibility.
SATV is South Asian Television Canada Limited’s (ATN) third-language ethic discretionary service. It provides 75% of its programming in South Asian languages and the rest in English, according to its application to renew its licence.
ATN, which is eligible to operate SATV under an exemption order for discretionary services with fewer than 200,000 subscribers, requested to remain a licenced service….
Continue Reading
