Rogers says it is fully compliant with MDU rules
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Fibre service provider Beanfield is asking the CRTC to prohibit Rogers from signing bulk service agreements with residential buildings that it alleges serves to limit competition.
Bulk service agreements are multi-year contracts one service provider has with the developer of a building to provide default internet service to all tenants of the building, meaning the residents pay for a single provider’s internet through their rent or fees.
In a Part 1 application dated September 20, Beanfield argues that while those Rogers agreements don’t prevent other service providers from accessing…
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TORONTO – In recognition of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on Sept. 30, radio broadcasters across Canada are coming together once again to elevate Indigenous voices with A Day to Listen 2023.
This special 12-hour broadcast is produced by the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund (DWF) in partnership with Orbyt Media. It will air on nearly 500 Canadian radio stations on Saturday, Sept. 30 from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (local time).
Radio broadcasters who will carry the broadcast on some of their stations include Acadia Broadcasting, Bell Media,…
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WATERLOO REGION, ON — Two broadband infrastructure projects funded by the governments of Canada and Ontario through Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology (SWIFT) have been completed in Waterloo Region and are now providing more than 865 previously underserved homes and businesses with access to reliable high-speed internet, SWIFT announced Monday.
Both fibre broadband projects were constructed by North Frontenac Telephone Company (NFTC), which was awarded the contracts by SWIFT in December 2020. In total, NFTC laid more than 134 kilometres of fibre cabling along rural roadway throughout the Townships of Woolwich, Wellesley and Wilmot to…
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MONTREAL – Bell Canada, Verizon, Vodafone and virtual reality app maker Matsuko recently conducted the first live transatlantic collaborative meeting connecting holograms of people in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. using 5G and multi-access edge computing (MEC) technology, Bell announced Monday.
The three telecoms came together under the auspices of the 5G Future Forum (5GFF) industry body for this first-of-its-kind demonstration, which saw holograms of employees located in three different countries connected from Toronto using Bell’s 5G network, from New York using Verizon’s 5G network and from London using Vodafone’s 5G network.
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OTTAWA – The CRTC denied TekSavvy’s application challenging the legality of specific arrangements entered into by Rogers and Bell that gave wholesale providers an internet rental rate better than that approved by the regulator.
The largest independent internet service provider filed undue preference challenges against an unpublicized rate deal Rogers is giving Videotron and a deal Bell is giving its own affiliate, the recently acquired EBOX, for access to their national internet networks.
After seeing those confidential terms, the CRTC ruled last Friday that the Rogers-Videotron discounts are “similar to those available under other existing off-tariff agreements.” The regulator noted that…
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VANCOUVER – Rogers Communications announced Thursday it is investing in industry-leading wildfire detection and prevention technology and will use its national network and technology partnerships to help fight climate change-related events in communities across Canada.
Rogers is currently testing satellite-connected IoT sensors, using SpaceX’s low-bandwidth Swarm service, to better predict wildfires in remote areas of British Columbia without wireless networks, explains a press release.
Rogers is also introducing Pano AI cameras on the Rogers 5G network that can detect smoke up to a 20-kilometre range, according to the release. The AI cameras will be located…
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Bell is currently going through “strategic review” on programming
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Bell has revealed that WildBrain’s heavily redacted application last month accusing it of giving an undue preference to Corus on children’s programming distribution also accuses the large BDU of breaking the CRTC’s standstill rule.
Bell alleges in the reply dated September 8 that WildBrain is claiming the standstill rule – which stipulates that the BDU must continue to distribute channels on the same terms and conditions even while in a dispute – has been invoked because the parties began negotiating potential terms for a new…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC rejected Monday an application by Quebecor to force the legacy telephone companies to refund amounts collected and impose a pay-per-use system as they work to fully implement the next-generation 911 network.
Quebecor said in the application filed in December that it’s not fair for providers like itself to simultaneously pay for both the existing 911 and future next-generation network – which will include the capacity to handle audiovisual information from distressed callers. It asked the CRTC to refund the fees paid toward the NG 911 network development – expected to fully replace the…
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Cogeco hopes for mobile wireless launch by this time next year
By Ahmad Hathout
TORONTO – Rogers CEO Tony Staffieri said Tuesday that Freedom’s competitive mobile wireless offers ahead of the back-to-school season didn’t have a “material impact” on its market share in Ontario.
“They launched a few, I would say, price points didn’t have a material impact on the market, frankly,” Staffieri said during the BMO telecom conference.
“So one of the things we’ve gotten a lot better at is to let the competition do their thing, we’ll do our…
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MONTREAL – NBCUniversal’s all-reality TV subscription streaming service Hayu is now available to Videotron customers in Quebec through Videotron’s Helix platform, the companies announced Tuesday.
Videotron customers will be able to access more than 300 reality series directly through their Hayu subscription, with the streaming service accessible via Helix voice command on their Videotron remote, a press release says.
A Canadian subscription to Hayu costs $6.99 (plus taxes) per month.
Hayu’s extensive content library includes shows such as Love Island, Below Deck, Vanderpump Rules, and franchises such as The Real Housewives and Million Dollar Listing, plus exclusive content like Watch What…
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