HAMILTON – It’s clear broadband is essential to economic prosperity, quality of life and community development but there is little consensus around what the definition of broadband should be, says Jason Lowe, vice-president of Clearcable Networks.
The CRTC has set its sights on establishing a baseline of universal broadband service across the country that will set criteria for government funding for network infrastructure.
The regulator has defined broadband as 50 Mbps download by 10 Mbps upload and called for every Canadian to have wired and wireless access and unlimited usage. But Lowe told last week’s Clearcable Summit in Hamilton that…
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OTTAWA – Aboriginal broadcaster Wawatay Native Communications Society wants the CRTC’s recent Aboriginal radio licences decision to be overturned, and that it be granted the FM licences for the Ottawa and Toronto markets instead.
The Commission's June 14 decision awarded the broadcasting licences in those markets to First Peoples Radio Inc., an affiliate of Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN), for stations at 95.7 FM in Ottawa and 106.5 FM in Toronto.
But Wawatay said in a statement that it is the only broadcaster to have “consulted and received consent from Chiefs of Ontario and all representative Indigenous nations” for those licences.
"We have a letter…
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WYOMING, ON – Connecting Windsor-Essex (CW-E) has officially joined the Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology (SWIFT) initiative.
CW-E, which began in 1994 as an information technology project, represents broader public sector organizations in the Windsor-Essex area of Ontario.
“Ultra-high speed Internet connectivity is vital to quality of life in our communities and our region’s public sector institutions are important partners as we work to connect everyone who calls our region home,” said SWIFT board chair Gerry Marshall, in the news release. “SWIFT owes its success to the leadership and support of our members and we are grateful to receive the support…
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MONTREAL – Lawyer and former CRTC commissioner Suzanne Lamarre has been named to the Board of Directors of Société de télédiffusion du Québec.
Branded as Télé-Québec, the French-language educational broadcaster also appointed three other new Board members and reappointed two others.
Lamarre joined the law firm of Therrien Couture earlier this year, as Cartt.ca reported.
www.telequebec.tv
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Rights, diversity and the need for a strong, sustainable Canadian production sector
LAST WEEK, HUNDREDS OF independent producers, broadcast executives, government officials and countless other industry stakeholders made their annual pilgrimage to the heart of the Rocky Mountains for the Banff World Media Festival.
Although this year’s conference was similar to previous years in many ways – projects were pitched, deals were made, and drinks flowed freely – this year’s event felt different. Over the course of the conference there seemed to be a collective realization that the future of our industry, which has been endlessly discussed at Banff for years,…
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GATINEAU – As Cartt.ca reported, Judith LaRocque has been appointed acting chair of the CRTC for the next four months effective immediately, Canadian Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly confirmed Monday.
LaRocque (pictured) recently filled in at the Commission as acting vice-chair of broadcasting from November 2016 to May 2017. In addition to "extensive experience in the broadcasting field", she has been Secretary to the Governor General, Deputy Minister of Canadian Heritage, and Canada’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative at the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development in Paris.
This interim appointment will ensure the continuous and efficient operation of the CRTC, reads the news release, which also thanked former…
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GATINEAU – Outgoing CRTC chairman Jean-Pierre Blais told Commission staff Friday that he did not seek to renew his term because his work there is done.
“I haven’t applied because I’ve done what I set out to do five years ago: to put the CRTC back on the path of building trust with Canadians and developing a world-class communication system with Canadians at its centre”, he said in a speech Friday morning.
Blais added that he kept a figurine of Merlin, the wizard featured in Arthurian legend, in his office for inspiration and to help him to stay focused on his vision.
“When…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has ordered Videotron to comply with its decision to no longer zero-rate its music streaming service Unlimited Music.
In a letter to Quebecor Media dated June 15, the Commission said that Videotron failed to demonstrate that there is substantial doubt as to the correctness of Telecom Decision 2017-105, which found that that Videotron violated subsection 27(2) of the Telecommunications Act by providing certain customers with access to Unlimited Music at no charge and not having it count against their data plans. Therefore, continues the letter, Videotron’s request to review and vary the decision is denied.
The…
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OTTAWA – Count the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS) among those offering their stamp of approval to the CRTC’s revisions to the Wireless Code of Conduct.
CCTS, which administers the Code by using its provisions to resolve customer complaints, said that Thursday's update “clarifies certain Code provisions that were imprecise, modifies others to address changes in the wireless marketplace that have occurred since the Code was originally released, and is intended to give guidance to CCTS in administering the Code.”
“Based on our first review of this comprehensive decision, we are pleased that the CRTC chose to address the…
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OTTAWA – Calling locked phones and unlocking fees “a significant irritant” to Canadians, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains gave the thumbs up to Thursday's CRTC’s decision to do away with the practice.
“The decision will provide Canadians with more choice and make it easier for them to switch to other wireless service providers”, Bains said in a statement. “It will also encourage competition among providers, which could lead to lower prices for consumers.
"Our government is committed to protecting middle-class Canadians against the rising cost of wireless bills. We will continue to explore all possible options to ensure…
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