GATINEAU – There is broad consensus among parties to the CRTC’s TV policy review that a mandated small basic package is not likely to come with a lower price tag.
A skinny basic to go along with a pure pick-and-pay channel regime could also cause some sticker shock, not only for consumers but also for broadcast distributors looking to acquire programming, according to the big content owners and the VI companies.
Bell Canada argues that broadcasters will bear the brunt of unbundling. First, because channels will have less penetration, fewer customers will share the costs of that service, driving prices skywards….
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GATINEAU – Local TV is struggling mightily. Ad revenue is down and showing no signs of growth, while the ever growing lineup of new specialty channels and the rapid rise of Internet-based alternatives are blasting away at what has always been the bedrock of the television system in Canada.
Some are telling the CRTC that it’s time to adopt a radically different approach for local TV, one that would bolster the revenue side of the ledger while also helping to encourage the development of compelling Canadian content.
For example, Bell Canada and CBC/Radio-Canada suggest shutting down over the air infrastructure completely…
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OTTAWA – With a healthy set-aside for operating newcomers (read: wireless companies which are serving Canadians and who aren’t Rogers, Bell or Telus), the federal government opened its public consultation on the AWS-3 auction it plans to hold in March of 2015 – one month prior to the long-planned 2500 MHz auction.
AWS-3 spectrum is in the 1755-1780 and 2155-2180 MHz bands and 30 of the 50 MHz on offer will be solely for the likes of Videotron, Wind, EastLink, and Mobilicity (or whomever is left standing in eight months…). In order to be eligible to bid on the set-aside,…
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MONTREAL – Quebec customers of Telus’ Optik TV can now access the CBC’s French language video portal Tou.tv directly on their televisions.
"What our customers want is more flexibility. They want to watch their favorite shows at the time and with the device of their choice, said Clément Audet, vice president, consumer market Telus Québec, in a French-language press release.
The Tou.tv application is integrated directly within the Optik TV service via the customers’ set top boxes. Subscribers can then get quick access to nearly 1,200 titles in French, of which 300 are renewed each month, and they don’t need a…
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SALMON ARM, BC – Telus said Thursday that it has invested more than $600,000 to build a new wireless site bringing service to approximately 10 kilometers of Highway 1 between Sicamous and Malakwa.
The project is part of the 10-year Connecting British Columbia Agreement that Telus signed with the Province of B.C. in 2011. Under the terms of the agreement, Telus will invest to connect more than 1,700 kilometres of unconnected highways with wireless service.
“This stretch of Highway 1 is very well-travelled during the summer months, and we are happy to bring more coverage to the area during this busy…
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GATINEAU – It will surprise no one that the cost of sports television are front and centre for so many of the submissions to the CRTC’s TV Policy Review
Telus, for example, called the amount of cash being sent to various leagues and teams for the rights to live games “irrational” and has requested the CRTC address the soaring price of sports services and eliminate penetration-based rate cards in sports packaging.
Lined up on the side of Telus, are Shaw Communications, Cogeco and Canadian Cable Systems Alliance members, distributors who own no sports channels. While vertically integrated companies like Rogers and…
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KAMLOOPS, BC – As part of a strategic partnership with the province of British Columbia, Telus has invested $620,000 to build a new wireless site bringing service to approximately six kilometers of Highway 97 and the community of Monte Creek.
The project is part of the 10-year Connecting British Columbia Agreement that Telus signed with the Province of B.C. in 2011. Under the terms of the agreement, Telus will hook up more than 1,700 kilometres of unconnected highways with wireless service.
“We recognize the growing demand for wireless services while on the road, particularly in remote areas where quick access to 911…
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TORONTO – After its first ever Transparency Report revealed that it received nearly 175,000 requests for customer data from federal agencies in 2013, Rogers said Wednesday that it is changing the way that it shares its customers’ private information and will require a court order before giving any information to the police or other government investigators.
In a post on its official blog RedBoard, Rogers said that the change comes in response to customer concerns and after further review of a Supreme Court ruling from last month. (Both Telus and TekSavvy have already said they will now require court…
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TORONTO – Canadian businesses are poised to embrace the ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT) with spending expected to jump to $21 billion annually in the next four years, according to a Telus-commissioned IDC survey.
IoT – the evolution of machine-to-machine (M2M) technology – is a network of uniquely identifiable end points (or things) that communicate without human interaction, most commonly over a wireless network. The systems collect, analyze and act on information in real time and are being deployed to create ‘smart’ connected businesses, homes, cars and cities.
The survey, which examined the current state of IoT deployments in Canada, found that…
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TORONTO – Primus Telecommunications Canada unveiled its new leadership team under CEO Michael Nowlan, as the alternative telecommunications service provider undergoes a self-described “transformation”.
Nowlan, who joined Primus in January after 12 years as president and CEO of Marketwired, said that new team “will fundamentally change the way Primus goes to market and does business”.
That team includes:
– Walter Andri, senior vice-president, Sales: Andri is an experienced senior sales leader and business transformation specialist with a proven track record of leading global B2C and B2B businesses in the technology, telecommunications, retail and food and drug sectors. Prior to joining Primus,…
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