The CRTC last week said it is temporarily suspending the requirement for wireless and internet service providers to submit annual reports measuring their compliance with the Wireless Code and the Internet Code, as the telecom regulator prepares to launch a new proceeding regarding its plan to streamline and simplify the codes.
As set out in its Consumer Protections Action Plan, the CRTC intends to combine the Wireless Code, the Internet Code, the Deposit and Disconnection Code and the Television Service Provider Code into a single code that is more clear, simple and consistent…
Continue Reading
The CRTC last week approved the acquisition of Quebec radio station CJAN-FM Val-des-Sources by Résonance Média Inc. from Coopérative Web Média des Sources.
The commission also approved Résonance’s request for a new broadcasting licence to continue operating the station. The broadcasting regulator said the transaction is in the public interest and will help ensure the French-language station continues to provide local programming to the community of Val-des-Sources.
Based on the transaction value of $258,453, Résonance is required to pay tangible benefits totalling $15,507 in equal installments over seven consecutive broadcasting years, allocated to…
Continue Reading
The CRTC last week approved amendments to the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB)’s operational plan for the Commercial Radio News Fund (CRNF), which distributes a portion of the five per cent base contribution money from streamers toward the programming of commercial radio broadcasters in smaller markets.
This follows the CRTC’s conditional approval in August 2025 of the CAB’s plan to administer the fund and the CAB’s subsequent filing of a revised plan in October at the request of the commission, which had asked for amendments to the governance,…
Continue Reading
In a letter last week, the CRTC has asked Canada’s largest mobile providers to file additional information regarding the international roaming offerings they have launched to date, as the commission continues to monitor the big three telecoms’ progress in providing more affordable and flexible roaming options.
The letter comes after the CRTC last year directed Bell, Rogers and Telus to file progress reports on May 5 and Nov. 5, 2025, with information on any new offerings launched, as well as on the price and consumer uptake of their offerings. The three telecoms…
Continue Reading
By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC said Friday it will hold dedicated consultations with groups representing the interests of official language minority communities (OLMCs) when a decision will adversely impact them.
“During these dedicated consultations, the Commission will provide groups representing the interests of OLMCs with additional time to submit comments, as well as additional notice of proceedings, which will provide an explanation of the issues relevant to OLMCs,” the CRTC said.
OLMCs, as defined by the Broadcasting Act and the Online News Act, are English-speaking communities in Quebec and French-speaking communities outside of Quebec. The CRTC is keeping with that strict definition….
Continue Reading
By Ahmad Hathout
Bell’s Crave added more than one million subscribers in 2025, the telco said Thursday, pushing the streaming service to 4.6 million subscribers by the end of the fourth quarter.
The last three months of 2025 was the most watched single quarter in the history of the streaming service in a year that also includes its most hours viewed. Bell attributed the success in part to more premium, original and diverse content.
In November, Bell Media announced the largest ever expansion of its content library — more than 10,000 additional hours with integrated live programming from CTV,…
Continue Reading
Rogers says claim is “baseless”
By Ahmad Hathout
Ztar Mobile is claiming Rogers is making it difficult for the reseller to port the numbers of some 40,000 customers to a new provider after the cable giant terminated its wholesale agreement.
Rogers ended a roughly 20-year agreement with Ztar last year, leaving the small mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), which provides low-cost pre-paid phone services to convenience stores, scrambling to assist with the transition because it claims it no longer has access to the cable giant’s system, according to the complaint dated last week.
The MVNO, which found an alternative to Rogers, is asking…
Continue Reading
Social media driving engagement
By Christopher Guly
OTTAWA – With Canadian audiences viewing a plethora of content, a major focus for Canadian creators is to get their programming noticed, according to producers on a panel addressing discoverability at the Canadian Media Producers Association’s (CMPA’s) Prime Time annual conference in Ottawa on Jan. 30.
“Discoverability is an ongoing challenge, especially in this industry with so much content out there,” said Mark Montefiore, founder and CEO of New Metric Media. “How do you stand out in this ecosystem?”
His company is a producer of Hate the Player: The Ben Johnson Story, a Canadian comedy television…
Continue Reading
By Christopher Guly
OTTAWA – As the CRTC brings foreign streamers under regulation via the Online Streaming Act, Bell’s Heated Rivalry is being viewed as an example of exportable Canadian programming that can thrive with enough investment in the Canadian broadcasting system.
The producers and two cast members of Bell Media’s Crave series along with Mark Carney – a first-ever appearance by a prime minister at a Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) Prime Time event – were the highlight Friday that shone a bright light on the six-episode TV series that has become a red-hot global phenomenon.
After walking a special red…
Continue Reading
By Ahmad Hathout
Bell is claiming that it has not been able to fully launch fibre internet service in British Columbia and Alberta because Telus has allegedly refused to provide adequate systems for the setup.
Bell CEO Mirko Bibic announced in November that the telco had been running a trial for internet service in Kelowna, British Columbia using Telus’s network, with the expectation that it would fully launch internet services – with plans to bundle content and mobile – this month.
But that has not happened yet, Bell claims, because Telus has failed to provide the requisite systems to…
Continue Reading
