Quebecor CEO said it’s “another attempt” to “eliminate real competition”
By Ahmad Hathout
TORONTO – Bell wants the Federal Court to review whether Innovation Canada made a mistake in awarding Quebecor’s Videotron crucial 5G spectrum licenses outside of its normal operating territories, a move that Pierre Karl Peladeau said is another attempt to “eliminate real competition.”
The Quebecor CEO, who has tweeted his thoughts on the matter, said in a statement Monday: “This is just another attempt from Bell and Telus to eliminate real competition, but Canadians deserve better than today’s overpriced wireless marketplace.” Bell and Telus have a network sharing agreement…
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By Denis Carmel
CARTT.CA HAS LEARNED large Canadian broadcasting and telecommunication enterprises collected significant amounts from the federal government’s Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) and Canada Recovery Hiring Program (CRHP) in 2020 and will likely receive more for 2021.
The following companies have, according to the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA), received subsidies:
BCE: $122.9 million
Québecor: $3.1 million
Rogers: $90.5 million
Telus: $38.6 million
Stingray: $25.2 million
Corus: $34.9 million
Pelmorex: $6.3 million*
According to the administer these programs, “a Canadian employer who has seen a drop in revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic, may be eligible for a subsidy to cover part of its…
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Office life unlikely to return to what it was in 2019
By Amanda Oye
AS COMPANIES AROUND the country make plans to bring employees back into offices, and grapple with how to do so safely, Cartt.ca asked a variety of Canadian telecommunications and broadcasting companies about their own plans.
Few companies Cartt.ca reached out to have, at this point, decided to require staff to be fully vaccinated. Fourteen companies responded to our request for information on back to office plans, only three of which indicated they were requiring some or all employees to be vaccinated.
OUTtv is one of those companies. While…
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BRITISH COLUMBIA — Shaw Communications tweeted today its Shaw Go WiFi hotspots are open for all residents in British Columbia to help people during the province’s state of emergency due to wildfires.
“Whether you are a Shaw customer or not, Shaw Go WiFi hotspots can provide you with access to timely news and information and help you stay in touch with friends and loved ones,” reads Shaw’s tweet.
Information on how to access Shaw Go WiFi as a guest is available here.
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By Denis Carmel
OTTAWA – In a letter sent to François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry (IC), on August 13, Videotron CEO, Pierre-Karl Péladeau responded to claims made by Bell Canada Enterprises (BCE) CEO Mirko Bibic in an interview on BNN Bloomberg (owned by BCE) that Videotron should not have been eligible to bid on set-aside wireless spectrum in the 3500 MHz auction, the results of which were announced on July 29.
IC set aside portions of spectrum in the last few auctions that the larger wireless players (Bell, Telus and Rogers) could not bid on, to try…
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GATINEAU – The CRTC announced yesterday it will hold a public hearing starting November 22 at 9 a.m. MST (11 a.m. EST) into the broadcast side of the proposed Rogers/Shaw deal.
The Commission will specifically consider an application “for Rogers to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Shaw and the authority for Rogers to operate various licensed broadcasting distribution undertakings (BDUs) currently owned by Shaw in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba,” as well as Shaw Direct, Shaw Broadcast Services, and Shaw Pay-Per-View, according to a CRTC notice of consultation.
The application also seeks approval for Rogers to…
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WHITEHORSE and LONDON, UK — Northern Canadian telecom provider Northwestel, a subsidiary of Bell Canada, and UK-based low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communications company OneWeb announced today the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaboratively deliver new connectivity services to remote mines, enterprise businesses and governments across Canada’s north.
The companies’ announcement follows the completion of OneWeb’s “Five to 50” program, which has deployed the LEO satellites necessary to bring OneWeb’s services to Canada, the UK and northern Europe later this year, says a press release.
The new connectivity solutions to be provided by Northwestel and OneWeb will use…
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GATINEAU – The Competition Bureau announced today it has obtained court orders to compel Xplornet, Bell, Telus and Quebecor to produce documents relevant to its review of the proposed acquisition of Shaw by Rogers.
The Competition Bureau filed its request for the documents with the Federal Court of Canada on July 22 and the orders were granted on July 26 and August 1. They require the four telecoms “to produce records and written information related to mobile wireless services that are relevant to the Bureau’s investigation,” according to a press release.
The Bureau is currently investigating the proposed…
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All options are on the table as Quebecor considers expansion
By Amanda Oye
QUEBEC – There is a chance Quebecor will move to provide multiple services outside of Quebec, Pierre Karl Péladeau, president and CEO of Quebecor indicated in a call with analysts last week.
While refraining from confirming any specific plans, Péladeau said the company has already delivered significant growth since it started in wireless leading to “limited growth opportunity in Quebec.”
Videotron, owned by Quebecor, spent nearly $830 million on spectrum in Manitoba, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia (in addition to Quebec) in the recent 3500 MHz auction, which…
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ANDOVER, Mass. — Casa Systems, a U.S.-based provider of both physical and cloud-native broadband technology solutions for wireless, cable and fixed networks, announced yesterday an exclusive agreement with Bell Canada to provide 5G Sub-6 high-gain outdoor consumer premise equipment (CPE) for Bell’s Wireless Home Internet (WHI) service.
Bell’s WHI uses fixed wireless technology to extend broadband Internet access to rural and underserved communities. Since 2018, Casa Systems has provided 4G CPE for Bell’s WHI service, which is currently available in Atlantic Canada, Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba.
Casa Systems’ newest CPE device “integrates a powerful 5G Sub-6 modem and high-gain directional antennas…
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