OTTAWA – The CRTC estimates that its regulatory costs under section 9(1) of the broadcasting regulations will total $30.33 million for the 2016-2017 fiscal year.
The annual adjustment amount referred to in section 8(2) for the 2014-2015 fiscal year is a credit of $1.719 million. Taking this adjustment into account, the net billing for the Part I licence fee for the 2016-2017 fiscal year is $28.610 million, the Commission said Tuesday.
The broadcasting licence fee regulation provides for the payment of Part I licence fees by specific distributors, as set out in section 9(1) of the Broadcasting License Fee Regulations.
www.crtc.gc.ca
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OTTAWA–GATINEAU – The CRTC has fined three Canadian-based companies and two Indian-based call centers more than $640,000 for making telemarketing calls to Canadians.
The notices of violation, issued Thursday, allege that the five companies failed to respect the unsolicited telecommunications rules by making telemarketing calls to Canadians whose phone numbers are registered on the national Do Not Call List (DNCL), without being registered with the national DNCL operator, and without having purchased a subscription to the list.
The telemarketers were attempting to sell anti-virus software, and falsely identified themselves as representatives of Microsoft Inc., the U.S. Department of Homeland Security or Government…
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TORONTO — Bell Canada and the National Football League are crying foul against the CRTC, claiming the Regulator is trying to push forward with its Super Bowl simultaneous substitution (simsub) ban via a distribution order, before Bell and the National Football League’s appeal of the CRTC’s broadcasting decision makes its way to Federal Court.
When the CRTC announced in January 2015 (in Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2015-25) that Canadian TV distributors would no longer be allowed to perform simsub for the Super Bowl, starting with the February 2017 broadcast of Super Bowl LI, the Commission indicated it would…
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TORONTO – Corus Entertainment’s shareholders have voted overwhelmingly in favour of the proposed $2.65 billion acquisition of Shaw Media Inc.
A total of 3,259,268 Class A shares and 61,769,406 Class B shares, representing 95.14% of the issued and outstanding Class A Shares and 73.10% of the issued and outstanding Class B Shares, respectively, were represented in person or by proxy at a special meeting of shareholders in Toronto on Wednesday
All of the Class A shares voted in favour of the deal, as did 78.52% of the Class B shares. Class B votes against the deal totaled 21.48%.
"Corus' shareholders have…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has nailed another air duct cleaning company for violating Canada's telemarketing rules.
The Commission said Tuesday that it has imposed $39,000 in administrative monetary penalties (AMPs) to Toronto Breeze Air Duct Cleaning Services Inc. Acting on complaints, the CRTC launched an investigation early last year that determined that the company initiated telemarketing telecommunications on its behalf to consumers whose telecommunications numbers were registered on the National Do Not Call List (DNCL), while it was not a registered subscriber of the national DNCL. In addition, it was not registered with the national DNCL operator, had not…
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GATINEAU – A Bell Canada application seeking the forbearance of wireless access service (WAS) has support from network partner Telus, saying there are plenty of alternatives. Rogers Communications, on the other hand, opposes it, noting that it’s not as simple as saying there are alternatives, and that therefore WAS can be forborne.
The CRTC has dealt with WAS on two separate occasions, the most recent being its wholesale services decision 2015-326. A 2012 decision also delved into WAS. Both times, the Commission has chosen not to forbear from regulating it and allowed wireless service providers to continue to…
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MARKHAM, ON – Clearcable Networks president Rob McCann has been awarded Supplier of the Year by the Canadian Independent Telecommunications Association (CITA) at the organization’s Seminar Showcase 2016, held earlier this week in Markham.
CITA said it chose McCann because of his commitment to hard work, customer service and continuous support of the association.
“Rob has demonstrated his commitment to our industry for the last 25+ years working with advanced broadband service deployments and is responsible for building and maintaining technical, network and application intelligence”, reads a statement from CITA. “He has contributed to industry development, participated in CRTC working groups…
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OTTAWA – The Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS) has issued an annotation of the Wireless Code of Conduct in an effort to help both consumers and wireless providers better understand the way it is administered.
CCTS said that the annotated guide is a compilation of the various determinations and interpretations that it has made in the thousands of complaints it has investigated since the Code came into effect in December 2013. The annotation follows the format of the Wireless Code, with a section-by-section discussion, and complaint summaries intended to illustrate the discussion.
“When we apply the Code to resolve a customer…
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GATINEAU – The arrival of skinny basic TV programming packages and pick-and-pay options on Tuesday mark a “new era of choice for Canadian television viewers”, according to the CRTC.
Effective immediately, all licensed television service providers must offer an affordable basic package (a.k.a skinny basic) costing no more than $25 per month, not including equipment. The package must include local and regional television stations such as CBC, CTV and Global, channels of public interest like the Cable Public Affairs Channel (CPAC) and Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN), educational channels, community channels, and services operated by provincial legislatures, where available.
The basic…
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OTTAWA – Shaw Direct has received CRTC approval to modify its ‘skinny basic’ lineup of TV channels, specifically the local television stations that must be included.
The Commission said Monday that it accepts, with modifications, an application by Star Choice Television Network Incorporated for an exception to section 45.1 of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations as it relates to its national DTH BDU Shaw Direct.
Star Choice submitted that the CRTC’s proposed basic service was too limiting for Shaw Direct and could not be achieved with its current system, noting that its infrastructure was never designed to deliver the multitude of…
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