OTTAWA – The Supreme Court of Canada said today it will decide whether or not the CRTC has the jurisdiction to institute the fee-for-carriage (or value for signal) regime it okayed in 2010.
When the CRTC made its policy announcement in March of that year, it referred the jurisdictional question to the Federal Court (pre-empting the carriers, who would have done the same thing). Then in March 2011, the Federal Court issued a 2-1 decision saying the CRTC did, in fact, have the right to okay a new value-for-signal policy where off-air TV broadcasters would have the right…
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TORONTO – There’s less than one month to go before the Ontario Association of Broadcaster’s annual fall conference which is scheduled for October 20 at On the Park Events and Conference Centre in Toronto.
This year’s line-up includes sales guru Sean Luce and Cumulus Media president Lew Dickey, while Daniel Anstandig, president of new media for McVay Media, and Mike Leahy, SVP of Harris/Decima will be back to back discussing their respective views on social media and its impact on the industry.
A highlight of this year’s conference will be the President’s Panel, moderated by John Parikhal. Confirmed panellists to date include…
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TORONTO – With Sportsnet magazine poised to hit newsstands across the country on Thursday, high profile personalities Bob McCown, Stephen Brunt, Scott Feschuk, Greg Brady and Jim Lang have been named as the publication’s official team of columnists.
McCown is the host of Prime Time Sports on Sportsnet Radio The FAN 590, while Brady and Lang co-host the station’s morning show. Brunt is lead sports columnist for The Globe and Mail, and Feschuk is best known for his weekly column in Rogers-owned Maclean’s on pop culture and politics.
"We are blessed with some of the most powerful and engaging voices in the…
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TORONTO – Rogers Communications launched its Long Term Evolution (LTE) wireless network service in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver on Wednesday, offering more than 5.5 million Canadians access to the new, faster wireless network technology.
Rogers also said that it will debut the LTE tablet HTC Jetstream on October 18, priced at $499 on a three-year data plan, while LTE smart phones from HTC and Samsung will be in stores “in the coming weeks”. The Samsung Galaxy S II will reportedly sell for $199 on a three year data plan.
The company unveiled “a special introductory plan” offering LTE customers 10GB of data…
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TORONTO – Rogers Communications is hoping that its wireless customers will help with its lobbying efforts to prevent Industry Canada from giving special treatment to new entrants during next year’s auction of the 700 Mhz wireless spectrum. But at least one of those new entrants has taken issue with the tactic, calling it “a thinly veiled attempt at manipulating government regulators and public perception”.
Rogers, the country’s largest mobile operator, posted a sample letter on its website asking customers interested in its new LTE service to email it to their elected officials to demand a “fair and open auction for…
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WHILE SAYING HIS company has not yet decided on a course of action, Bell Canada’s regulatory chief says thanks to the CRTC’s new vertical integration policy, he wants to start over when it comes to our broadcasting laws and its regulation.
(Explained here, the new policy: prohibits exclusives on linear TV content when it comes to mobile and online platforms; bans tied selling of specialty services ensuring BDUs can buy them from programmers one at a time; calls for consumers to be able to buy more specialties one at a time in a pick-and-pay format; outlines a specific code…
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TORONTO – Rogers Sportsnet has signed a five-year deal with the American Hockey League for the multiplatform Canadian media rights to the AHL All-Star Classic, which includes the skills competition and the AHL All-Star game.
The agreement encompasses rights on Sportsnet television, mobile and on-line for the AHL All-Star Classic, which this year will be held in Atlantic City. It also includes the first AHL outdoor game ever held in Canada as the Hamilton Bulldogs host the Toronto Marlies at Ivor Wynne Stadium in Hamilton on January 21, 2012, which Sportsnet will produce and broadcast. The Bulldogs are the top development…
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OTTAWA – Wind Mobile used a wireless event in Ottawa on Tuesday to reinforce the view that it needs access to more spectrum and a better regime for tower and cell site sharing.
Speaking on a wireless technology panel at the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association’s Wireless Technology Showcase, Ante Rupcic, VP of core networks for Wind Mobile, said it needs access to large chunks of spectrum during the next round of licensing.
“It’s essential that we, too, get a fair stake of additional spectrum. Again, not these small chunks of spectrum, it has to be reasonable bands, reasonable channel…
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OTTAWA – The nearly 10-year effort to get mobile payments into the mainstream may soon becoming to fruition, according to David Robinson, VP of emerging business at Rogers Communications.
The Big Three Canadian wireless carriers, and their mobile payments enterprise EnStream LP, are putting the finishing touches on a contactless payment system that will enable consumers to embed all types of payment cards and other identification – referred to as credentials – on their smartphones. Robinson refers to the system as mobile proximity payments rather than contactless but both are applicable.
“We are ready to own the podium [on mobile…
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OTTAWA-GATINEAU – The CRTC’s new policy on vertical integration, released late Wednesday, tries hard to balance the wants of Canadian television viewers with the commercial demands of the country’s largest vertically integrated broadcasters and television distributors, and the needs of the smaller and independent ones.
Following a five day long hearing in June, the new policy offers flexibility to the likes of Bell Media, Rogers Communications, Shaw Communications and Quebecor Media, but also includes a number of safeguards and a code of conduct.
Highlights of the new policy include:
– Companies are prohibited from offering television programs on an exclusive basis to…
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