TORONTO – Industry Minister Christian Paradis took part in a pre-budget (and pre-700 Mhz auction) round table discussion with leaders from the information and communications technologies sector Wednesday in Toronto.
The event is one of a series of planned round tables that also included a stop earlier this month in Montreal. The Minister said that he is seeking to engage private sector stakeholders on how best to ensure that Canada's economy continues to produce jobs and growth in a difficult global economy.
"Budget 2012 will maintain our focus on jobs and economic growth while reducing the deficit and returning to balance…
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TORONTO – CHUM Radio veteran Bob Laine will will be posthumously inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Industry Hall of Fame and his memory and career honoured with the Allan Waters Broadcast Lifetime Achievement Award on March 23 during the Canadian Radio Music Awards in Toronto.
Laine began his broadcasting career at CFRS in Simcoe, ON in 1957 but quickly moved to CHUM Toronto where he would ultimately make his mark as "The Voice". Known as the overnight disc jockey on 1050 CHUM during the 60's – when the station revolutionized the AM signal in Canada by introducing a rock and…
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KONRAD VON FINCKENSTEIN made a lot of work for a lot of us.
As he has noted since he first took the job of CRTC chair in January of 2007, he wanted to make the CRTC more open, predictable, fair, and timely. While by our judgment he succeeded, with that openness came more public processes and a quick count of the number of public proceedings under his watch comes to 103. His predecessor, the late Charles Dalfen, called just 78.
Mr. Dalfen, however, never had to deal with the likes of YouTube, Facebook or Twitter.
Coinciding with von Finckenstein’s tenure at the…
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TORONTO – Tuesday is the last day to register for the 2012 President’s Reception which will be held January 26 from 6 – 8:30 pm in the Roof Salon on the 18th floor of the Park Hyatt hotel in Toronto.
This popular event provides a great opportunity to reconnect with industry friends and colleagues as the organization reveals its plans for the year.
The event is free for members, and new members are welcome to attend for a cost of $55.00 which includes a one year membership to CTAM Canada. To register, please contact Andrea Baxter at abaxter@ccsa.cable.ca or (506) 849-1334, ext….
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TORONTO – Media Access Canada (MAC) is calling on Industry Canada to allocate a portion of the 700 MHz spectrum auction funds to the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (BAF).
BAF is the $5.7 million fund mandated by the CRTC last year as part of BCE’s tangible benefits when it purchased CTV. MAC, which represents a number of national disability organizations, continues to lobby the CRTC to administer the BAF.
“It is critical that opportunities not be lost while awaiting the CRTC’s decision on management of the BAF is pending”, said CEO Beverley Milligan, in a statement.
www.mediac.ca
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VANCOUVER – Rogers Communications and Wavefront, Canada's wireless centre of excellence for commercialization and research, are teaming up a on new centre that helps technology innovators develop products and bring them to market faster.
Called the Rogers Wireless Innovation Centre, the facility will offer innovators the opportunity to learn and connect with the latest global wireless technology, work with key developers, and share their solutions with industry leaders. It is scheduled to open in Vancouver this spring.
The two organizations also announced plans for the Rogers Wavefront Innovation Mentorship program, a national initiative that will pair early-stage wireless technology companies from…
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WATERLOO – For the first time in more than two decades, Research In Motion, maker of the iconic Blackberry and Canada’s largest tech company, has a new leader after founders and co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis stepped down Sunday.
Chief operating officer Thorsten Heins, hand-picked by the outgoing executives, is the new president and CEO. He also joins the board of directors.
The structure of the company’s board of directors is also further changing. Lazaridis, former co-chair and co-CEO, has become vice chair of the board and chair of its new innovation committee. As vice-chair, “he will work closely with…
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OTTAWA – Telus says that its proposal for an spectrum cap in the 700 MHz auction is the “fairest” way the federal government can meets its competition agenda and ensure that there are multiple winners outside of the three incumbent wireless players.
In an interview with Cartt.ca, Telus’ senior VP of regulatory and government affairs Michael Hennessy explains that the company has heard, loud and clear, the government’s message that it wants to continue with its competition agenda begun with the Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) auction, maximize investment in Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks and ensure that rural Canadians enjoy…
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OTTAWA – Industry Canada has suspended the use of television channel 51 in an effort to prevent interference in the lower part of 700 MHz spectrum pending its forthcoming auction.
In a letter to the CRTC, IC said that effective immediately, it will no longer grant new broadcasting certificates for regular power and low power TV applications. The moratorium affects only the applications for new or modification to facilities predicated on increased usage of the spectrum and does not affect existing regular power or low power television stations currently on channel 51.
www.ic.gc.ca
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OTTAWA – The Liberal Party has thrown its support behind set asides in the upcoming auction of the 700 MHz spectrum.
Liberal Industry Critic Geoff Regan issued a statement saying that a “reasonable amount of spectrum space” should be reserved for “any small or new entrants” in order to help promote wireless competition in the country. The remainder should then be auctioned off in a process open to all interested parties.
“The Liberal Party believes that structuring the auction in this manner would ensure that Canada’s wireless industry can continue to innovate and grow while ensuring that consumers have more choice…
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