Search Results for: rogers

Radio / Television News

Natyf TV gets mandatory distribution on basic Quebec TV

OTTAWA – The CRTC approved an application by Natyf TV forcing broadcasters in Quebec to carry its channel on basic TV packages for five years. The regulator approved a monthly wholesale cost per subscriber to carry the channel of 12 cents for the term, which will run from September 1 this year to August 31, 2028. The channel, owned by Melkisedek Media Inc., caters to Francophone “racialized” communities in the province, “with the aim of reflecting those communities’ interests and encouraging a new group of Francophone creators from ethnocultural communities,” the CRTC said. The programming is entirely broadcast in French and… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Competition Tribunal awards Rogers and Shaw costs from Competition Bureau’s attempt to block merger

OTTAWA – The Competition Tribunal has ordered the Commissioner of Competition to pay Rogers and Shaw a little more than $9.7 million and $3.2 million, respectively, to compensate for their costs associated with the Competition Bureau’s legal challenge last year of the companies’ merger. In a decision filed Tuesday, the Tribunal says Rogers is to be paid $414,720 for counsel fees and $9,298,152.58 as reimbursement for reasonable disbursements, plus any applicable HST. Shaw is to receive $416,187 for legal costs and $2,836,920.30 to compensate for reasonable disbursements, plus applicable HST. Quebecor’s Videotron,… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Service providers look to satellite backup as wildfires rage in Northwest Territories

Iristel urges PM to do something about withheld CRA funds affecting its response By Ahmad Hathout YELLOWKNIFE, NWT – Wildfires ravaging parts of the Northwest Territories are causing widespread devastation to homes, families and telecommunications networks, forcing operators to install backup systems and carefully enter repair territory as critical infrastructure burns. Cartt asked some of the primary providers in the region to provide their perspectives on how they’re dealing with the wildfires that have burned many millions of hectares of land. It is Canada’s worst wildfire season ever, with more fires expected to come this fall. Bell subsidiary Northwestel told us the company… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst, CCTX announce $10M program to drive cybersecurity innovation in Ontario

OTTAWA and BRAMPTON, ON – Canadian Cyber Threat Exchange (CCTX) and Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst at Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University) today announced the Ontario Cybersecurity Excellence Initiative (OCEI), a $10-million program “to drive Ontario’s cyber competitiveness and resilience in six key sectors: advanced manufacturing, automotive, life sciences, mining, law enforcement and smart infrastructure,” according to a press release. This initiative is being supported by $5 million in funding from the Ontario government’s Critical Technology Initiatives program. Rogers Communications is providing $3.8 million to Brampton, Ont.-based Rogers Cybersecure… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Feds, Ontario investing over $219M to connect 66K homes to high-speed internet

DUNDAS, ON – The governments of Canada and Ontario announced today combined federal and provincial funding of more than $219 million for Rogers Communications to bring high-speed internet access to more than 66,000 households in over 300 Ontario communities, including over 600 Indigenous homes. These projects are part of an existing $1.2-billion broadband partnership between Ontario and Canada, which was announced in July 2021. That joint funding initiative is designed to support “large-scale, fibre-based projects that will provide high-speed Internet access to more than 280,000 households across the province,” explains a federal government  Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Intact Telecom Act evidence Parliament doesn’t intend ‘transmission line’ to include wireless: filing

By Ahmad Hathout OTTAWA – Electricity Canada said in a filing to the nation’s highest court this month that Parliament’s refusal to amend “transmission line” under the Telecommunications Act is evidence of its belief that it does not foresee an obstacle for telecoms getting wireless access to municipal structures without CRTC jurisdiction. Electricity Canada is opposing a Telus application for the Supreme Court of Canada to hear its argument that a lower court erred when it upheld the CRTC’s decision to decline to regulate wireless attachments on municipal structures on the basis it does not have jurisdiction. The… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Rogers alleges ‘policy-driven’ MVNO decision risks ‘insulating’ CRTC from legal review

By Ahmad Hathout OTTAWA – Rogers on Wednesday filed a challenge in the Federal Court of Appeal against the CRTC’s decision to select Quebecor’s rate for access to the cable company’s wireless infrastructure to build out its mobile virtual network operator business. Rogers is alleging that the reasoning provided by the CRTC for selecting Quebecor’s rate in July deviates from legal precedent and runs counter to the “just and reasonable” provision under the Telecommunications Act. Specifically, Rogers is alleging the regulator made errors in its determination that the rate it selected didn’t need to provide Rogers with an immediate-term return on investment… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Rogers 5G goes live on TTC subway system

TORONTO – Rogers Communications on Wednesday launched 5G service for its customers in tunnels and stations in the core parts of Toronto’s TTC subway system. Rogers says in a press release it also upgraded the cellular network, “providing all riders with more reliable access to 911 service in these areas as part of its phased network upgrade and expansion work.” Starting Wednesday, Rogers customers can talk, text and stream on Rogers 5G in all the stations and tunnels in the TTC subway system’s “Downtown U,” plus the tunnels between St. George and Yonge stations. In addition, Rogers… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Rogers taking Telus to court over wireless dispute

By Ahmad Hathout TORONTO – Rogers is asking Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice to force Telus to continue fulfilling its obligations under existing wireless roaming terms with the cable company while the two competitors wrangle over terms of a proposed agreement. Rogers is alleging in the August 14 filing that Telus is threatening to cease providing certain wireless services to it as a result of a dispute “over a particular term” in a proposed bilateral wireless agreement that is before arbitration. The particulars of the commercial dispute are not outlined in the complaint. “TELUS has threatened to terminate Rogers’ access to certain… Continue Reading

Cable / Telecom News

Former Rogers CEO Joe Natale files $24M wrongful dismissal suit

By Connie Thiessen Former Rogers Communications CEO Joe Natale is suing for wrongful dismissal and breach of contract over his ouster during the 2021 family power struggle for control of the company led by Edward Rogers. Natale’s statement of claim, filed in Ontario Superior Court last week, seeks $24 million in damages, including $4 million related to an unpaid bonus due upon closure of Rogers’ acquisition of Shaw Communications, under terms of his employment contract. A former Telus CEO, Natale served as Rogers’ CEO from 2017 to Nov. 2021, when current President & CEO Tony Staffieri was appointed to the role. The suit… Continue Reading