GATINEAU — On Monday, the CRTC initiated a proceeding to examine the offer and promotion of accessible wireless plans by wireless service providers and the extent to which these plans meet the needs of Canadians with various disabilities.
All retail wireless service providers are required to offer accessible wireless plans and to promote those plans in ways that are accessible, including through stores, websites and customer service representatives.
The aim of the proceeding, however, is to look at how wireless service providers are complying with these requirements, whether differences exist between primary and flanker brands, whether the plans currently offered and…
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MONTREAL — In an all-cash transaction valued at $1.04 billion, BCE announced Monday it is selling 25 data centre facilities located at 13 sites to global interconnection services provider and data centre company Equinix Inc.
“This transaction reinforces Bell’s strategy to focus investment on the network infrastructure, content and services necessary to advance how Canadians connect with each other and the world. Equinix, with its expanding platform of data centres here in Canada and worldwide, is well-positioned to maximize the opportunities these facilities represent for Canadian businesses in an increasingly global and interconnected data sector,” said Mirko Bibic, president and…
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VANCOUVER – Telus launched a new initiative aimed at supporting Canadian small businesses and their owners this month called #StandWithOwners, which will provide support through direct revenue, marketing, and expert advice during this time of crisis.
The Covid-19 pandemic has proven to be as much of a financial crisis as it is a health one, significantly affecting Canadian small businesses and so Telus asked Canadians to create a new post on Twitter or Instagram highlighting a small business, and using the hashtag #StandWithOwners and tagging @TelusBusiness.
In return, nominators were eligible to receive a $25 digital gift card to use at…
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Regional carriers acknowledge opportunity exists, though
By Greg O’Brien
TORONTO – It was heartening to hear from a handful of the top Canadian telecom executives on Wednesday when they detailed how their companies have, admirably, responded to the Covid-19 crisis.
Suspensions of overage fees, no disconnects, working with businesses and consumers to defer payments or re-do packages to help as they struggle financially, serious progress on remote health (especially by Telus), self-installs, employees working from home, networks which have remained robust and resilient, and charitable contributions too numerous to count, it has been an 11-week stretch like none of us have ever…
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VANCOUVER — After a B.C. Supreme Court ruling earlier today that said extradition proceedings against Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou can continue, Huawei Canada issued a statement regarding the case this afternoon.
“Huawei is disappointed in the ruling today by the Supreme Court of British Columbia. We have repeatedly expressed confidence in Ms. Meng’s innocence. Huawei continues to stand with Ms. Meng in her pursuit for justice and freedom,” reads the statement.
Meng is the chief financial officer of the Chinese telecom equipment manufacturer and is facing fraud charges in the United States, which has requested her extradition from Canada. The…
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VANCOUVER — The Telus Friendly Future Foundation is making a $200,000 donation to the Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada to help support its Covid-19 Crisis Support Fund.
More than 93% of former youth from care of the child welfare system who applied last month to the Children’s Aid Foundation’s Covid-19 Crisis Support Fund sought emergency assistance to pay for food and housing, according to the news release.
This contribution builds on Telus’ ongoing partnership with the Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada through the Telus Mobility for Good program, which provides free smartphones and data plans for two years to young…
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By Denis Carmel
MONTREAL – In a motion filed on June 23, 2017, Rovi/Tivo accused Videotron of patent infringement on components inside set-top boxes which Videotron uses to provide programming to its subscribers.
The U.S. company, called Rovi until it purchased TiVo and changed its name in 2017 also filed similar claims against BCE on January 19, 2018, and Telus on February 2, 2018. The Videotron portion of the trial commenced on March 9, 2020, and was adjourned after four days, in light of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The BCE and Telus portions had been scheduled for May 25th and were also pushed…
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OTTAWA — A recent Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association survey compiling data from some of Canada’s telecom providers released today gives insight into just how much Canadians’ consumption of telecom services has changed during the current health crisis, and that the country’s networks remained resilient in the face of all the traffic shifts and increases.
The CWTA collected information regarding wireline and mobile traffic, for broadband and voice, and measured it against a pre-Covid-19 baseline. Facilities-based network operators who were surveyed for the report include Bell, Rogers, SaskTel, Shaw/Freedom, Tbaytel, Telus and Videotron.
Among the data highlights of the CWTA’s report, Managing…
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LONDON, U.K. — Rural mobile subscribers in Canada enjoy some of the fastest download speeds in the world, says the latest report from mobile analytics company Opensignal.
Released today, The state of rural Canada’s Mobile Network Experience – May 2020 report also found rural mobile subscribers have access to 4G networks close to 90% of the time — a percentage more commonly seen by mobile users in more populated areas, Opensignal says.
For this report, Opensignal analyzed the data of users on Canada’s three largest mobile operators — Telus, Bell Mobility and Rogers. According to its analysis, rural users on the…
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By Ahmad Hathout
EDMONTON – A Calgary bylaw that sought to regulate the relationship between private entities and the city for access to municipal rights-of-way is not binding on telecom companies, the Alberta Court of Appeal said Thursday.
The highest court in the province upheld, 2-1, a lower court’s determination that the terms of the bylaw be amended to remove “telecommunications services” from the definition of “utility provider” because telecommunications is the jurisdiction of the federal government. The bylaw forced entities to get – in some cases multiple – permits to construct within rights-of-way.
The bylaw effectively gave the city the power…
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