OTTAWA – The Minister of Industry will receive a blizzard of paper tomorrow as incumbent wireless operators, and those who would like to be one, submit their opinions on how the next auction of wireless spectrum should be run.
The newcomers, led jointly by Quebecor and MTS Allstream, have not backed off their rhetoric at all. They want into the fast-growing wireless market and they don’t want to pay through the nose for entry with a costly purchase of spectrum at auction.
Keying on a few lines from the 2006 Telecom Policy Review Report (the one which the…
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COUNT CANADA’S SATELLITE and cable companies (outside Quebec, anyway) as generally pleased with the Commission’s new policy on over-the-air TV broadcasters.
"We think it’s a very balanced decision and we’re happy with it," said Rogers Communications vice-chair Phil Lind.
"I think it’s overall a balanced decision," added Shaw Communications vice-president, regulatory, Ken Stein.
"They were clearly listening to everybody because they’ve come up with a balanced decision that reflects all parties representations I think," explained Bell ExpressVu president Gary Smith.
Only Telco TV’s Ann Mainville-Neeson stayed off the balance beam, saying: "Kudos to the Commission for a very…
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OTTAWA – Saying the wireless market is not competitive enough in Canada, Quebecor and MTS Allstream have joined forces to lobby both government and Canadians so that the companies are given a break in 2008’s wireless spectrum auction.
“Canada needs to permit new competitors in the wireless sector to ensure consumers are offered lower prices and advanced services which other countries already enjoy,” says a press release from the Coalition for Wireless Competition issued today.
Citing the oft-referenced but little understood Telecom Policy Review Panel report which “identified the need for a more efficient and vibrant wireless industry…
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WINNIPEG – MTS Allstream has applied to the CRTC for local telephone forbearance in Winnipeg.
MTS Allstream is the latest company to ask for residential phone service deregulation following the April 4 announcement by Canada’s Industry Minister Maxime Bernier that telecommunications companies can apply for a relaxation of regulations in communities where customers can choose between at least three service providers with their own network infrastructure, one of which can be a wireless provider, and where they meet specific Quality of Service (QoS) measures for six months.
Last month, Telus filed for forbearance in Vancouver and Edmonton, and Bell…
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OTTAWA – The CRTC wants to know to what extend local number portability (LNP) has to be supported for access-dependent local voice over Internet Protocol services.
The commission wants interveners to comment on implementation constraints, technical issues, customer demand and the cost-effectiveness of support for LNP in the following situations:
1. secondary numbers assigned from within the company’s operating territory, 2. secondary numbers assigned from outside the company’s operating territory, 3. primary numbers assigned from outside the company’s operating territory, 4. with respect to the porting-in of telephone numbers.
This proceeding will not include matters relating to the recovery…
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MONTREAL – Telus today announced that it has signed an agreement with the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League to webcast all league games on telus.com/qmjhl.
This exclusive five-year agreement will allow junior hockey enthusiasts to watch all 630 games of the 2007-2008 season, including the playoffs, live on the Internet.
Coverage begins this Friday with the first game of the President’s Cup final series between the Val d’Or Foreurs and the Lewiston MAINEiacs. The webcast will be offered free of charge "and is made possible by the use of state-of-the-art webcasting technology," says Telus.
"This is just the beginning,"…
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VANCOUVER – A six per cent increase in revenues, compared to a year ago, to $2.21 billion highlighted first quarter results from Telus.
The company cited continued strong wireless and data growth as primary drivers.
However, reported earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) and earnings per share (EPS) were negatively impacted in the quarter by a previously announced non-recurring and non cash charge of $173.5 million associated with the introduction of a new cash settlement feature for employee share options granted prior to 2005, says the press release. The benefits of the new feature include reducing share…
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TORONTO – After spending $7 billion over two decades to build what’s become the largest wireless company in Canada, Rogers Communications CEO Ted Rogers said he is more than a little miffed at the lobbying tactics being deployed by one of his business partners.
After noting on a conference call with financial analysts on Tuesday afternoon that Rogers Wireless has had in its 20 years, "losses for 19 and profits for one," the company founder set out in no uncertain terms how he feels about lobbying spearheaded by Videotron to decrease the Quebec media company’s cost of entry to…
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MONTREAL – A day before it holds its AGM in Montreal, Telus today announced an investment of $23 million to expand and enhance its wireless digital network in Quebec in 2007.
By the fall of 2007, up to 30 additional communities will have access to enhanced features and wireless business solutions, said the company in a press release. "This includes a full suite of Telus Spark mobile entertainment, information and messaging services such as email, live TV, photo and video messaging, downloadable music, ring tones, games and more.
Over the coming months, Telus will extend its wireless digital network…
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GATINEAU – The CRTC today released new pricing rules that will govern the rates charged by large telephone companies for local telephone services, until forbearance arrives, that is.
The rules, known collectively as the price cap regime, will come into effect on June 1, 2007, and apply to Bell Canada, Telus, SaskTel, MTS Allstream and Bell Aliant. It also lets the incumbent telcos increase their rates for payphone service to up to a dollar.
The new regime only applies in regions where local phone service has not been deregulated. So they will apply everywhere at first and quickly become…
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