GATINEAU – The CRTC today launched an online survey in an attempt to better understand the needs, behaviours and habits of Canadians regarding their mobile wireless services.
The survey, announced this morning, forms part of the CRTC's review of mobile wireless services, which began in February 2019. “The survey results will help determine whether further action is needed to ensure that the needs of Canadians are being met in the mobile wireless market,” says the press release.
Canadians have until December 31, 2019, midnight PST to complete the survey.
The CRTC will hold a public hearing starting on February 18, 2020, in…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – A number of companies are worried about Bell getting bigger.
In July 2019, Groupe V Media announced it was selling for $20 million its five conventional stations to Bell Media. V, previously known as TQS, has had a long story of financial and regulatory problems and its acquisition by Bell had been rumoured for quite some time. (Photo at right are the stars of the V show Ne Jamais Faire à la Maison, or Never do this at Home, Marie-Soleil Dion and Jonathan Roberge.)
On October 29th, the CRTC issued it Notice of Hearing with a short intervention period ending…
Continue Reading
However, Bell has not given itself an undue preference, the Commission says
OTTAWA — Although the CRTC has determined Bell has not provided itself with an undue preference when it comes to how toll-free calls are currently routed in Canada, the Commission does agree with Rogers that Bell should deploy one-way toll trunks to connect to Rogers switches in the Bell operating territories in which Rogers also provides service. Bell now has 150 days to comply with the Commission’s directive.
After several months of attempted negotiations with Bell, Rogers in May filed a Part 1 application asking the CRTC to settle…
Continue Reading
Innovative broadband policy is driving investment
By Ken Campbell and Reef Read
U.K. LABOUR LEADER, Jeremy Corbyn recently announced, as part of his election platform, he would nationalise the telecom broadband infrastructure in that country and provide free broadband to all residents.
This sent a shockwave through the U.K. telecom industry.
Planned investments from the many new private fibre companies entering the market were stalled and pending transactions were stopped as investors reconsidered fibre infrastructure investment until after the U.K. election.
For his part, Tory party leader Boris Johnson has announced his government would force an accelerated deployment of fibre to all U.K. residents…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – Having received an application seeking a new radio station licence to serve B.C.’s Salt Spring Island, the CRTC, as is its policy, has called for more information on radio on the island.
Specifically, it “is seeking comment on market capacity and the appropriateness of issuing a call for radio applications to serve Salt Spring Island. The Commission encourages interested persons, as well as the applicant, to submit additional information that it will take into consideration before making a final determination on whether it should proceed with a call for applications.”
The applicant is Gulf Islands Community Radio Society…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – Both of Shaw Communications’ and Bell Canada’s direct to home and satellite relay disribution licences were renewed on Friday.
While a number of intervenors requested Bell add more high definition channels to its lineup and that Shaw be forced to keep the free local television satellite solution (LTSS) going, as we reported earlier this year, the CRTC ultimately declined those requests.
While Bell did commit to carrying 43 additional local channels (but can choose whether or not to carry them in HD) and Shaw has offered those LTSS customers rates of $10 and $25…
Continue Reading
ISED arm twists itself into knots trying to give MVNO its stamp of approval, but this could be a good compromise
IF I’M RUNNING ONE of Canada’s existing wireless companies, I’m relieved after reading the Competition Bureau’s most recent submission to the CRTC’s Wireless Policy Review.
However, if I’m hoping to launch a new mobile virtual network operator once the CRTC updates said policy, I might be crying into my beer a little.
After a summer of regulatory back-and-forth where the Bureau successfully fought hard for access to confidential information that only the companies themselves and…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – The Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS) said today it received nearly 19,300 complaints from Canadian telecom and TV customers, an all-time high in the organization’s 12-year history.
Given we’re also at an all-time high for wireless and broadband customers in Canada, not to mention how recent news and noise surrounding telecom companies in Canada have likely helped more Canadians realize the CCTS can help, such an increase is not surprising.
Canadians, said the CCTS annual report (which tallies complaints for the 12-months ended July 31), complained most often about…
Continue Reading
CEO hopes Ottawa is watching, listening, and will act
CORUS ENTERTAINMENT PRESIDENT and CEO Doug Murphy may have the toughest job in Canadian media. Or maybe just the least-appreciated.
Go ahead and ask anyone in the TV business (and we’ve asked a lot of them recently). They all say variations of the same thing: “I think he’s doing all he can… but I’d never want his job…”
Not only does Murphy run the biggest independent media company and broadcaster in the country (yes, it’s controlled by the Shaw family – who unloaded their equity interest in May after…
Continue Reading
Commission invites CBC/SRC to potentially use digital media to meet its regulatory obligations
GATINEAU – On Monday, the CRTC officially opened the process for the renewal of the CBC/SRC licences, asking Canadians on Facebook what they think about the public broadcaster.
The public hearing will be held in May.
While we had heard and read the CBC/SRC is asking the Comission to include its digital platforms when it comes to meeting its substantial regulatory objectives, in reading the 200-page application, we found that it is the Commission itself which actually invited the Corporation to do so.
A renewal process such as this one…
Continue Reading
