Bell and Telus are among several high-profile companies that have signed onto a framework, announced by Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Thursday, that establishes baseline responsibilities for data centre projects.
The framework has five core expectations for data centres: they must create lasting local benefits, must not shift electricity costs to Canadians, must minimize water use and environmental impacts, must be transparent about local impacts, and must bring strategic value to Canada.
“These national principles are intended to complement existing provincial, territorial, municipal and Indigenous regulatory processes by setting a nationally recognized baseline that communities can use when considering major…
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Pension fund La Caisse (formerly CDPQ) announced Wednesday it has invested $1.76 billion to acquire a 24-per-cent stake in Mumbai-based Altius Telecom Infrastructure Trust, which owns and operates more than 258,000 telecom towers and sites across India.
With the transaction now complete, global investment firm Brookfield remains Altius’s largest investor, alongside La Caisse and existing shareholders who are affiliates of Singapore’s GIC and British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI), a La Caisse press release said.
Brookfield and BCI’s investment in Indian telecom tower assets dates back to 2020, when they purchased a 100-per-cent…
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The CRTC last week in a letter asked several independent service providers for information regarding their retail internet subscriber numbers as the commission continues to monitor market conditions to ensure its wholesale high-speed access (HSA) framework achieves its policy objectives.
The commission directed its request for information to IT2IS Inc. (doing business as Bravo Telecom), Carry Telecom Inc., CIK Telecom Inc., Cipherkey Exchange Corp., Execulink Telecom Inc., Fibernetics Corporation, Frontier Networks Inc., Purple Cow Internet Inc., TekSavvy Solutions Inc. and Vianet Inc. Several other independent ISPs were included on the letter’s distribution list, and the CRTC said…
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By Ahmad Hathout
The extent of spectrum sharing between Bell and Telus increased from 45 per cent to 90 per cent of each company’s total spectrum licence holdings following four new approvals this past fall to subordinate spectrum to each other, the department handling the airwaves confirmed to us.
Cartt obtained a backgrounder document on the state of spectrum sharing between the country’s largest telcos, which dates back to 2008. In it, Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED), which encourages such sharing, notes that since 2013, the department has approved about 20 separate joint requests from Bell and Telus to share…
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Mirko Bibic, Bell’s president and CEO, and Victor Dodig, president and CEO of Telus, have been confirmed as speakers at ALL IN 2026, Canada’s largest AI and technology event, taking place Sept. 16-17 at the Palais des congrès de Montréal.
On Sept. 16 from 9:45 to 10:15 a.m., in a session titled “AI, Growth and the Economy: From Promise to Proof”, Bibic will be joined by Aidan Gomez, CEO and co-founder of Cohere, to discuss AI’s tangible economic impact, productivity gains and the conditions needed to make it a true driver of growth…
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Telus on Tuesday announced the introduction of the Telus Wise Digital Content Safety Seal, a designation provided to Canadian children’s programming funded through its Storyhive initiative that meets Telus’s “rigorous” digital content safety standards.
The new seal will debut on eligible children’s programming on Telus Storyhive Kids TV, available on Telus OptikTV Video on Demand channel 611, Stream+ and YouTube, Telus said in a press release.
“Putting families first is at the heart of everything we do at TELUS,” Juggy Sihota, senior vice president of social impact at Telus, said in a statement. “By…
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FRPC and PIAC request for oral hearing also denied
The CRTC last week denied a request from Telus asking for the regulator to separate its inquiry into whether new fees introduced by the largest telecoms are offside of the Wireless Code.
Telus had requested that the regulator first establish whether a violation has occurred and then determine whether an administrative monetary penalty (AMP) is required and what that should be. At issue are Bell’s new $40 device handling fee, Telus’s $15 charge for SIM cards, and Rogers’s $40 device…
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Rogers announced Friday that it has turned on its satellite-to-mobile service Rogers Satellite for free to all Rogers wireless customers in British Columbia as wildfires continue to spread across the province.
Rogers Satellite provides connectivity to most modern smartphones where traditional cell coverage is not available. It can keep wireless customers connected if a cell tower is down because of wildfire damage or a power outage, and in areas not reached by towers such as remote highways, Rogers said in a press release.
Rogers is opening up the service province-wide in B.C. (south of…
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By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC on Friday launched a show-cause proceeding requiring Bell to show why its practice of selling locked devices isn’t a violation of the Wireless Code.
In the meantime, the regulator is suspending section F.1 of the Wireless Code, which explicitly states that carriers must sell devices in an unlocked state. As a result, carriers will be allowed to sell locked devices provided they automatically unlock them within two business days after purchase.
“Service providers must also make reasonable efforts to inform customers about how long devices will be locked for, what receiving a locked device…
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Telus announced Wednesday it is mobilizing $2 million in connectivity and humanitarian support for British Columbians affected by the wildfires currently raging across their province.
Telus’s emergency response includes network connectivity, data top-ups and bill credits for affected customers, as well as donations and support to local charities.
“TELUS is directing resources toward affected First Nations and non profit organizations on the ground — including the Salvation Army BC and community food banks — while ensuring residents and first responders have access to the critical communications services they need to stay connected,” reads a Wednesday press release from…
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