By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The CRTC met its obligations under the 2006 cabinet directive, was never beholden to requirements for detailed explanation, and the wholesale rate review itself proved the Regulator has been aware of and followed-through on its cabinet and statutory obligations, lawyers for the third party internet access providers said Friday.
The final day of the two-day Federal Court of Appeal virtual hearing about whether the CRTC erred in law when it decided in August to slash the wholesale internet rate for resellers and force retroactive payments to them from the incumbents, featured lawyers for the independent ISPs…
Continue Reading
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Some of the country’s largest carriers tried to persuade a panel of Federal Court of Appeal judges Thursday that the CRTC – in its reasoning that led to a decision to slash the wholesale internet rate – did not adequately balance the impact of the decision with a 2006 cabinet directive setting out a market-based approach to regulatory decisions.
The 2006 cabinet directive outlines that the CRTC “should rely on market forces to the maximum extent feasible and regulate, where there is still a need to do so, in a manner that interferes with market…
Continue Reading
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – During one of the CRTC’s most anticipated hearings earlier this year, Telus CEO Darren Entwistle appeared before the Commission reviewing impending changes to the wireless industry and warned mandating new entrants without facilities to ride on the networks of the incumbents would mean many jobs lost, philanthropic spending slashed and reductions in investments.
It was a defining moment during the hearing. Drawing the attention of national media and critics on social media, it encompassed for some the realities of the competitive delicacy of the industry; for others, it was viewed as a baseless threat…
Continue Reading
CANADA’S TRADITIONAL CABLE companies have banded together on a new website to promote the reliability of their networks to customers across the country.
The networksyoucancounton.ca website, registered to Quebecor’s TVA Group, displays the logos of Cogeco, Eastlink, Rogers, Shaw and Videotron, with links to each service provider.
“We know how important it is to have networks you can count on,” reads the website.
“We provide high-speed Internet access to more than 6.9 million Canadian households and businesses across the country, including in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities,” it continues. “Our physical networks — built, maintained, and upgraded over many years at…
Continue Reading
By Ken Kelley
OTTAWA – In an already competitive landscape where ad dollars are becoming tougher to secure, the Covid-19 pandemic piled yet a new challenge on top of several long-simmering issues for independent broadcasters in the country.
Appearing virtually before the Standing Committee of Finance, Luc Perreault, an advisor to Stingray (and former Pelmorex executive), outlined the challenges the Independent Broadcast Group (IBG), a consortium of 10 independent Canadian TV broadcasters, have seen over the last three months.
“We estimate the broadcast advertising market has shrunk by 50%, or more since January,” Perreault said. “Before Covid-19, the Canadian ad market was…
Continue Reading
By Denis Carmel
VANCOUVER – In a civil suit filed on June 10, Telus has asked the British Columbia Supreme Court to grant an injunction preventing Shaw, from using the term “Fibre+” as the product name for its fastest Internet service.
“The false and misleading statements in Shaw’s advertising and promotional materials described above, which Shaw knew and knows are false, were made with the intent to cause consumer confusion and injury to Telus without lawful justification, and will result in Telus suffering actual economic loss,” writes Telus in its statement of claim.
Telus argues that using the word “Fibre”, Shaw misrepresents…
Continue Reading
OTTAWA — The Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) has provided updated data about the changes in traffic volumes and usage patterns that have occurred during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Its most recent report, released Friday, looks at wireless and wireline traffic volumes through the month of May, as some regions of Canada began to loosen restrictions on the mobility of citizens and the reopening of some businesses. (The CWTA’s previous report looked at traffic volumes in March and April.)
Among the data highlights of the new CWTA report, Managing Networks in Unprecedented Times – Part 2, are the following:
Wireline…
Continue Reading
CALGARY – The 2020 Shaw Charity Classic golf tournament has been cancelled due to the Covid-19 crisis, the company and PGA Tour Champions announced today.
It was scheduled for August 24-30, 2020, at Calgary’s Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club.
With international travel restrictions still in place, along with federal and provincial governments urging caution, the official decision came after the City of Calgary cancelled all event permits through to August 31st, in an effort to minimize the spread of Covid-19.
“Over the past few weeks, we have had extensive meetings with all of our key stakeholders including the PGA Tour, along…
Continue Reading
VANCOUVER — Home Internet customers in Western Canada now have another high-speed option to consider, with the announcement from Telus on Wednesday it is launching its Telus PureFibre 1.5 Gigabit service for residents in B.C. and Alberta.
This follows Shaw’s announcement two weeks ago that its gigabit-speed Internet service, Fibre+ Gig, is now available to more than 99% of its residential customers in Western Canada.
Telus PureFibre 1.5 Gigabit provides up to 1.5 Gbps download and up to 940 Mbps upload speeds, according to the Telus news release. Telus says its PureFibre network is the largest 100% pure fibre-to-the-premise…
Continue Reading
By Greg O’Brien
OTTAWA – No one likes delay, especially when it comes to the auction of the wireless spectrum which will drive the primary advantages of 5G wireless technology.
Canadian wireless companies have been clamouring for access to 3500 MHz (3.5 GHz if you prefer) because the mid-band spectrum will deliver the speed and low latency so key to 5G’s future and all were anxious to get to this December’s auction and hit the gas on the next generation of wireless.
Then the coronavirus pandemic hit.
While company CEOs like Joe Natale (Rogers), Mirko Bibic (Bell), Darren Entwistle (Telus), and…
Continue Reading
