OTTAWA — The CRTC announced Wednesday it has approved the application submitted by the Canadian Administrator of VRS (CAV) for $16,032,739 in funding from the National Contribution Fund (NCF) for 2020.
Access to this funding will enable the CAV to continue to offer video relay service in Canada to the benefit of all Canadians, as envisioned by the Commission in Telecom Regulatory Policy 2014-187, the CRTC said today in its decision. Video relay service (VRS) enables people who use sign language to conduct telephone calls and communicate with voice telephone users using sign language. VRS connects a sign language user…
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GATINEAU – The CRTC today launched an online survey in an attempt to better understand the needs, behaviours and habits of Canadians regarding their mobile wireless services.
The survey, announced this morning, forms part of the CRTC's review of mobile wireless services, which began in February 2019. “The survey results will help determine whether further action is needed to ensure that the needs of Canadians are being met in the mobile wireless market,” says the press release.
Canadians have until December 31, 2019, midnight PST to complete the survey.
The CRTC will hold a public hearing starting on February 18, 2020, in…
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However, Bell has not given itself an undue preference, the Commission says
OTTAWA — Although the CRTC has determined Bell has not provided itself with an undue preference when it comes to how toll-free calls are currently routed in Canada, the Commission does agree with Rogers that Bell should deploy one-way toll trunks to connect to Rogers switches in the Bell operating territories in which Rogers also provides service. Bell now has 150 days to comply with the Commission’s directive.
After several months of attempted negotiations with Bell, Rogers in May filed a Part 1 application asking the CRTC to settle…
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Commission invites CBC/SRC to potentially use digital media to meet its regulatory obligations
GATINEAU – On Monday, the CRTC officially opened the process for the renewal of the CBC/SRC licences, asking Canadians on Facebook what they think about the public broadcaster.
The public hearing will be held in May.
While we had heard and read the CBC/SRC is asking the Comission to include its digital platforms when it comes to meeting its substantial regulatory objectives, in reading the 200-page application, we found that it is the Commission itself which actually invited the Corporation to do so.
A renewal process such as this one…
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Why he wanted this tough job in the first place
WITH THE MYRIAD ISSUES facing the CRTC and regulators around the world, chair of the CRTC is a hot seat. Always has been. Always will be.
Canadians care deeply about the subjects which the Commission handles on a daily basis, be it wireless phone pricing, email spam and phone scams, Canadian content, or any of the various challenges which fall under the purview of the Regulator. It all impacts our daily lives in the way we communicate, are informed and entertained.
Over the course of part two of our interview with CRTC…
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GATINEAU – The CRTC said today it wants to know what Canadians think of CBC/Radio-Canada’s programming.
As part of the CBC/Radio-Canada licence renewal process, which started today, the Commission wants to “ensure the content produced and distributed by the public broadcaster reflects the diversity of Canada’s population, while meeting its needs in both official languages,” reads its press release.
“Given changes in the models for the production and distribution of content, the Commission is inviting Canadians to review how CBC/Radio-Canada content is made available to them on various platforms. They will also have an opportunity to share their opinion on how…
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OTTAWA – The judicial process against the CRTC’s August decision on the final rates for aggregated wholesale high-speed access (HSA) service will go forward – and the decision’s application will remain suspended pending a ruling from the Federal Court of Appeal.
This means that the rates in force today are the interim ones set in 2016 and retroactive payments set out in the summer decision are suspended, pending the court’s decision.
The FCA had already granted a temporary stay on October 1st.
Justice Richard Boivin determined “the implementation of the CRTC Order that could result in a permanent market distortion…
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"We need new tools to deal with the new environment"
IAN SCOTT IS already two years through his five-year mandate as chair of the CRTC. He hasn’t been as active calling hearings as his predecessor, who kept thinking up ways of making sure regulatory departments and the journalists who cover them were always hopping, but the CRTC under Scott has still been very busy.
While the Commission is an arm’s length agency, the federal government has been quite keen on pushing a few big issues which, despite what many critics might have to say, are awfully complex…
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TORONTO — Speaking at last week’s annual OAB Connection conference — where the theme was “Futureproofing Broadcasting” — the CRTC’s Ontario commissioner, Monique Lafontaine, urged attendees to work with the regulator to find innovative and collaborative ways to tackle the complex issues facing the industry and to ensure its future success.
“Indeed, broadcasters and regulators face difficult challenges. Meeting these challenges — to ensure the futureproofing of our system — requires innovation, collaboration and investment in our work force,” Lafontaine (pictured) said. “The CRTC is keen to work with broadcasters and industry stakeholders. I urge all of you and your…
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CRTC Broadband Fund calls for more applications
GATINEAU — The CRTC today issued its second call for applications to the Broadband Fund, widening the eligibility of projects to include those that promise to improve broadband access in geographic areas that do not currently have access to universal service objective-level broadband services, including areas that were eligible in the first call for applications.
The CRTC’s universal service objective for fixed Internet access service is that all Canadians have access to at least 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download and 10 Mbps upload, with an option of unlimited data. For mobile wireless services,…
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