OTTAWA – The CRTC has sided with Bell Media in a complaint made over the broadcaster’s alleged refusal to provide its TV services for distribution.
As Cartt.ca previously reported, upstart Internet and phone service provider Ebox complained last September that Bell Media was giving its related BDUs and other BDUs an undue preference by providing services such as TSN and RDS while refusing to provide them to Ebox.
But the Commission dismissed the complaint Monday, saying that the evidence on the public record for this proceeding suggests that Bell Media is willing to offer its programming services to Ebox.
“Notwithstanding certain…
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Proposes new agency to battle billion-dollar problem
OTTAWA – FairPlay Canada, a new coalition of Canadian artists, content creators, unions, guilds, producers, performers, broadcasters, distributors, and exhibitors is has filed an application with the CRTC urging the Regulator to have Canadian ISPs shut down access to websites which enable content piracy.
According to the coalition, the jobs of hundreds of thousands of Canadians who work in the creative sector (songwriters, set builders, TV writers, makeup artists, reporters, as well as cable technicians, engineers and customer service reps) are at risk as a result of increasing online piracy…
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OTTAWA – Canada’s telcos have until March 31, 2019 to implement caller ID technology for calls made over Internet Protocol (IP), the CRTC said Thursday.
The Commission also ordered the CRTC Interconnection Steering Committee (CISC) to submit an industry report card twice a year, beginning six months from the January 25th date of this decision, to help track the progress being made on caller identification authentication.
The telcos were also directed to develop a call traceback process for VoIP nuisance calls, and the CISC was also asked to file a progress report on this process within the next nine months.
The CRTC…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has turned down a request from three consumer advocacy groups to review and vary its basic service objective decision over the affordability of telecommunications services.
The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now Canada (ACORN), the National Pensioners Federation (NPF), and the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC), collectively known as ACORN-NPF-PIAC, filed a review and vary request last April over the decision, decrying its lack of an affordability funding mechanism for low-income telecommunications users.
The Commission dismissed the request Thursday after determining that it did not err in fact or in law, and that there has…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has ruled that Bell’s offer relating to the distribution of French-language sports service TVA Sports is “more reasonable” than the offer proposed by the channel’s parent Quebecor Media.
Once their own negotiations reached an impasse, Quebecor Media and Bell asked the Commission last September to initiate a final offer arbitration process on the per-subscriber wholesale rates for the distribution of TVA Sports in the francophone market, defined as the province of Quebec.
After hearing final offers from both companies, the CRTC said Wednesday that it selected Bell’s offer after finding that the evidence does not support the rate increase…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – The CRTC has signed a memorandum of cooperation with Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications to fight unsolicited commercial electronic messages (spam).
The Commission said Friday that the partnership will support close cooperation and a coordinated approach in the enforcement of spam laws in both jurisdictions to limit the amount of unwanted emails received by both Canadian and Japanese residents.
As part of the agreement, the two agencies have agreed to share information and provide investigative support, upon request, and in accordance with the law. The memorandum of cooperation also provides for research and education opportunities through sharing of best…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – After first asking Canadians to weigh in on future distribution models for Canadian programming, the CRTC now wants to know why we watch and listen to content the way that we do.
The Commission launched a new survey on Thursday that it saus will help it to understand the reasons behind Canadians’ choices on how and where they consume content. The survey’s questions include queries around why Canadians opt for traditional TV or radio versus watching and listening online, as well as the importance of programming made in Canada.
Canadians can participate by filling out the survey before January 31…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has turned down a Bell Canada request to review and vary an earlier Commission decision requiring the company to implement an outside meet-me point to support competitor interconnection to its disaggregated wholesale high-speed access (HAS) service.
An outside meet-me point provides competitors with an external interconnection point to connect with the disaggregated wholesale HSA service through a fibre termination at a pedestal or a splicing enclosure located outside the central office or cable head-end.
The Commission dismissed the request Wednesday after determining that it did not err in fact or in law, despite Bell’s assertions to the…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has sided with Rogers in its dispute with the Iristel group of companies over an alleged case of traffic stimulation.
In December 2016, Rogers asked the Commission to intervene after it accused Iristel of “being unjustly enriched by gaming the regulatory framework for local competition” by profiting from the higher local termination charges applicable in the Northwest Territories. Iristel denied the claims.
On Wednesday, the CRTC determined that Iristel had given itself an undue preference and subjected Rogers to a corresponding undue disadvantage.
“The Commission therefore directs Iristel and any of its affiliates, within 30 days…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC is seeking feedback as it prepares for a review of the reseller registration obligation.
The Commission currently requires Canadian carriers and non-carriers (also known as resellers) to fulfill various obligations as a condition of offering and providing telecommunications services, including the obligation to register.
Resellers that provide interexchange services, local exchange services (also known as local telephone services), wireless voice services, local voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services, Internet access services, and payphone services will still be required to register, the CRTC said Friday. The review will consider whether the registration obligation should apply, for example,…
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