GATINEAU – With today’s public release of BCE’s new application to acquire Astral Media, the CRTC has set the new hearing date for May 6.
In its second attempt to win CRTC approval, Bell and Astral Media’s renewed proposal includes a $174.64-million tangible benefits package that includes the development and promotion of new Canadian TV and film content in French and English and over $50 million in radio benefits. “This new application to the CRTC clearly demonstrates the tremendous value the combination of these two all-Canadian media brands will mean for the Canadian public and their broadcasting industry” said Bell…
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MAGOG, QC – Omer Girard, one of the founding fathers of Canadian cable television, died Saturday at his home in Magog, Que.
A remarkable entrepreneur in Canada’s telecommunications industry who made a name for himself in the 1960s and ’70s with his epic battle for open access to telecom infrastructure was 92.
In 1957, Girard founded Transvision Magog, one of the most storied cable companies in Canadian history. Between 1960 and 1967, he launched five other cable businesses and cofounded the Canadian Cable Television Association, of which he became president in 1968. However, Girard stood out as the one who would…
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OTTAWA – Bell has added seven community-owned and operated TV channels to its basic satellite lineup. As a result, Canadians in rural communities in B.C., Manitoba, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and New Brunswick can now see community channels in their area.
That’s great news to Ed Christie in Harvey, York County, NB, where cable distribution was cut in 2009. “We used to operate a community channel out of our high school." Since 2009, Christie said, “there’s been no community TV channel providing regular coverage to this area, except in St. Andrews,…
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OTTAWA – It’s all in the CRTC’s hands now.
Following a review of BCE’s second $3.38 billion proposal to purchase Astral Media inside of 12 months, the Competition Bureau said late Monday it had reached an agreement with Bell “that preserves competition in the supply of English and French pay and specialty television programming services in Canada,” according to the Bureau’s press release.
Under the terms of the Consent Agreement filed with the Competition Tribunal Monday, Bell must divest itself of Astral Media’s ownership interests in Family Channel, Teletoon, Teletoon Retro, Disney XD, the Cartoon Network, Disney Jr. (English and French),…
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Steve Faguy
MONTREAL and GATINEAU – Less than a week after it launched, Vidéotron's answer to Netflix is under attack from a competitor.
Astral Media filed a complaint this week with the CRTC alleging that the Quebecor-owned cable company's subscription video on demand service called Illico Club Unlimited competes directly with Astral's French-language pay TV movie channel Super Écran, and that the Commission should order Videotron to stop.
Quebecor responded to Astral's complaint before it was even published by the CRTC, issuing a press release on Friday morning and publishing an opinion piece written…
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TORONTO – While reiterating how disappointed he was in last fall’s CRTC decision to deny the purchase of his company by Bell Canada, Astral Media CEO Ian Greenberg told shareholders today at Astral’s annual general meeting that the two companies have listened and learned and are confident the new application filed with the Commission will gain approval this time.
The new application was submitted on November 19, 2012 and is expected to be made public by the CRTC very soon. It was 71 days between the submission of the first application from Bell to buy Astral and when it was…
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INDUSTRY MINISTER CHRISTIAN PARADIS’ head is spinning. After a couple of days on the ground at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, the Minister had talked to so many people and seen so much interesting new technology, he pronounced himself overwhelmed, impressed and excited by it all, in an interview with Cartt.ca on Tuesday.
MWC is one of the largest wireless industry conferences in the world with about 70,000 attendees – and it is known as the get-together where you’ll find the highest number of CEOs and other senior wireless executives. Thousands of vendors, app developers, handset makers and…
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REGINA – SaskTel is allocating $554,300 to the Regina and District Association of Community Living (RDACL) to be used for the provision of telecommunications technology and training to persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities.
“Community Living is committed to enabling the intellectually disabled the opportunity to make social connections and this aligns with SaskTel’s vision of enabling a connected Saskatchewan,” said Don McMorris, Minister Responsible for SaskTel. “Whether it is connections to technology, connections to friends and family or connections to a world of information, SaskTel is pleased to enable these connections for all…
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YELLOWKNIFE – Northern broadband service provider SSi says the CRTC’s decision to “remedy damage” caused by Northwestel’s practice of overcharging competitors for wholesale terrestrial backbone services will restore telecom competition in the north.
SSi claimed that Northwestel, the only supplier of such services in the North, was charging competitors wholesale rates that were thirteen to thirty times higher than in the south, and several times higher than its own retail pricing.
In January of 2012 the CRTC directed Northwestel to file cost studies to justify its backbone connectivity rates. Northwestel filed…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has approved Dufferin Communications plan to launch a new English language A/C station in Clarence-Rockland, located about 40 kilometres northeast of Ottawa. The station will operate at 92.5 MHz (channel 223A) with 300 watts and a non-directional antenna of about 60 metres in height.
“The proposed service would introduce a valuable first local service to the community of Clarence-Rockland and would add diversity to this market through its news and information offering, as well as provide significant local reflection,” ruled the CRTC in its decision. It also noted that there is…
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