Bell moves to remove fault on Rogers for not knowing about non-compete restrictions
By Ahmad Hathout
The president of content sales at Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) allegedly told the U.S. content producer’s deal representative to continue negotiating with Rogers despite being told that the company had an outstanding non-compete agreement with Bell that allegedly prevented it from negotiating a licensing deal with a competitor for two years beyond the existing deal’s expiry on January 1, 2025.
“Between May 2023 and August 2023, I had understood that David Decker effectively said … continue negotiating without being concerned about the non-compete agreements, right?” said…
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Rogers Communications announced Wednesday a new partnership with cross-border credit bureau Nova Credit to help newcomers build credit in Canada and finance a new smartphone, making their transition to the country easier, it says.
Through the collaboration, Rogers is able to offer newcomers maximum credit by considering their international credit history when they apply for a Rogers Red credit card, helping them establish a strong financial foundation in Canada, Rogers says in a press release.
Newcomers approved for a Rogers Red credit card can also take advantage of flexible device financing on new Rogers…
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Rogers Communications confirmed Wednesday the multi-year deals it recently signed with NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) will see the cable company launch the Bravo channel here in Canada on Sept. 1 and channels for HGTV, Food Network, Magnolia, Discovery ID and Discovery starting Jan. 1, 2025.
“We’re delivering the best combination of linear channels and on-demand content from these coveted brands, building on Rogers investment to bring Canadians the best sports and entertainment in the way they want to watch it,” Colette Watson, president of Rogers Sports & Media, said in a press…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Timeless Inc. says it always had the authority to make “strategic and organizations changes” when it hired Mediapro to run the day-to-day operations of OneSoccer, disputing Rogers’s claims that Timeless wasn’t controlling the streaming service when it filed an application alleging the cable giant was giving itself an undue preference by refusing to carry the soccer channel.
The claim was made in response to a Part 1 application filed by Rogers this month, which alleges that Mediapro, the Canadian subsidiary of Spain’s GRUP Mediapro, not Canadian-run Timeless, had full control of the service. If that…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Rogers says it cannot be expected to continue negotiations to carry OneSoccer because it believes the service was controlled by a non-Canadian at the time the purported owner, Timeless Inc., filed a complaint with the CRTC alleging the cable giant gave itself an undue preference by refusing to broadcast its programming.
Over a year after the CRTC ruled that Rogers must negotiate with Timeless on OneSoccer’s carriage, the broadcaster has filed a Part 1 application made public Friday alleging the CRTC didn’t have the authority to make that ruling because the soccer service was controlled…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Media company Blue Ant’s request to reduce its obligations to programs of national interest (PNI) from 13.5 to five per cent of annual revenues is “unprecedented” and would spell the loss of an important contribution to the content production system, creatives are saying in submission published Tuesday.
The Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) said in an opposing submission to Blue Ant’s July request that the Toronto-based company’s PNI spending is essential to independent productions and the expression of diversity of Canadian and indigenous talent.
“Blue Ant’s historical PNI report is a testimony of the broadcaster’s important…
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By Connie Thiessen
Edward Rogers has been promoted to executive chair at Rogers Communications.
The appointment was unanimously confirmed at a board of directors meeting on Wednesday in Calgary. Rogers, 55, will continue to lead the board as he’s done since 2018, with the exception of a one-month gap in 2021 during a family power struggle for control of the company.
“This appointment simply recognizes the role Edward is performing at the company,” said lead director Robert Gemmell in a Rogers announcement. “The company has never been stronger thanks to Tony’s leadership and Edward’s stewardship. Today’s appointment merely formalizes Edward’s role.”
The company…
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The CRTC has asked Rogers and Cogeco to continue to provide competitors access to their networks as the regulator moves to address the impact of copper decommissioning on the wholesale internet market.
On the same day the regulator released its wholesale rate decision, the CRTC sent a letter to various large and regional telecoms Tuesday notifying them that it is asking Rogers and Cogeco to continue to provide competitors access to its older facilities as they move toward pure fibre.
Rogers and TekSavvy asked the CRTC in June to suspend a Part 1 application filed by the independent…
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Competitors are left wondering about rates and implications of five-year access immunity
By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC on Tuesday ordered the largest telephone companies to provide wholesale access to their existing last-mile fibre networks across the country by February 13, 2025, but is shielding from the regime any new builds for five years.
The order is an expansion of the temporary regime ordered in November 2023 that forced Bell and Telus to provide competitors bundled access to their middle- and last-mile fibre networks in Ontario and Quebec, which has been in force since May 7. The CRTC will keep the existing rates…
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By Connie Thiessen
Corus Entertainment has filed a complaint with the CRTC, alleging Rogers’ undue disadvantage in the wake of its merger last year with Shaw Communications, is leading it to engage “in predatory behaviour, enabled by dominant size and scale, to foreclose on potential competition.”
The Part 1 application, published in redacted form on the CRTC website on Monday, focuses specifically on Rogers move to offer the ad-supported version of Disney+ to existing Ignite TV customers, which Corus says is part of an effort to lure subscribers away from its Disney-themed specialty channels. Furthermore, the complaint alleges that Rogers has “actively favoured Disney+ over Corus’ Disney-themed channels when subscribers attempt to search for content;…
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