Rogers Sports and Media on Tuesday announced its 2026-27 slate of new and returning programming across its specialty channels HGTV, Food Network, Discovery and Bravo.
HGTV’s lineup includes the first fruits of Rogers Sports and Media’s previously announced exclusive production deal with home renovation experts Bryan and Sarah Baeumler. Announced Tuesday, the Baeumlers will produce and star in two new Canadian original series for HGTV — Baeumler Ranch (working title) and Sarah Baeumler by Design — as well as host HGTV’s new Canadian original Home Town Takeover Canada series going into production later this month.
Other new shows coming to HGTV…
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Bell on Monday announced it has committed more than $25 million to expand its wireless network capacity in Toronto and Vancouver to support upcoming FIFA World Cup matches and fan experiences in the two host cities.
At the centre of Bell’s Toronto network enhancements is its 5G+ Advanced network, which went live in the city in March, and is the first in Canada to launch with 5-carrier aggregation (CA) on 3800 MHz spectrum, enabling peak theoretical speeds of up to 4.3 Gbps, according to Bell.
Bell said it has nearly tripled its network capacity…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Rogers can force a competitor to connect at a traffic hand-off point of its choosing because its commission-approved tariff allows it, the CRTC ruled Thursday.
Cambridge, Ont.-based Fibernetics argued in a 2024 Part 1 application that Rogers was forcing it to connect its fibre half a kilometre away from the cable giant’s head-end facility in Calgary because Fibernetics was using a third-party, not Rogers, to route the traffic back to its office. Fibernetics, which was backed by other wholesale-based competitors claiming similar experiences, argued this effectively disadvantaged it because Rogers was forcing a competing internet…
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By Ahmad Hathout
The Shaw Rocket Fund has filed for a court review of a CRTC decision last month that did not require Rogers to continue paying into the fund beyond August 2025 — and did not find a public hearing was warranted on the matter.
The Federal Court of Appeal application, dated May 21, seeks clarification about whether an administrative renewal of Rogers’s licence – which involved no public consultation – meant that the commission effectively extended for the rest of the term that funding mandate, which was a condition of approving the cable giant’s purchase of Shaw Communications’s broadcasting…
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Bell on Tuesday announced the launch of a new suite of always-on internet solutions for its all-fibre Bell Fibe internet customers, including uninterruptible power supply (UPS) products and a wireless internet backup solution designed to keep users connected during service disruptions.
Bell’s new Power Backup solutions help to keep Fibe internet customers’ modems up and working during local power failures. Bell is currently selling two UPS options — an Anker SOLIX C300 portable power station for $300 (providing backup power for up to nine hours) and a CyberPower SX950U-FC UPS…
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By Howard Law, author of MediaPolicy.ca and Canada vs. California: How Ottawa took on Netflix and the streaming giants (Lorimer, 2024)
The other shoe dropped last week when the CRTC delivered two rulings that nearly complete its new regulatory framework for Netflix and the rest of the Hollywood streamers, as well as Canadian television broadcasters.
The reaction to the rulings from the Hollywood streamers and their Canadian enablers offered more heat than light. Media reports played them as a trade story and some breathlessly speculated on Culture & Identity Minister Marc…
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Rogers Sports and Media on Tuesday announced Citytv has renewed Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent for a fourth season, with Emmy Award-winning Canadian actor Luke Kirby joining the cast as a new detective character.
With production underway in Toronto, Season 4 of the series is set to premiere on Citytv this fall. The Canadian adaptation of the Law & Order franchise is produced by Vancouver-based Lark Productions and Toronto-based Cameron Pictures in association with Citytv and Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group.
Kirby, a Primetime Emmy Award winner for his portrayal of Lenny Bruce in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,…
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As Toronto and Vancouver prepare to welcome soccer fans for the FIFA World Cup next month, Rogers announced last week upgrades totalling $27 million to its 5G+ networks at key venues in the two Canadian host cities to boost connectivity for visitors and local residents.
Rogers is investing $22 million to enhance its 5G+ network in Toronto at BMO Field and surrounding areas, which includes enhancing the in-stadium wireless system and deploying additional 5G+ spectrum to deliver faster speeds and more capacity for fans in the venue. Rogers is also installing additional network infrastructure outside the stadium…
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By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC has turned down a 2023 application that asked it to align the rates competitors pay Bell for disaggregated and aggregated fibre access.
Quebecor’s application, which hoped for an update to rates established in 2017, was opposed by Bell and Rogers for a reason that the CRTC would adopt Tuesday: the regulator is already reviewing how to update the disaggregated regime, which forces competitors to get their own transport/traffic facilities to obtain access to the fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) portion of the legacy telcos’ network.
“The proceeding initiated by Telecom Notice of Consultation Continue Reading
President says organization will submit a comprehensive application “promptly”
By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC has denied Vues & Voix a three-cent increase in the rate broadcasters must pay to carry its 24-hour French-language radio station Canal M, saying there is insufficient evidence to justify it.
The discretionary service, which provides news and current affairs programming for the accessibility community and for people with disabilities, requested a three-cent rate increase – from four cents to seven cents per subscriber, per month – due to financial pressure. The not-for-profit said it has had to implement significant budget cuts, which resulted in…
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