Rogers announced Wednesday its Rogers Xfinity StreamSaver bundle is now available coast-to-coast with Rogers Xfinity and with Rogers 5G Home Internet.
The StreamSaver plan, which launched in August in the four western provinces, bundles together Netflix, Disney+ and Apple TV+ for $22 per month, delivering more than 30-per-cent savings compared to purchasing each streaming service separately, when added to a Rogers Xfinity Internet or TV plan, Rogers said.
“Rogers Xfinity StreamSaver is now available across the country, bringing Rogers Xfinity and Rogers 5G Home Internet customers an easier way to…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Several internet service providers have filed petitions asking cabinet to send back a decision by the CRTC this summer that refused to back down on letting Rogers, Bell and Telus (Big 3) access the wholesale internet regime.
Rogers, SaskTel, Cogeco, Eastlink, the Competitive Network Operators of Canada (CNOC), and TekSavvy filed petitions in September – made public on Friday – requesting that cabinet send back for reconsideration the decision by the CRTC in June refusing to heed their advice to review and vary the commission’s final framework in August 2024.
That framework allows…
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By Ahmad Hathout
The CRTC has approved final attachment rates for competitors to access Bell and Telus poles.
The rates, on a per unit per month basis, are higher than those approved by the commission many years ago but are less than what the telcos asked for.
After roughly 15 years renting out its poles in Ontario and Quebec for a rate of $1.04, Bell got a final approved rate of $1.32 – 77 cents less than what it asked for. Telus’s pole attach rates for British Columbia and Alberta were bumped up from $1.61 to $2.29, 20 cents less than what…
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Telus and WestJet announced Wednesday they have linked their loyalty platforms, allowing Telus Rewards and WestJet Rewards members to earn, transfer and redeem points across the programs when they link their accounts.
In addition to exclusive travel and connectivity benefits, members with linked accounts will also automatically receive WestJet seat selection vouchers and Telus Roaming Passes.
The linked loyalty platforms mean members will be able to earn WestJet points on their Telus bills, redeem WestJet points toward their Telus services and the Telus Rewards catalogue, and convert their Telus Rewards…
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Telco focusing on content and mobility bundle
By Ahmad Hathout
Bell said Tuesday it will use the CRTC’s wholesale internet framework to launch fibre-based internet services in British Columbia and Alberta, reciprocating what its telco rival Telus is doing in eastern Canada.
The telco confirmed to Cartt that the launch of the services in western Canada “is a result of the CRTC’s recent decision,” which it does not agree with because of what it says is the policy’s negative impact on network investment. The regulator mandates that competitors have access to the bundled fibre infrastructure of Bell and Telus nationwide.
“Our position on…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Several major telecoms have filed a review and vary application asking the CRTC to adjust its new outage reporting requirements and extend the deadline to implement them because they are currently “impractical or disproportionate” and impose “undue administrative burden” on their businesses.
The CRTC in September gave all telecoms two months to implement the new rules, which require them to report to certain official bodies major outages – newly defined as lasting at least 30 minutes and affecting 600,000 or more user minutes in most cases. Compared to the interim regime from 2023, the new…
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Telus in late September filed a trademark application with the federal government’s Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) for “First Frame,” which is currently the name of a video podcast under Telus’s Storyhive banner that is designed to train and support emerging video content creators.
The First Frame podcast is hosted by Cameron Zinger, director of Telus Local Content and executive in charge of production, and Jennifer Park, manager of Telus Storyhive and community content. The podcast currently consists of 10 episodes offering advice on “building your content creation career.”
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By Ahmad Hathout
The Federal Court of Appeal will hear arguments made by Cogeco and Eastlink that allege the CRTC made several errors when it rejected their request to relook at its decision to allow the three largest telecoms wholesale access to their cable networks.
The July leave application, granted last month, charges that the regulator made three errors of law when it refused to review and vary the August 2024 policy that they say will cripple their businesses.
The applicants argue in a notice of appeal filing, dated September 29, that the CRTC misinterpreted section 2(e) of the…
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Stingray announced Thursday that it has launched seven new free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels on TELUS TV+ and Stream+.
The new channels are Qello Concerts by Stingray, which featured concert films and documentaries featuring a wide array of beloved artists; Stingray DJAZZ, which features concerts, films and documentaries from top venues and festivals; ZenLIFE by Stingray, which provides wellness content; Stingray Holidayscapes, CozyCafe, and Stargaze, which bring holiday, relaxing and dreamy environments to the home; and Movie Music by Stingray, which serves “epic film scores.”
“This launch allows us to deliver our premium curated content to a wider audience, offering…
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Sale of infrastructure also not out of the cards
By Ahmad Hathout
Bell’s chief financial officer said Thursday that leasing internet from Telus in western Canada is not out of the cards, but that owning the infrastructure is preferred for cash flow.
“It’s an opportunity for sure,” Curtis Millen said during a conference hosted by CIBC when asked about using Telus’s network in areas Bell doesn’t operate in. “We’ve had plenty of time to think about this.”
Bell, unlike Telus, is opposed to the CRTC policy of allowing the three largest telecoms to use the wholesale internet regime because the…
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