OTTAWA – Astral-owned Super Écran will remain alone in the French pay TV genre, at least for the time being.
The CRTC called for new applications for French-language general interest pay television services that would compete with Super Écran back in February, but said Friday that it had not received any applications.
The Commission said that it would stick with its original position to not to open up the French-language general interest pay television service genre to competition, and closed its consideration of this file.
www.crtc.gc.ca
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – The CRTC awarded broadcasting licences for three new Hindi movie services and a Teletoon-affiliated service on Friday.
Asian Television Network International Limited (ATN) received approval to operate ATN Hindi Movie Channel 3, ATN Hindi Movie Channel 4, and ATN Hindi Movie Channel 5, three national, niche third-language ethnic Category 2 specialty services that will show movies in the Hindi language and additional programming linked to the movies.
The Commission also approved a channel known as Teletoon Kapow! a national, English-language Category 2 specialty channel devoted to programming from international markets, featuring the latest trends in non-violent action, adventure, superheroes, comedy…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – Some consensus around a Rogers Communications proposal for IP to IP connection emerged during the first day of rebuttals Monday at the CRTC’s interconnection hearing.
Rogers decided that it would be easier to live with the status quo in IP interconnection and pay for the costs of converting IP traffic to TDM (time-division multiplexing) to terminate voice calls on ILECs network as long as ILECs would negotiate IP interconnection where they offer it to either a subsidiary, a division or an unaffiliated carrier. Last week, Rogers requested the commission require the ILECs to pay…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – Namir Anani, the CRTC’s executive director, policy, development and research, is leaving the Commission, it was announced today.
He has accepted the position of CEO of the Information and Communications Technology Council in Ottawa. A not-for-profit sector council, the ICTC is geared towards the creation of a prepared, diverse and highly educated Canadian ICT industry and workforce. “ICTC is a catalyst for change, pushing for innovations that will provide standards, labour market intelligence, career pathways and immigration for the Canadian ICT industry, educators and governments,” reads its web site. “We forge partnerships that will help develop the quantity…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – The CRTC and the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) announced this morning that they have brought together 12 enforcement agencies to launch an International Do Not Call Network.
The CRTC and ACMA will serve as the network's inaugural co-chairs, and the United States Federal Trade Commission will host the secretariat.
"Enforcement agencies face a common challenge in tracking down individuals and companies who violate telemarketing rules, but operate outside national borders," said Konrad von Finckenstein, chairman of the CRTC. "A global problem calls for global solutions. Having a network that fosters collaboration will contribute to more effective cross-border…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – Yak Communications and Wind Mobile (both of which are owned by Globalive) believe that equal access on wireline and wireless may have outlived its useful purpose. Representatives for the companies made the comments before the CRTC on Wednesday as part its interconnection hearing.
Ed Antecol, VP of regulatory and carrier relations for both Yak and Wind, reiterated comments made on Tuesday by Rogers that the cost of doing equal access long distance for wireless doesn’t make economic sense. Yak connects to four Fido switches, yet derives a very small amount of monthly revenue – about $6,000 – from…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – Rogers Communications says the cost and effort required to implement equal access for a wireless CLECs is not worth imposing a similar regulatory requirement on other wireless service providers (WSPs).
Speaking during the second day of the CRTC’s hearing into the interconnection regimes, Rogers VP of regulatory telecommunications David Watt said it’s time for the Commission to allow WSPs to connect to local exchange carriers (LECs) on a shared-basis and benefit from bill and keep, yet not be required to implement equal access for long distance services.
This would constitute a fourth way for WSPs to connect to LECs,…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – Bell has received CRTC approval to amend its video-on-demand service’s broadcasting licence so that it may offer community programming produced by its corporate cousin Bell Aliant.
In its application, Bell ExpressVu also requested that a new condition of licence be added to allow a third party, in this case Bell Aliant, to be fully responsible for the management of the community programming and the adherence to the applicable regulations related to the community programming that would be offered on the Bell ExpressVu VOD service, a request that the Commission denied.
On Monday, the Regulator expressed concern with “the…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – The CRTC has given the green light to Newcap to proceed with the sale of its two Winnipeg-based radio stations to Evanov Radio Group subsidiary Dufferin Communications.
The $5.5 million sale, first announced in May, includes CHNK-FM Winnipeg (formerly CHNR-FM Winnipeg) and CKJS Winnipeg.
In addition to issuing new broadcasting licences to continue the operation of these stations, the Commission said Monday that it has also approved Dufferin’s request to amend CHNK-FM’s condition of licence relating to the broadcast of musical selections from content category 2 (popular music).
Newcap said in a statement that it expects that…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – Mandating Internet Protocol interconnection for voice services is unnecessary because doing so will not bring any additional benefits to consumers, three of the country’s incumbent telcos told the CRTC during its first day of hearings into the interconnection regime.
In its opening remarks, Bell Canada said that “no regulatory intervention is required to push the market towards IP interconnection” and that “the market will naturally drive this migration without any need for regulatory intervention,” explained Jonathan Daniels, VP of regulatory law at Bell.
He acknowledged that the company’s network is capable of providing IP voice to most of its…
Continue Reading
