THUNDER BAY, ON – Telus reports that customers in Thunder Bay now have access to its 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) network. The carrier’s 4G network now covers nearly 70% of the Canadian population. By the end of 2013, Telus’ 4G LTE network is expected to launch in Ontario regions including Collingwood, Port Colborne, North Bay, Cornwall and Woodstock.
“Telus is committed to offering the best experience for our customers and the launch of our 4G LTE service in Thunder Bay is an excellent example of how we’re delivering on this promise.” said Hilen Wong,…
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AFTER SIX YEARS, SATELLITE radio produced its first-ever profit in Canada when earlier this month SiriusXM Canada reported it was $3.3 million in the black for the first quarter of fiscal 2013.
For executive chairman John Bitove, that Q1 result is vindication after plugging away just as XM Canada to begin with – in competition with Sirius Canada – and then finally merging with it in 2011 two years after the American satellite radio companies combined themselves. Satellite radio faced numerous launch obstacles, chiefly convincing people to want to pay for radio in the first place,…
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WIND MOBILE WANTS THE federal government to throw whatever book it can at Rogers Communications and Shaw Communications over their recent spectrum deal.
Last week – as part of a multi-faceted $700 million transaction – Rogers Communications paid $50 million to Shaw Communications for an option which assures Rogers will purchase Shaw’s AWS spectrum when it is allowed to come on the open market in late 2014.
As a new entrant to the wireless game, Shaw paid $190 million for spectrum in the 2008 auction that was set aside just for wireless newcomers. Wind Mobile, Videotron, Shaw,…
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OTTAWA – It’s common these days to see Internet speeds still advertised with “up to” speeds that rarely ever approach the average speeds that subscribers will actually experience in practice. The problem is that most consumers believe they are getting, at least some of the time, the advertised speeds says the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) because they are not being properly informed. It’s calling on the Competition Bureau and CRTC to play a more active role in monitoring the compliance of ISP speed and performance claims in advertising and to develop rules for broadband labelling.
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MONTRÉAL – Videotron has named Sylvie Charette to the position of Vice President, Branding and Interactive Media. Charette will be responsible for promoting Videotron’s key brand differentiators. She will play a leading role in developing brand positioning strategies for the company’s different audiences while maintaining Videotron’s customer-focused approach to all corporate communications.
“Videotron is very happy to welcome Sylvie Charette aboard,” said Myrianne Collin. “Her leadership qualities, passion for telecommunications and professional skills will be valuable assets to the company. Sylvie’s mission will be to promote the Videotron brand in order to maintain its stature…
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OTTAWA – Five consumer and public advocacy groups have demanded that Minister of Industry Christian Paradis take action to prohibit Rogers Communications from acquiring spectrum from Shaw Communications, calling the deal “contrary to the original AWS auction rules of the set-aside” and contrary to “your Ministry’s clear policy to preserve that spectrum for new wireless entrants.”
The groups signing the January 21 letter were the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC), the Consumers’ Association of Canada (CAC), OpenMedia.ca, the Samuelson-Glushko Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC) and the Council of Senior Citizens Organizations of British Columbia (COSCO).
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TORONTO – CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada is facing off on the 2nd screen in a big way this Saturday to kick of its 60th season. Budweiser is sponsoring Facebook and Twitter pages where fans can login during national broadcasts and interact with in-game features that reflect the live game action.
HNIC says Hockey Night in Canada: 2nd Screen presented by Budweiser gives viewers new ways to interact and engage with the game through smartphones, tablets and computers. Fans can login at Facebook and test their knowledge and try their luck at predicting team and…
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WATERLOO – Visa has approved Research In Motion’s secure mobile payments solution using NFC (Near Field Communication) technology. RIM's Secure Element Manager (SEM) is the backend solution for carriers that can securely manage credentials on SIM (subscriber identity module) cards installed in all types of NFC-capable mobile devices. Visa's approval builds on the joint initiative by Telus, Rogers and Bell for their deployment of mobile payments in Canada through EnStream.
"The approval from Visa of RIM's SEM solution is an important step in that it will enable carriers to support Visa issuing banks and financial…
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TORONTO – Cogeco, despite losing 2,076 net Canadian basic cable subscribers, and adding only 6,311 telephony subscribers, well below the 16,000 forecast in its first quarter, remains a “buy” recommendation. In part because of its strong Free Cash Flow (FCF) guidance that increased to $170 million from $105 million due to its purchase of Atlantic Broadband (ABB) and reduced Canadian capex. This according to analysts Dvai Ghose and Sanford Lee in Canaccord Genuity’s Daily Letter for January 15 who now forecast a target price of $44.00 for Cogeco’s stock.
“Due to weaker than expected subscriber results,…
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TORONTO and CALGARY – Rogers Communications said late Monday afternoon it plans to pay Shaw Communications $700 million to acquire Hamilton Ontario-based Mountain Cablevision and to secure Shaw’s AWS spectrum holdings in 2014.
The deal will also see Shaw purchase Rogers' one-third interest in TVtropolis for $59 million, giving it 100% of the specialty channel, and Shaw will enter into negotiations with Rogers for the provision of certain services in Western Canada. The press release did not specify what those services will be although Shaw CEO Brad Shaw hinted where some co-operation is being worked on.
The decision to option the…
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