TORONTO – Accusations of unfair conduct, cautious optimism and a Ben Affleck meme – the Canadian Telecom Summit’s regulatory blockbuster panel, held Tuesday, had it all.
The panel (pictured above left to right) was moderated by Globe and Mail reporter Alexandra Posadzki, and featured Ceri Howes, head of regulatory at Opensignal, Dennis Béland, vice-president of regulatory affairs, telecommunications at Quebecor, Geoff White, executive director of Competitive Network Operators of Canada (CNOC), Paul Beaudry, vice-president of regulatory affairs at Cogeco, Ted Woodhead, senior vice-president of regulatory at Rogers Communications, Samer Bishay, CEO of Iristel and Stephen Schmidt, vice-president of telecom policy…
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TORONTO – Spectrum was on a lot of peoples’ minds at this year’s Canadian Telecom Summit, which is hardly surprising given Canada’s slow pace of 5G deployment compounded by the fact ISED has yet to hand over the 3.5 GHz spectrum that was auctioned off this past summer that raised $8.9 billion.
“Four years ago, there was apparently a race to 5G,” said Ted Woodhead, senior vice-president of regulatory at Rogers Communications, who spoke on the summit’s regulatory panel on Tuesday.
“For those of us in the room who are Canadians, that race is over, we lost it.” Woodhead pointed…
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Natale and board unable to reach “mutually agreeable arrangement.” Search is on for permanent replacement
TORONTO – Joe Natale is out as CEO of Rogers Communications Inc. (RCI) effective immediately, RCI announced Tuesday night.
Tony Staffieri has been appointed interim president and CEO, a press release says. Staffieri is also a candidate for the permanent position, which RCI’s board is now looking to fill, according to the release.
“On behalf of the Rogers family, the Board and our 24,000 team members across the country, I thank Joe for his leadership and contributions to our company, including paving the way for our…
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By Ahmad Hathout
TORONTO – CRTC chairman Ian Scott (above) said Monday the contested acquisition of 5G spectrum licenses by Quebecor’s Videotron in Western Canada is an example of what the regulator envisioned when it made the decision to allow regional competitors to force negotiations for wireless network space from the larger providers.
The regulator’s April decision allows regional carriers to negotiate access to the wireless facilities of the incumbents – Rogers, Bell, Telus and Sasktel – as long as they have spectrum and network facilities in the area they want to provide mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) service….
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GATINEAU – The CRTC has officially denied the Public Interest Advocacy Centre and National Pensioners Federation’s (PIAC-NPF) procedural request to delay the hearing into the broadcast side of the deal between Rogers and Shaw.
PIAC-NPF had requested the hearing be delayed because of uncertainty around who was on the company’s board of directors, which arose when Edward Rogers, as chair of the Rogers Control Trust, decided to change five directors by written resolution – a move the company said was not valid. The matter ended up in front of the Supreme Court of British Columbia.
In letters sent…
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By Bill Roberts
Well, I’ve got a great candidate to fill the next opening for a CRTC Commissioner: David Errington (above), president and CEO of Accessible Media Inc. (AMI).
Solid leadership credentials and a builder with 30 years of top-drawer media creds who has coached AMI into a world-leading organization that entertains, informs, and empowers over five million Canadians living with disabilities.
AMI, unique in the broadcasting world, has been recognized nationally and internationally for its award-winning programming and by Amazon Prime Video, which has picked up three of AMI’s original TV series.
Operating on multiple platforms, this is a story of…
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GATINEAU — ISED Canada’s Spam Reporting Centre (SRC) received more than 154,406 complaints from April 1 to Sept. 30, 2021, or an average of 5,939 per week, according to the CRTC’s most recent snapshot of its actions to enforce Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL).
The enforcement measures the CRTC took during this time period include 253 notices to produce and 16 preservation demands. No monetary penalties were issued during this six-month period.
Since CASL came into force in 2014, the CRTC’s enforcement efforts have resulted in payments of more than $1.4 million, including approximately $805,000 in administrative monetary penalties and $668,000 from…
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GATINEAU, QC – Competitive Network Operators of Canada (CNOC) filed an application late last month asking the CRTC to review and vary its July 27 decision, announced in Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC 2021-239, not to mandate access to fibre in-building wire (IBW) in multi-dwelling units (MDUs) across the country.
In the application, CNOC asks the CRTC to “etermine that mandated wholesale access to fibre IBW will be provided pursuant to a single, nationwide wholesale rate, and…
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Chris Marett to become CEO
VANCOUVER — Independent service provider Novus Entertainment Inc. announced today Donna Robertson (above), the Vancouver-based company’s co-president and chief legal officer, retired on Nov. 1 after 22 years at the organization.
During her lengthy tenure at the company, Robertson “was instrumental in building Novus into the largest, independent service provider in Metro Vancouver,” says a press release.
“My time with Novus has been hugely rewarding because I have had the opportunity to be part of a great team,” Robertson said in the release.
“Novus was one of the first companies in Canada to offer Ethernet Internet and to…
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Focus now on Shaw as company tells CRTC hearing must proceed as planned
TORONTO – Rogers Communications Inc. announced Sunday evening it will not seek an appeal of Friday’s British Columbia Supreme Court ruling, which settled the matter of who is actually on RCI’s board of directors. This would seem to put an end weeks of drama over who controls the company.
On Friday, Justice Shelley Fitzpatrick ruled in favour of Edward Rogers, chair of the Rogers Control Trust, who was seeking orders related to the board changes he made by written resolution in late October, which were…
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