THIS MONTH’S CRTC DECISION TO regulate wholesale wireless roaming rates is just the latest in a long line of seminal processes and decisions which have come under the tenure of chairman Jean-Pierre Blais.
Just about 60% the way through his five-year term, Blais has had to digest major developments in the industry, technology, and political environment—which is pushing for more competition and consumer rights – while dealing with an often-cranky TV and telecom executives trying to steer their ships through the same choppy waters.
Here are many of the key CRTC developments since Blais, a lawyer and lifelong bureaucrat, was named the…
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TORONTO – Heads up binge watchers, here comes shomi. The streaming service said Wednesday that it will be made available to all Canadian Internet users this summer, whether or not they have a paid subscription to a TV service provider.
For $8.99 per month, shomi can be streamed on tablet, mobile, online, and to TV screens via Xbox 360, Apple TV and Chromecast. It's also available on the set-top boxes of Rogers' and Shaw's TV subscribers. New users get one month free when they subscribe, the announcement said.
In addition to Canadian content like Vikings, Rookie Blue, and Mr. D, shomi’s Canadian exclusives…
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TORONTO – Everyone, and I mean everyone, agrees that if the Canadian TV industry is ever going to both boost revenues and build greater efficiency in the television advertising business, the companies here must work together.
More specifically, the four large vertically integrated companies must work in harmony for the greater good. It has not yet happened. This was an important focus of the discussions that happened at last week’s very informative Future TV Advertising conference in Toronto.
In theory, it should be easy. There are just four seats at the main table (Bell, Rogers, Telus and Quebecor), so the quartet…
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TORONTO – After a quarter-century with Rogers Communications, Ken Engelhart has hung out his own shingle.
Engelhart had been the leader of Rogers’ regulatory team for many years under vice-chairman Phil Lind but given all of the changes the company is undergoing (including the re-jigging of the regulatory leadership direction under new chief corporate officer Jacob Glick who is now overseeing regulatory, public affairs, policy, government relations and communications), Engelhart (pictured at last year’s Canadian Telecom Summit) decided now is the time to try something new. He left Rogers last month.
“I’ve set up my own law practice,” he…
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TORONTO and THUNDER BAY – Movie service Hollywood Suite today announced Tbaytel has launched Hollywood Suite GO (HSGO) to their Digital TV subscribers on iPhone, iPad, and Android devices.
HSGO is available for free to all Tbaytel Digital TV customers who subscribe to Hollywood Suite. Customers can download the Hollywood Suite GO app and take the company’s catalogue of films wherever they want. HSGO includes a customizable watchlist with optional push notifications and social features allowing users to share their watchlists and experiences with friends. The notification options keep users informed about new movies and collections, while the…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC has denied an application by Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and the Consumers’ Association of Canada (CAC) challenging the early upgrade programs offered by Rogers and Telus.
The Commission said Thursday that the programs, known respectively as Rogers “Next” and Telus “T-Up”, do not violate the Wireless Code, as the two consumer groups alleged in their complaint filed in June 2014. Rather, the CRTC continued, the programs are consistent with the Wireless Code’s contract cancellation and extension rules, and are “examples of innovative plans and services that respond to the needs of consumers who value…
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TORONTO – Rogers and Shaw’s streaming service shomi is is now available on Apple TV and Google Chromecast.
Chromecast, a thumb-sized media streaming device, is plugged into HDMI ports on TVs, allowing shomi subscribers to cast the streaming service’s content from the app on their mobile device, tablet, or computer directly to a TV.
"Even before we launched, Chromecast was on our shomi roadmap as a must-have for our service and I'm delighted that we're now able to deliver this experience to our members," said Ann Tebo, shomi’s director of product management, in the news release. "With Chromecast, Apple TV, and…
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OTTAWA – The merging of the statutes governing the communications industry has been addressed a number of times in the past. The first panel session at this year’s Communications Law and Policy Conference attempted to put some meat to the bones of whether having unified communications legislation would be good, or bad, for the sector and even if it’s doable at all.
Former CRTC commissioner Tim Denton provided a pretty succinct argument as to why the Broadcasting Act and Telecommunications Act are essentially incompatible, can’t be unified and be effective at the same time. On one hand, the Telecom Act…
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OTTAWA–GATINEAU – The CRTC is calling for volunteers to help it measure the performance of Internet services provided by major Internet service providers (ISPs) across the country.
The Measuring Broadband Canada program, announced Thursday, will see the Commission work in collaboration with ISPs and broadband testing firm SamKnows to measure broadband performance and test parameters associated with the broadband Internet connection, including download and upload speeds.
The CRTC is recruiting up to 6,200 Canadians who will receive a device known as a 'Whitebox' that they will connect to their modem or router. The Whitebox will periodically run measurement tests when users…
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BURNABY, BC – BCE has completed its acquisition of Glentel, the Canadian-based multi-carrier mobile products distributor.
The deal, first announced in November 2014, sees BCE acquire all of Glentel's common shares for a total consideration of approximately $594 million. Further to an agreement reached last December, BCE divested 50% of its ownership interest in Glentel to Rogers Communications Inc. following closing of the acquisition.
Glentel sells wireless products and services from Bell Mobility, Chatr, Fido, Rogers Wireless, SaskTel and Virgin Mobile at 359 locations across Canada.
www.glentel.com
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