OTTAWA – The CRTC today released a call for comments on the distribution of the Russian state-financed English-language news channel RT in Canada after receiving an order from the Governor in Council requesting a hearing be held on the matter.
A motion to issue the order was passed in the House of Commons this past Monday, a day after major television service providers including Bell, Telus and Rogers announced they would be dropping RT from their channel lineups.
The order, which was sent March 2, specifically asked the Commission to “hold a hearing to determine whether RT (formerly known…
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Rogers, Shaw continue to work with government; Quebecor CEO weighs in
OTTAWA – Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry François-Philippe Champagne will not allow Rogers Communications to acquire all of Shaw Communications’ wireless licences, he said in a statement today.
“The wholesale transfer of Shaw’s wireless licences to Rogers is fundamentally incompatible with our government’s policies for spectrum and mobile service competition, and I will simply not permit it,” the statement reads.
Champagne noted the importance of access to Internet and wireless services and said the “government is making every effort to ensure that telecommunications services are reliable, innovative, competitive…
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Document filed reveals new information about 2019 meeting with Bell COO
By Amanda OYE
CHATHAM, Ont. – TekSavvy Solutions Inc. filed a disclosure of facts and circumstances today to the federal Integrity Commissioner regarding the actions of CRTC chair and CEO Ian Scott, which provides new information on the widely reported meeting between Scott and then Bell chief operating officer (now CEO) Mirko Bibic at an Ottawa bar.
According to a public version of its disclosure, TekSavvy is arguing Scott “committed a wrongdoing within the meaning of the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act.” The company is seeking further investigation into this matter.
The…
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By Mark Goldberg
ON TUESDAY EVENING, a Twitter thread by Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez requesting a rushed CRTC review of Russia Today (RT) caught my eye:
That’s right. Two weeks.
The Heritage Minister, the Minister responsible for the CRTC, is asking the independent, quasi-judicial regulator to collect evidence and render a decision in two weeks on whether RT should be continue to be permitted as a broadcasting service option for Canadians.
Two weeks.
The Commission regularly takes two weeks just to have a decision translated. Please tell me how the CRTC can prepare a…
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PM wants CRTC to review channel’s presence in Canada
CANADIAN TELEVISION SERVICE providers are dropping Russia Today (RT) an English-language international news channel funded by Russia, from their channel lineups.
There has been growing concern about the channel’s presence in Canada specifically, and about Russian-funded international media around the world more generally. Many concerns relate to the dissemination of propaganda and disinformation.
On Feb. 26, Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez posted on Twitter, saying, “I share the concerns of many Canadians about the presence of Russia Today in our broadcasting system. We’re looking at all options.”
Since then, several Canadian television service providers…
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CANADIAN TELECOMS ARE helping customers connect to family and friends in Ukraine by waiving charges for calls and texts from Canada to Ukraine, and in some cases they are waiving roaming charges for customers currently in Ukraine as well.
Companies that have made such announcements include:
Sasktel announced today it will automatically waive long-distance charges for its wireless, landline, and business calls from Canada to Ukraine, international text messaging fees for texts sent from Canada to Ukraine, and roaming charges for calls, text and data overages for its customers who are currently in Ukraine.
Cogeco tweeted today it is waiving…
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TORONTO – Distributel and Primus Communications, which was acquired by Distributel in 2021, today announced they are waiving all home phone long-distance charges for calls to Ukraine until March 31, 2022.
“The news of what is happening in Ukraine has touched all of us at Distributel. We are committed to doing what we can to help all those who need to reach their loved ones during this time of need,” said Brad Fisher, chief revenue officer at Distributel, in a press release. “We will always strive to do what’s right and help our customers where we can.”
Yesterday, several companies…
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MONTREAL – Bell Canada today announced it will, effective immediately, “be waiving all Home Phone and consumer Mobility Postpaid Long Distance charges for calls from Canada to Ukraine until March 31, 2022,” according to a tweet from its @Bell_Support Twitter account.
“This will be applied automatically,” the tweet says.
This applies to the company’s flanker brand Virgin Plus as well. The @VirginPlus Twitter account sent out the same tweet as @Bell_Support.
Throughout the day, Rogers, Telus and Videotron made similar announcements.
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LONDON, U.K. — In its latest comparison of the 5G experience across Canada’s three national carriers, U.K.-based mobile analytics company Opensignal finds Rogers Communications remains ahead of competitors Bell and Telus in overall 5G experience.
According to its 5G Mobile Experience Awards included in its Canada 5G Experience Report, February 2022 (please see chart above), Rogers is the outright winner of Opensignal’s awards for 5G availability, 5G games experience and 5G upload speed. Rogers is also a joint winner with Bell for the 5G reach award, and a joint winner with Telus for 5G voice app experience.
The remaining two…
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TORONTO — Just in time for Family Day weekend, WildBrain Television announced it will premiere three new exclusive series during its upcoming free preview across WildBrain’s entire English network, which includes Family Channel and Family Jr.
The freeview runs from Feb. 18 to March 31 for all Bell, Rogers, SaskTel, Shaw, Telus, Eastlink and Cogeco subscribers, and from March 1-31 for Videotron subscribers.
On Sunday, Feb. 20 at 7 p.m. ET/PT, The Fabulous Show with Fay and Fluffy will premiere exclusively in Canada on Family Jr. Commissioned by WildBrain in July 2021, this 26-episode cabaret-style show is hosted by Toronto…
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