LONGUEUIL, Que. —Third party internet access provider EBOX (we told you last year about its expansion into northwestern Quebec using Cablevision’s infrastructure) today announced it has launched a petition aimed at federal members of parliament, asking them to support the implementation of the CRTC’s August 2019 ruling on the final rates for wholesale high-speed access services.
“EBOX wishes to start the year with the resolution to put an end to the regulatory holiday of major providers in the telecommunications industry. We advocate for fair and reasonable telecommunications prices and wish to ask Honorable François-Philippe Champagne, the new minister…
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Department has a contract out for hyper-precision measurements
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The Ministry of Innovation, Science and Industry has a contract for more detailed broadband mapping methods that, if successful, may inform future program decisions that will go beyond the existing — yet still new — 250-metre increments that underpins the Universal Broadband Fund (UBF).
That’s according to an ISED spokesperson in response to questions from Cartt.ca about what a new contract on the government’s buy-and-sell website Friday will do for the future of accurate broadband mapping. The ministry has already pre-selected a Toronto artificial intelligence company for the…
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By Denis Carmel
GATINEAU – In the world of broadcast regulation, it’s thought to be good form to requote what the CRTC chair has said in the hope it will earn you a favourable decision. Ian Scott’s quote in our headline seems to be central to the proceeding into the renewal of the CBC’s broadcasting licences, which completed day 11 on Monday.
CBC leadership have repeated our headline (which was uttered on day one), most intervenors have said it, and today it was even re-cast in the following way, when the Directors Guild of Canada president Warren Sonoda said: “What get…
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HALIFAX — Develop Nova Scotia, a Crown corporation responsible for advancing high-speed Internet access projects across the province, today announced several existing contracts for Internet for Nova Scotia Initiative projects have been expanded, which will result in an additional 5,600 homes and businesses having access to high-speed Internet connections.
(This is the second time in recent months that Develop Nova Scotia has announced scope expansions to existing project contracts, having made a similar announcement in November.)
The projects associated with the new scope expansions announced today are in western Nova Scotia and the South Shore and Annapolis/Hants areas. The contracts…
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GATINEAU and TORONTO – The CRTC officially revoked, at Bell Media’s request, the broadcasting licences of Book Television and Fashion Television Channel on Thursday.
Both will cease operations at 11:59 p.m. on February 21.
Fashion Television Channel and Book Television were launched in 2000 by CHUM Ltd. at a time when specialty television was exploding in Canada and around the world. Book TV was a place to, well, learn about the written word and featured author and broadcaster Daniel Richler as a host and editor in chief when it launched.
Fashion Television Channel built on the extraordinary international success of the CHUM…
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Advanced service joins all-in-one-video push
By Greg O’Brien
MONTREAL – This week, Cogeco Connexion became the latest company to tell consumers if they want all of their video in one place, epico is the best place to find it.
After an extended trial period with employees (1,200 of the company’s 2,000 Canadian employees have it in their homes) and a handful of customers (over 12,000 customers now have epico), the company took the wrapper off the newest, and for now the most advanced, pay-TV system in Canada. We’re calling it that because its Android TV operator tier operating system from MediaKind gives…
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By Denis Carmel
GATINEAU – Québecor CEO Pierre-Karl Péladeau took centre-stage at the CRTC’s hearing into the broadcasting licence renewals for the CBC and reiterated his company’s complaint (which it is advertising here, and in other places) that the public broadcaster must be made complementary to the private broadcasting system, which means the CRTC must put an end to the CBC’s pursuit of advertising.
This is something the Canadian Association of Broadcasters also asked for on Monday.
Péladeau (screen-capped above from his appearance today) also complained over-the-top service Tou.TV Extra is operating in contravention of the regulatory and legislative framework…
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TORONTO — Distributel Communications today announced it has acquired independent telecom provider Primus Telecommunications, a Canadian subsidiary of Atlanta-based Fusion Connect, for an undisclosed amount.
“Bringing Primus into the Distributel family will mean more options, increased innovation and better value for Canadians and ultimately a better alternative for our country,” says Matt Stein, CEO of Distributel, in the company’s press release announcing the transaction. “We are thrilled to bring Primus under Canadian ownership and accelerate the pace of growth for both companies.”
Distributel says the acquisition allows the company to enhance its product range with Primus’ offerings which include a…
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GATINEAU – Monday morning started with the presentation from a new Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB). When their intervention was filed in February 2020, the CAB was a shadow of itself, with skeleton staff and scope yet a year later the newly appointed president, Kevin Desjardins made his first presentation in front of the CRTC.
It should be noted that the main private broadcasters had intervened but had not indicated that they wanted to appear except for Québecor, which will appear Tuesday.
The presentation gave way to the usual boasting:” According to CRTC Data, while the CBC’s share of “contributions to…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Canada’s largest telecoms are telling the Supreme Court of Canada a lower court fumbled a decision in favour of lower wholesale rates by attributing a line of reasoning that was allegedly never made by the CRTC, abrogating its responsibilities to review the correctness of the regulator’s decision.
That line of reasoning is based on how the CRTC structured its decision in the summer of 2019, when it ordered a lower rate at which smaller telecoms pay for and sell bandwidth from the larger telecoms. At issue in front of the Federal Court of Appeal was whether…
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