By Linda Stuart
Bell and Rogers announced Tuesday they have signed an agreement to distribute each other’s specialty channels across their respective Bell Fibe TV and Rogers Xfinity platforms.
Under the agreement, Bell is bringing Rogers Sports and Media’s HGTV, Food Network, Discovery, Magnolia Network and Investigation Discovery to its Bell Fibe TV, Fibe TV app and Bell Satellite TV subscribers. Those customers will also continue to have access to Bravo. Bell is currently providing these new channel offerings to customers in free preview as of July 29, it said.
In addition,…
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Telus announced Tuesday it has launched Wi-Fi 7 for its PureFibre internet customers on gigabit speed plans or above initially in select areas of British Columbia, with availability in Alberta and Quebec soon to follow.
Delivering speeds up to four times faster than Wi-Fi 6, Telus’s new Boost Wi-Fi 7 internet router is built with at least 65-per-cent recycled plastic and comes in plastic-free packaging made from 90-per-cent recycled cardboard, according to a Telus press release.
“The launch of Wi-Fi 7 is a game-changer for connected homes across Canada underscoring our commitment to…
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By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC has found that OneSoccer is owned, operated and controlled by Canadians, turning away a claim by Rogers that the cable giant was effectively negotiating a carry agreement with Spain’s Mediapro.
Rogers filed the complaint with the CRTC last summer, disputing an earlier finding by commission staff that said the OneSoccer service was operated by Canadians. Before that, in March 2023, the commission found that Rogers was giving itself an undue preference by refusing to carry the service in competition with its Sportsnet and Bell’s equivalent channels. Rogers had argued that…
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CBC and ABC News Studios announced last week the new feature-length documentary Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery will premiere in Canada on Sept. 17 on CBC and CBC Gem, and on Sept. 21 on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers in the U.S. and on Disney+ internationally (excluding Canada), following its world premiere at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.
From Canadian director Ally Pankiw (I Used to Be Funny, Black Mirror, The Great), Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery was commissioned by CBC with the participation of the Canada Media Fund and the Rogers Group of Funds. The…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Telus is admitting that it became aware of, but dealt with, a “small and isolated number” of “rogue” third-party representatives who were engaging on its behalf in the promotion of pirate IPTV services to get people to subscribe to its internet services.
In a statement of defense, filed Friday with the Ontario Superior Court and in response to an action commenced by Bell, the Vancouver-based telecom says it received a customer complaint in May about a representative who was promoting the illegal service.
“In accordance with TELUS’s standard escalation processes and before Bell commenced this action, TELUS immediately investigated…
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Media company eyeing 180-day carriage extension
By Ahmad Hathout
Bell is defending itself against a claim made by WildBrain that it improperly terminated its agreement to carry the media company’s services.
The claim in the Ontario Superior Court primarily centers on a notice Bell was contractually obligated to provide WildBrain that laid out that it did not want to auto renew their agreement to carry the Family Channel, Family Jr., WildBrainTV, and Télémagino services at the end of December 2022. That contract stipulated that the terms would otherwise auto renew after that first term of the four-year agreement.
In a statement of claim…
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Rogers and the United Steelworkers union (USW) Local 1944 have resumed negotiations on a new collective agreement for 25 Rogers technicians who are currently on strike in Abbotsford, B.C.
Following accusations by the USW earlier this month that Rogers was refusing to return to the bargaining table, the USW issued a press release Monday saying talks were set to begin again.
A Rogers spokesperson confirmed to Cartt on Wednesday afternoon that the two sides resumed bargaining on Tuesday, with discussions carrying over into Wednesday.
A sticking point for the striking…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Rogers president and CEO Tony Staffieri said Wednesday that the company’s spending on networks is now at risk if the federal government doesn’t rescind a CRTC decision mandating that the three largest telecommunications companies be allowed to ride on the networks of others.
Last month, the CRTC turned away applications, including from Rogers, that asked the regulator to reconsider allowing Rogers, Bell and Telus – the “Big 3” – to use the wholesale internet regime because of the claimed negative impact on investments and on smaller service providers who, they say, will be crushed by…
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Telus announced Monday it is investing $2 billion over the next five years to expand its broadband services in Ontario and Quebec.
“This investment comes as a result of the CRTC confirmation of the wholesale fibre-to-the-premise (FTTP) framework and serves as a complement to our wholesale fibre access agreements, allowing TELUS to deliver national scale, accelerate network builds and drive investment, competition and affordability in Canada,” a Telus press release reads.
The Vancouver-based telecom said this investment will be part of its annual budget and will be supported by investments from its strategic…
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By Linda Stuart
Following a Globe and Mail story published July 11 that was further reported on by online publication iPhone in Canada, Rogers has told Cartt that it has made changes to its “vendor mix” when it comes to outsourcing some of its customer service roles to third-party companies.
Rogers provided a statement July 17 to Cartt in response to questions about the Globe report that Rogers had ended its contract with Foundever, a Luxembourg-headquartered company that had reportedly been providing Canada-based customer service personnel for Rogers until recently.
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