OTTAWA – Cable and satellite TV have joined the likes of dial-up home Internet as media technologies that are now declining in popularity with Canadians. On the flip side, technologies that are now rapidly expanding include streaming audio on mobile, video-on-demand, satellite radio, viewing TV online and Netflix. These are the findings of the Media Technology Adoption Fall 2012 English-language market report from Media Technology Monitor.
MTM surveyed 4,000 English-speaking Canadians and found the move towards smartphones and tablets continues unabated. More than half of Anglophones now own smartphones and over a quarter have tablets….
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NEW YORK – India-based satellite television channel Zee TV, in partnership with Ethnic Channels Group Limited (ECG), is launching Zee TV Canada on February 1 on Rogers, Bell and Telus.
Asian Television Network International (ATN), which serves Canada's Asian community, recently decided not to renew its licensing agreement for it rights to Zee TV's Hindi programming when it expires on January 31, 2013.
Zee TV will now be available to Canadian viewers as a 24/7 service for the first time. Canadian viewers who enjoyed Zee’s top programming such as Pavitra Rishta, Punarvivaah and…
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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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VANCOUVER – Telus is moving forward with its court-approved exchange of its non-voting shares for common shares on a one-for-one basis. The plan becomes effective at 12:01 a.m. (PDT) on February 4, 2013. It also announced that Mason Capital Management and Telus have agreed to abandon all litigation relating to the court approved plan of arrangement. The agreement does not involve the payment of funds to either party.
As a result, the Supreme Court of British Columbia's decision to grant a final order approving Telus' share exchange stands and all conditions precedent to completion of the…
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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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VANCOUVER – Telus is providing mobile devices and service to Canada’s athletes and coaches at the 2013 Special Olympics World Winter Games in Pyeongchang, Republic of Korea. Telus has been a long-time supporter of Special Olympics Canada, donating more than $300,000 to support the program since 2009.
In addition to providing mobile devices, Telus will also cover the network expenses for Special Olympics Team Canada’s 141 members during the World Winter Games from January 29 to February 5, 2013. Along with having the ability to phone home as often as the athletes wish, Canada’s…
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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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