GATINEAU — In a ruling today regarding a dispute between Videotron and Bell subsidiary Cablevision du Nord, the CRTC is directing Cablevision to finish upgrading its routers in Val-d’Or and Rouyn-Noranda at its own expense by September 1, in order to add the capacity for its third-party Internet access (TPIA) service requested by Videotron.
The CRTC’s latest involvement in the dispute relates to an argument between the two companies over who should pay for upgrading the routers at the points of interconnection (POIs) in Val-d’Or and Rouyn-Noranda, located in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of western Quebec, a region where Videotron…
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GATINEAU — The CRTC announced today it is amending the exemption order for still image programming service undertakings to include low-motion programming services, to allow, in addition to background music, sounds that are related to the broadcast images, and to allow spoken words that are promotional in nature.
The Commission defines low-motion programming as: “A program that features extended coverage of an ordinary event or scene with no or limited video editing or camera movement.”
This clears the way for “slow TV” such as Stingray’s Naturescape
For more information on the CRTC’s new Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2021-185 and the revised exemption…
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Government must look before it leaps with C-10
By Monica Auer
THE DECISION BY THE Minister of Canadian Heritage several weeks ago to drop explicit protection for user-generated content uploaded to social media sites from Bill C-10 led to more attention being focussed on the new Broadcasting Act it would create.
In plain language, the Minister’s change means that while users themselves would not be subject to that Act, it would govern social media services “whose broadcasting consists only of” user-uploaded content. Even if the CRTC is unlikely to demand content posted by millions of Canadians on Facebook or YouTube meet its…
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By Denis Carmel
GATINEAU – Four hours worth of meetings on Friday and Monday barely advanced the progress of Bill C-10 at the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage and as more time passes and so little is done, there is real risk now of the bill simply withering and dying.
The Friday meeting dealt with only two amendments, both of which were defeated, and three amendments that were ruled out of scope by the chair of the Committee, Liberal MP Scott Simms.
We thought the Committee might have returned to its normal business of clause-by-clause consideration and, oddly, most of the talking…
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By Ahmad Hathout
GATINEAU – Like deja vu, the immediate impact of a major decision by the CRTC has unfurled in the days immediately following — but the reactions are the reverse of what happened in August 2019.
When the CRTC that summer decided to slash the bulk internet rates smaller providers pay for large network access – and make the rates retroactive so some serious back pay was supposed to go to those independents – the large telecoms announced cuts to investments, including in rural areas. Smaller providers, rejoicing, immediately slashed retail internet prices.
Following Thursday’s decision to go back…
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And an expedited decision
GATINEAU — In a Part 1 application filed last week with the CRTC, Bell Mobility is asking for a new permanent roaming test to be applied when Videotron uses Bell’s wholesale roaming service.
This is the latest in a dispute between Bell and Videotron over wholesale roaming, in which Bell has previously accused Videotron of allowing a number of its subscribers to roam permanently on Bell’s network. It follows a lawsuit filed earlier this month by Bell in Quebec’s Superior Court seeking $50 million to be paid by Videotron for Bell’s loss of profit and additional…
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LONGUEUIL, Que. — Quebec-based third-party Internet service provider EBOX is joining other independent ISPs who are calling for the resignation or firing of CRTC chairman Ian Scott following the Commission’s reversal last week of its August 2019 decision to lower the third-party Internet access (TPIA) rates paid by the small independents to Canada’s largest carriers.
Last week, TekSavvy asked for Scott to be removed from his position (TekSavvy has also petitioned the federal cabinet to overrule the CRTC’s rate decision) and VMedia called for Scott’s resignation.
Now today, EBOX issued a press release also calling for Scott…
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MONTREAL — While last Thursday’s third-party Internet access (TPIA) decision (in which the CRTC chose not to uphold its August 2019 decision to lower wholesale Internet rates) may have independent ISPs like TekSavvy wondering about their ability to invest, Bell Canada today announced its accelerated capital investment plan announced earlier this year will now increase by up to $1.7 billion over the next two years.
In February, Bell said it was adding between $1 billion to $1.2 billion in accelerated capital investment over the next two years, so today’s announcement represents up to $500 million more in…
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Angry competitive ISPs say prices and regulatory distrust will increase
By Ahmad Hathout
GATINEAU – Large independent internet service provider TekSavvy, having been in the process of building its fibre facilities, was gearing up for next month’s critical 3.5 GHz spectrum auction. In January, competitive ISP Distributel purchased telecom Primus. And several other competitive ISPs reduced their prices in light of what they anticipated would be a new era of lower wholesale internet fees.
But those business decisions were based on the assumption the CRTC would choose lower bulk internet purchase rates that at least were between the interim rates set in…
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GATINEAU – After nearly two years since the CRTC set lower rates which the incumbent wired telecom carriers such as Bell and Rogers were to charge third party internet access providers like TekSavvy and Start.ca for access to those wired networks, the CRTC has decided to backtrack.
In its decision today on a review and vary filed by the incumbents (after they had appealed to both cabinet and the courts, too) the Commission today said it will make the interim wholesale rates which have been in place since 2016 the new permanent rates, except for a supplementary…
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