OTTAWA – Since we’ve reported on the broadcasting and telecommunications proposals of the Liberals, NDP and the Greens, we’re taking a look at the Bloc Quebecois platform. The Conservatives have yet to release their platform.
While the last three we mention will not form the government, they could, however, be asked to support a minority government. The price of that support could be found here. The separatist Bloc, according to news reports, is gaining ground in pre-election polls in Quebec.
QRTC
The…
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MONTREAL – Stingray Radio has agreed to purchase CIXL-FM Welland, Ont. (Giant FM) and CKYY-FM Welland (Country 89) from R.B. Communications in a transaction valued at $6,868,940.
The acquisition must first be approved by the CRTC, which will hear the application in December. Stingray proposes a tangible benefits package of $412,136 to go with the transaction.
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Vidéotron says Bell is undercutting BDUs by making it available on Alt TV
GATINEAU – Back in April 2019, Bell Media complained to the CRTC saying Vidéotron had relegated Bell’s premium French language service Super Écran deeper into its line-up in a way that Bell says disadvantages Super Écran to the benefit of Québecor’s Club illico, which means undue preference.
In its response, on June 3rd, Vidéotron explained rates Bell would be charging in the future for the channel would make its tiers unaffordable and, in any case, Super Écran and Club illico are totally different…
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MONTREAL — A trio of Montreal-based businessmen who promised to revolutionize talk radio in the city are looking for foreign financing to help get their AM radio stations off the ground, almost eight years after their first licence was awarded by the CRTC.
In a video posted to LinkedIn this month, partner Nicolas Tétrault (pictured in a screen cap from that video), a real estate agent who recently went through a personal bankruptcy, complained that there is "no financing available for radio stations" in Quebec. “The banks, they don’t lend to media, private funds don’t lend,…
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OTTAWA – If, like Cartt.ca, you believed that the OMNI file was closed, sealed, over and done with, think again.
On September 16, Joe Volpe, publisher of the Corriere Canadese and one of the applicants for a national, multilingual multi-ethnic discretionary service, CorrCan Media Group, filed a motion in the Federal Court for a judicial review of the pronouncement by the Governor General in Council (Cabinet), issued on August 17, where the government declined to void or return CRTC Decisions 2019-172 and 2019-173 granting Rogers Media a must-carry license for its OMNI branded multicultural channels.
The relief…
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OTTAWA – As part of its campaign pledge to “make life affordable for Canadian families,” the federal Liberal Party says that if it remains in power following next month’s election, it will “take strong action” to have cellphone bills reduced by 25% within four years and save a family of four nearly $1,000 a year.
To reach that target, the Liberals say they will “work with telecom companies to offer plans comparable to global prices,” along with an unlimited family plan, according to their party’s platform on cellphone bills released Sunday.
The governing party also targets…
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GATINEAU – 9(1)(h), the gift that keeps on giving.
An application filed with the CRTC last week says so and the applicant wants his service to be carried on Sirius XM through mandatory carriage .
The applicant, Evan Kosiner, also made an application during the last must-carry proceeding where OMNI re-won the licence for a must-carry Multicultural Described Video Guide (MDVG). This time, he is proposing, “a barker licence type, on the SiriusXM Platform, for an audio-based radio guide for the visually impaired, entitled as Visually Impaired Listing Service (‘VILS’).”
This service would allow visually impaired…
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NORTH BAY – Canada’s first annual Rural & Remote Broadband Conference has announced additional rural community influencers who will address conference attendees on November 12-14.
Caledon Mayor Allan Thompson, chair of the Rural Ontario Municipalities Association (ROMA) will tell delegates why he believes broadband should be considered an essential service, an idea for which he made headlines.
The first Q&A session will be led by Melanie Pilon, Dubreuilville Ontario’s economic development officer. She is also co-chair of the Northeastern Superior Region Broadband Network (NSRBN) – a group of five First Nations and five municipalities who have come…
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KELOWNA – Another successful CCSA Connect conference is in the books as about 200 folks from member companies, tech vendors and programmers made their way to Kelowna for a few days of learning, celebrating and fun.
Marketing maven Scott Stratten got Tuesday off to an entertaining, and relevant, start reminding delegates that everything (everything) they or their employees, or contractors do affects their brand and in these days of social media, doing good, or bad, by customers can spread quickly, “but bad travels farther, faster,” he explained.
Stratten also noted the paradox of the complaint call –…
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Party would cap wireless prices, too
By Christopher Guly
OTTAWA – Were she to become Canada’s next prime minister, Green Party leader Elizabeth May told Cartt.ca she would “take on Facebook and Google because they’re a threat to Canadian journalism and are sucking out revenues.”
“They’re calling themselves platforms and not wanting to be called publishers, but clearly they’re publishing,” she added.
As part of its 2019 election platform unveiled on Monday, the Greens would reform Canadian anti-trust laws “to enable the break-up of media conglomerates,” and “close the loophole that exempts social media platforms from collecting taxes on…
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