TORONTO – Rogers is ditching the Mobilicity brand and will switch its approximately 150,000 customers to its Chatr flanker brand this summer.
Customers will be unable to add new Mobilicity lines to their account after August 15, but can change their current plans until joining Chatr, a Rogers spokesperson told Cartt.ca. Rogers will also convert "a large number" of Mobilicity’s dealers to Chatr branded stores and countertops.
The spokesperson added that Mobilicity customers will have broader coverage zones with Chatr, and that the company will offer “comparable plan options”. Currently, Mobilicity offers unlimited talk, text and data plans in Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver…
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TORONTO – Rogers and Fido wireless customers can now do a real time check of their wireless network on their phones.
NetworkAid, in beta since January, allows customers to quickly check their network coverage availability in different areas, report issues with their service, and request an SMS or email when issues are resolved. The self-serve tool can be accessed online at Rogers.com or through customers' MyRogers and MyAccount mobile apps.
Rogers said that in the last three months, customers used the app 57,000 times and the online tool 11,000 times to check network status, resulting in a 17% reduction in network-issue calls…
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TORONTO – To encourage customers to call their Mom’s on Mother’s Day, Rogers is offering wireless customers one hour of free long-distance calling on May 8.
Rogers said that postpaid wireless customers will receive an hour of free long-distance calling for calls made from their wireless phone within Canada on the Rogers network to domestic and over 200 international destinations. Customers can choose to make their hour-long call any time they want on Sunday, and will automatically be zero-rated for one hour of long-distance charges on their next invoice.
"We want to help families come together on…
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MONTREAL – The federal government and CRTC should allow “competitive pressure” to spur the telecommunications industry’s investments in new broadband infrastructure, and not repeat the “mistakes" caused by intervening in the wireless sector, says a new report released Thursday by the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI).
“Critics who note that access to high-speed Internet is limited in some regions of Canada, or among less advantaged socioeconomic groups, invariably conclude that government intervention will be necessary to close the gap, but what they consider a market failure is actually just the normal course of technology adoption”, reads the 2016 edition of The State of Competition in…
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TORONTO – BCE’s proposed acquisition of MTS will not only contradict the previous government’s push for four wireless players in every market, it could open the door for further consolidation in the rest of the market.
Canaccord Genuity Corp. analyst Aravinda Galappatthige said approval of the $3.9 billion BCE/MTS deal would “set a significant precedent, as it would reduce Manitoba to a three-player wireless market from four.”
“As a result, we also believe that this would give Shaw a potential exit strategy in wireless should it decide to sell Wind”, he wrote in a client note Monday. “In addition, we…
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LAS VEGAS — In another sign that it still has plenty of maturing to do as a technology, 4K video took some steps both forward and backward at the NAB Show here last week.
On the positive side, numerous consumer electronics makers and related vendors unveiled new equipment and solutions for both 4K and its high dynamic range (HDR) cousin, filling the huge exhibit space with Ultra HD (UHD) screens and images. In one of the most prominent cases, Sony unveiled a line of new 4K and HDR products, covering everything from TV cameras to recorders to reference…
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MPs wouldn't bite, though
GATINEAU – Rogers Communications told the CRTC Thursday that the National Broadband Task Force and the Information Highway Task Force can serve as models for a new national broadband strategy.
“And, because a strategy needs leadership to get results, we propose a multi-stakeholder advisory council to oversee the strategy’s implementation,” said David Watt, senior vice-president of regulatory at Rogers, on the ninth day of the Commission’s basic service objective hearing.
Under questioning, he added that this advisory council would be jointly led by the CRTC and the Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED, formerly Industry Canada)….
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Or should we consider broadband like roads or sewers?
GATINEAU – If the CRTC is going to implement a subsidy to support the rollout of broadband in rural and remote area, it already has an established approach, the Canadian Cable Systems Alliance told the Commission on Wednesday. It’s called the National Contribution Fund for telephony in high cost service areas.
Chris Edwards, vice-president of regulatory affairs at the CCSA (pictured in a CPAC.ca screen cap), noted that this approach would encourage network investment by smaller providers – the companies that serve rural and remote communities. “Such a subsidy model…
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CEO Laurence talks cable, wireless, media, and hockey, at AGM
TORONTO – Rogers Communications will launch its IPTV service at the end of the year, CEO Guy Laurence told shareholders at the company's annual general meeting in Toronto on Tuesday, which "will take your TV viewing to a whole new level."
Meeting later with reporters, he refused to go into more details other than to say "It looks great, I'm excited about it."
But he also said IPTV wraps into the company's recent efforts in upgrading its cable network to offer 1 Gbps Internet speeds to every home and small business in…
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TORONTO – Independent specialty movie service Hollywood Suite announced today the launch of the new web version of the Hollywood Suite GO app (HSGO).
The newly designed VOD service is an extension of the premium movie channels and is available at hsgo.ca for Hollywood Suite subscribers from Access Communications, Cogeco, Eastlink, Hay Communications, MTS, NorthwesTel, Rogers, Shaw, Shaw Direct, Source Cable, Telus Optik TV, and VMedia.
“We are excited to offer our subscribers another platform to watch their favourite movies from Hollywood Suite, allowing them to experience their cinematic choices, anytime, anywhere,” said David Kines,…
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