Coalition of Canadian multicultural media producers readying competing proposal to OMNI in anticipation of CRTC call
FEW CANADIANS OUTSIDE of the TV industry are aware of a major decision under consideration by the CRTC right now that involves the Rogers Communications-owned multicultural TV channels known as OMNI TV.
Rogers is asking the Commission to turn OMNI Free TV into OMNI Pay TV and for all Canadians to chip in about $80 million to help Rogers run the channel (Cartt.ca has reported on that here, here, here and Continue Reading
OTTAWA – The CRTC is calling for comments as it prepares to undertake a review of the regulatory framework for text-based message relay services.
Message relay services (MRS) are text-to-voice services that enable people with a hearing or speech disability to make and receive telephone calls. The Commission currently requires wireline telephone service providers to offer two types of MRS: teletypewriter (TTY) and Internet Protocol (IP) relay services. Wireless service providers are generally not required to provide MRS, at present.
Specifically, the Commission has asked for input on how MRS could evolve to respond to users’ needs in today’s market, whether…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA – As the CMPA’s Prime Time conference debated the economics behind who’s making and buying content in a rapidly-changing global media business, attention turned Thursday to 6 out of 10, 8 out of 10 and 10 out of ten.
No, delegates weren't talking judging for Olympic figure skating.
The conference held a debate over Canada in the emerging digital age, and specifically whether or not the current Canadian-content points system should be retained or revamped to ensure innovation and growth. (Readers will remember this has been a serious bone of contention between the CRTC and producers…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – A four-day hearing will begin Monday morning as the CRTC dives into a review of its three-year old Wireless Code of Conduct.
This code of conduct which, among other things, forced Canadian wireless companies to stop offering contracts longer than 24 months to customers, was one of chairman Jean-Pierre Blais’ initial major policy shifts driving his oft-stated consumer-first agenda.
The code, as the CRTC says, aims to make it easier for individual and small business consumers to get information about their contracts with wireless service providers and about their associated rights and responsibilities, establish standards for industry behaviour,…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – Bell Media has entered another period of restructuring, Cartt.ca has learned.
There have been scattered reports across the country Monday about cutbacks at the big broadcaster. A few long-time on-air personalities have already made public the fact they’re out of work, such as 40-year CHUM veteran Ingrid Schumacher, CHOM host Heather Backman, and TSN Radio Vancouver play-by-play voices Scott Rintoul and Peter Schaad.
(Update #3): Since Monday, other names have been made public, such as CTV Northern Ontario VP and GM Scott Lund, VP…
Continue Reading
TORONTO – TV viewers in eight Ontario cities will lose their over-the-air access to TVO this summer after the provincial broadcaster announced plans to decommission eight transmitters to help save money.
TVO said that it will cease transmitting from Belleville, Chatham, Cloyne, Kitchener, London, Ottawa, Thunder Bay and Windsor on July 31, 2017. The move, which it says will impact less than 1% of Ontario households, will not affect viewers in these cities who have paid TV subscriptions.
One transmitter in Toronto will be retained for the purposes of the CRTC licence and to minimize distribution costs, TVO continued. Decommissioning the over-the-air…
Continue Reading
Posting makes it highly unlikely chairman Blais will be retained
OTTAWA – January 23rd, the federal government made public a slew of Governor-in-Council appointment vacancies, including four at the CRTC.
While many, us included, had been postulating (apparently incorrectly, as it turns out) that CRTC chairman Jean-Pierre Blais would have his term extended beyond his current five-year mandate which ends June 17th of this year, the fact his job is now publicly posted as open to applicants would seem to bring to an end his reign atop the Regulator – unless of course…
Continue Reading
VANCOUVER – Local governments' investments in community broadband are key to delivering cheaper, faster broadband that meets the CRTC’s #TalkBroadband objectives, says a new campaign spearheaded by consumer group OpenMedia.ca.
The group’s Community Broadband platform, which launched Monday, highlights various municipalities in urban and rural communities that have successfully rolled out affordable, high-speed Internet, most often through the deployment of fibre networks. According to the site, local government typically invests in a community broadband network and the Internet services are then sold by either the municipalities themselves, non-profits, small ISPs, co-operatives, public utilities, public-private partnerships, and other community organizations.
Municipally-run broadband…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – The development and deployment of a next-generation 911 network (NG911) is perhaps most critical for Canadians who are unable to use the conventional call-based system.
Several groups representing the blind, vision impaired, deaf and hard of hearing told the CRTC on Thursday they need new tools to effectively communicate with 911 call centres in times of emergency.
They noted that while text with 911 is one such tool, it’s not very effective now. The T911 service was created as a measure to allow deaf and hard of hearing individuals to contact emergency call centres. But because of delayed response…
Continue Reading
GATINEAU – As Telus said last Monday during the CRTC’s N911 hearing, incumbent telcos believe that they are the logical choice as providers of next-generation 911 (NG911) services.
MTS noted in its opening remarks Wednesday that given the complexities involved with transitioning to NG911 from the current systems, it’s best to stick with what is known. Besides, the telcos have the PSAP (public safety access point) relationships, infrastructure and processes already in place for 911.
“There is no reason to believe that this existing framework would not work for NG911. In fact, retaining the same model would expedite a reliable, resilient…
Continue Reading
