OTTAWA UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR Dr. Michael Geist is Canada’s leading proponent of network neutrality, which, as you’ll read, has many definitions.
Despite the differences in definitions, it’s primarily about treating most bits of data equally so that the free flow of information prospers and opportunities can be available equally to all.
In newspaper columns and on television and in his blog, Geist revisits this issue frequently and believes it’s only a matter of time before it is front and centre in Canadian politics.
The Canada Research Chair of Internet and E-commerce Law, University of Ottawa recently sat down with…
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EDMONTON and CALGARY – Christian broadcaster Crossroads Television System will be up and running in Alberta very soon, the company announced this week.
Burlington, Ont.-based CTS has appointed Drew Martin as regional director of production for Alberta. It received licenses back in June, as Cartt.ca reported.
In Edmonton, Marnie Stretch will be associate producer/host of "Star Report". In Calgary, Veronica Jubinville will be associate producer/host of "Star Report.”
Martin and Richard Landau, senior executive producer – balanced programming, have been meeting with members of the many world religions represented in Alberta to organize the broadcasting of multi-faith programs.
In…
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VIDEO ON DEMAND, wireless, HDTV, deregulation – Canada’s small cable operators will gather at Mont Tremblant in just over two weeks for Pixel Nation, which is the theme for the 2007 Canadian Cable Systems Alliance’s annual general meeting.
The formal – and informal – parts of the event will be lively, given the upcoming broadcast distribution undertaking policy review coming in January, and all the issues Canada’s independent cable operators face at home and will want to address there.
Panel sessions include a video on demand session and technical session led by CableLabs, along with a members-only meeting with…
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TORONTO – Think Toronto’s the centre of the universe? Okay, maybe it isn’t, but the city’s hockey team is surely the centre of the Canadian sports broadcaster universe.
No less than three press releases arrived within about 30 minutes of each other yesterday trumpeting long-term deals that boasted of lots of Leafs coverage. Terms of the deals were not disclosed but calling them “multi-million-dollar deals” is bang-on.
Rogers Sportsnet, on account of it has the most games among the cable channels with 22 this year and for seven more seasons after this, can also call itself the club’s Official…
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JAY SWITZER HAS IT bad for the Canadian TV industry.
After less than three months out of work, the former CEO of CHUM Limited dearly misses the people he has worked with for over two decades and the work of providing hours of TV programming to Canadians.
The self-professed "content guy" – who spent some time this summer riding into the sunsets of the U.S. southwest – is not about to ride into the sunset and retire. He’ll be back, but he has months to decide where and when.
Last week, he sat down with Cartt.ca editor and publisher…
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OTTAWA – At the CRTC hearing into Rogers Communications’ purchase of Citytv, actors union ACTRA has asked the CRTC to establish new standards for benefits packages flowing from such acquisitions.
"We need new standards for benefits packages so Canadians can see a real increase in Canadian drama on television. We’re asking the CRTC to calculate benefits based on the full value of the purchase and ensure that two-thirds of benefits are directed to 10-point Canadian drama," said Richard Hardacre, ACTRA national president, in a press release.
ACTRA is opposing Rogers’ application unless it enhances its drama commitment and directs…
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TORONTO – Rogers Wireless customers can now find their wireless handsets work in 200 countries.
The company reached this 200-country milestone on July 24th, with a newly-signed roaming agreement between Rogers Wireless and the mobile operator, Comium Liberia Inc. in the African nation of Liberia. Rogers has over 500 roaming partners worldwide.
As Canada’s only GSM carrier, Rogers is leading the way among Canadian wireless carriers when it comes to offering the most international voice and data roaming destinations with a selection of 52 world phones. (With the notable exception of Apple’s iPhone, where rumour-mongers are predicting Rogers will…
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TORONTO – With several smaller cable operators looking to launch (and in the middle of launching) video on demand, CTAM Canada has put together a panel presentation on the topic for the Canadian Cable Systems Alliance annual general meeting next month.
"Building your VOD Business Plan" will feature a panel of experts expounding on about their VOD successes and challenges ranging from the ROI of VOD, securing content for the service and adver tising opportunities.
Delegates will also get a first-hand look at recent CTAM Canada research on VOD in Canada.
The panel members are: David Purdy, vice-president and…
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TORONTO – UBS Wireless Services yesterday filed a statement of claim in Ontario Superior Court against the Inukshuk Wireless partnership.
UBS Wireless is a subsidiary of Unique Broadband Services (as is Look Communications) while Inukshuk is 50-50 owned by Bell Canada and Rogers Communications.
The statement of claim, says the UBS press release issued late Thursday, seeks a mandatory order requiring the Inukshuk Partnership to return to Fido Solutions (formerly Microcell Telecommunications) any and all rights or licences to use or exploit the Inukshuk Multipoint Communications Systems (MCS) Spectrum and such other, interim, interlocutory or final relief as may…
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ANYONE WISHING A BIT of a preview of January’s hearings on broadcast distribution undertaking and specialty services policy changes need only speed through Shaw Communications intervention in the CanWest Global/Goldman Sachs purchase of Alliance Atlantis proceeding.
The three page document outlines in very brief terms what Shaw – and likely other cable companies – will be looking for once that policy review comes around.
Shaw didn’t object at all to the proposed merger but the company rarely misses a chance to state its case on where it believes the regulator should be heading.
"In combination with other recent…
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