By Pierre Karl Péladeau, president and CEO of Quebecor, who is set to appear before the House industry committee today in the Rogers-Shaw hearing
In 2007, under the leadership of the late Jim Prentice, the government of Canada decided on a competitive policy in the wireless industry for the benefit of Canadians. If the Big 3 had not been required to allow access to their networks at that time, Videotron would not have been able to substantially reduce wireless prices within its historical footprint and invest $3.5 billion to build out its own network, innovate, and offer Quebecers bundled multiservice…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA — The Competition Bureau will not challenge a decision by the Federal Court of Appeal today that summarily rejected its arguments against a Rogers acquisition of Shaw, thereby leaving only the minister of innovation to approve or deny the deal.
“We are truly disappointed that the Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed our appeal of the Competition Tribunal’s decision in Rogers-Shaw,” Competition Commissioner Matthew Boswell said in a press release this evening, adding the bureau stands by the findings of its investigation and the decision to challenge the merger.
“We continue to disagree with the…
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The court did not need to hear from merging parties
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The three-justice panel of the Federal Court of Appeal that initially went for a two-hour lunch during today’s hearing came back 45 minutes later than expected and delivered a verdict from the bench to reject the Competition Bureau’s challenge to a decision by the Competition Tribunal last month that allowed the Rogers purchase of Shaw to move forward.
The decision came after about two-and-a-half hours of arguments from the bureau, which failed to convince the court that the tribunal made errors sufficient enough to require it to…
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VANCOUVER – Telus announced today that it has created a new division, called Telus Consumer Solutions, which merges other company segments and creates its first chief product officer position.
Consumer Solutions will bring together Mobility Solutions, Home Solutions, and Customer Excellence into a single team managed by Zainul Mawji, who will be executive vice president and president, a press release said.
Jim Senko, who spent more than two decades with the company and will retire from the company at the end of this year, will be chief product officer and executive vice president of the division. He will “establish an integrated…
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By Ahmad Hathout
MANITOBA — Investment firm Globalive said today that it has bid for the spectrum licences of Manitoba’s Xplore Mobile, which shuttered its wireless business this past summer.
The investment firm, which has been trying to purchase Freedom Mobile from Rogers and Shaw, said it has made an offer to Xplore for the licences and is waiting for its response. The firm is promising a mobile wireless-only competitor that will provide lower prices nationally.
“We are building a national independent wireless carrier across Canada and we are acquiring spectrum in all markets to realize our long-term vision of a globally…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Lawyers on behalf of Rogers, Shaw and Videotron said in a letter submitted to the Federal Court of Appeal Friday that the Competition Bureau’s request to hear as evidence a complaint filed to the CRTC related to a side deal between Rogers and Videotron is irrelevant to its appeal.
TekSavvy’s application to the CRTC, filed Thursday, argued that a deal that would see Rogers provide Videotron with wholesale access to its network at below market rates to allay competition concerns related to its purchase of Shaw is illegal because it gives a preference…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Just over three months since the CRTC put in place guidance for its mandated mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) regime, the new chair wants providers to let the commission know about the status of negotiations.
“I would like to know where those negotiations are,” Vicky Eatrides, who took on the job just over two weeks ago, told Cartt as part of her rotation of media interviews on Friday. “We are going to follow up soon to figure out where those negotiations are between the larger players and the regional providers.”
The CRTC, under previous chair Ian Scott,…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA — The Competition Bureau today filed a motion at the Federal Court of Appeal asking for the court to allow it to submit into evidence an application by TekSavvy at the CRTC challenging the legality of Rogers allowing Videotron access to its network at below market rates as a deal to help close its purchase of Shaw.
The largest independent telecom in Canada filed the application yesterday for the CRTC to review whether Rogers could provide Videotron wholesale access to its network at below market rates, a deal TekSavvy said could be rampant in…
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The company wants a broader review of off-tariff agreements
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The largest independent telecom in Canada has filed an application today for the CRTC to review whether Rogers could provide Videotron wholesale access to its network at below market rates, a deal that was struck between the two companies as a sweetener for regulators to approve Rogers’s purchase of Shaw.
TekSavvy had already asked Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne this month to block the deal on the grounds that the wholesale deal was not allowed. And the Competition Bureau filed arguments to be heard in front of the…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The House industry committee is expected to hear from the companies involved in the Rogers-Shaw megamerger when it holds a hearing on the matter next week, a parliamentary staffer confirmed.
The hearing is expected to begin January 25 with a one-hour session at 11 a.m. with Innovation Canada officials. The staffer said there is a possibility that Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne could attend, but he has yet to confirm.
At noon, the committee will host academics including Jennifer Quaid, Ben Klass, and Keldon Bester.
Then for one hour at 2 p.m., the committee will have…
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