OTTAWA – In the face of enormous political and public pressure, Bell Canada has killed wholesale usage-based billing.
Knowing politicians (whomever wins the election) are determined to stop wholesale UBB in its tracks, in its submission to the CRTC late Monday evening on the newest proceeding into the issue, Bell Canada abandoned any plan to continue pushing for UBB in its previously Commission-approved-form.
Instead, Bell has proposed a new idea (well, borrowed, really from CRTC Commissioner Candace Molnar and industry consultant Mark Goldberg) it is calling aggregated volume pricing.
“We are basically riffing off of the sentiments expressed by several…
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CHATHAM, ON – While not exactly endorsing the Harper-led Conservative government, independent Internet service provider TekSavvy expressed its frustration with last week’s dissolution of Parliament and resulting election call, citing the impacts on key industry initiatives.
“We are in the middle of a very important regulatory process, the review by the CRTC of the usage-based billing decisions”, said president and CEO Rocky Gaudrault, in a statement. “Its outcome will have a major impact on the way Canadians experience the Internet, one that will determine whether we will benefit from a fair, truly competitive framework within which we will be able to develop…
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MONTREAL – Videotron is appealing a CRTC decision forcing it to share video-on-demand content with competitors.
Cartt.ca has learned that Videotron has filed a motion with the Federal Court of Appeal seeking to overturn the Commission’s January decision which ruled that Videotron must offer content from the TVA network that is currently available on its illico on-demand platform to Bell and Telus for use on their on-demand platforms in Quebec.
Citing “errors of law and jurisdiction”, Videotron is challenging the CRTC’s finding of undue preference, alleges that the Commission “misapplied” the TV and BDU regulations, and questions whether TVA can be…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has turned down a request from CBC to add a post-transition digital transmitter to its English-language conventional television station CBAT-TV Fredericton/Saint John.
Noting that the proposal would result in a loss of over-the-air TV service to the residents of Saint John, the Commission cited its Revised licensing framework for over-the-air digital television services policy whereby broadcasters are encouraged to provide digital coverage that matches their current analog coverage.
“The Commission notes that the proposed digital transmitter would be located such that it would provide service to only one of the two markets served by the…
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OTTAWA – The Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) said that it applauds the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage for recognizing the importance of fair terms of trade agreements between independent producers and vertically integrated media companies.
As Cartt.ca reported, in a report to the Government of Canada on the impact of private television ownership changes, the Standing Committee recommended that the Government consider the issue of fair terms of trade agreements between independent producers and vertically integrated media companies when reviewing the Canada Media Fund.
“The Committee is to be congratulated for its timely recognition of the need for…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has given its thumbs up to the revised monthly recurring rates and service charge rates for the wholesale line-sharing services of the major incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs) Bell Aliant, Bell Canada, MTS Allstream, SaskTel, and Telus.
Line-sharing service is a wholesale service that provides access to the high-frequency band of unbundled copper local loops. Under a line-sharing service arrangement, the co-located competitor provisions its own digital subscriber line access multiplexer to offer high-speed Internet access service to its end-customers.
The Commission also established the conditions under which line-sharing service is to be offered. Click here…
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TORONTO – It will be up to Canada’s Supreme Court to decide on whether Internet service providers (ISPs) are just pipes or actually broadcasters.
On Thursday the Court granted a coalition of Canadian union and guilds leave to appeal a lower court decision issued last July that deemed ISPs “content-neutral,” and therefore not subject to CRTC-regulated Canadian content exhibition or contribution requirements like broadcasters.
During that proceeding, the major ISPs, (many of which are also cable companies), insisted that because ISPs do not select, originate or package programming, they cannot be considered broadcasters. A coalition of content producers and…
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“THIS IS THE EXCEPTION rather than the rule,” Industry Minister Tony Clement told a Parliamentary committee earlier this month regarding the Conservatives penchant for weighing in on CRTC decisions.
He quoted the number six – three varied and three referred back to the Commission – out of 2,200 telecom decisions issued by the CRTC (below is a list of the decisions and how the government ruled). These numbers don’t tell the whole story though. While on the surface six out of 2,200 is miniscule, the fact of the matter is that out of those 2,200 decisions only 30 were…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – Rogers Communications has made a $275,000 payment to the CRTC for its use of automated calling devices without consent.
The Commission said Thursday that Rogers was using these devices to notify its prepaid mobile customers of how they could purchase more minutes to avoid a service interruption. Automated calling devices are used to dial telephone numbers and automatically deliver a pre-recorded message. The CRTC’s automatic dialing and announcing device rules prohibit telemarketers from using these devices to sell or promote a product or service unless a consumer has consented to be called by them.
While not admitting fault, after…
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OTTAWA – Sports network The Score had most, but not all, of its proposed amendments to its broadcasting licence approved by the CRTC.
The Commission said Tuesday that the English-language analog service could increase its Canadian programming expenditure requirement and reduce its Canadian programming exhibition requirement; add to the program categories from which it may draw programming; and delete the condition of licence setting its wholesale rate.
However, the Commission denied its request to amend the condition of licence requiring The Score to devote no less than 50% of live sports event coverage in prime time to the exhibition of…
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