Telus announced Wednesday it has partnered with Korean budget telecom provider FreeTelecom to launch the FreeTelecom Dual Plan, allowing customers to access both Korean and Canadian mobile services on a single device.
Calling it “an industry-first mobile solution,” Telus said in a press release the service offers significant cost savings compared to traditional international roaming. Built on Telus’s network, the service “addresses the unique connectivity needs of Korean residents, working holiday, students, and business travelers who spend time in both countries,” Telus said.
This strategic partnership with Telus makes FreeTelecom the first Korean…
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By Ahmad Hathout
A broadband consulting firm wants the CRTC to clarify that internet networks built using public dollars in southwestern Ontario are subject to the commission’s new wholesale internet framework.
Ontario-based Broadlytics Inc. filed a Part 1 application with the CRTC this week asking it to rule that networks built under the Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology Inc. (SWIFT) project be made to comply with the commission’s ruling on access to the aggregated fibre regime – meaning third-party access to the builds’ middle- and last-mile fibre networks. Otherwise, it says, those builds cannot uphold an obligation to open access.
“The Applicant requests…
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Bell on Monday announced the launch of Bell Streaming, initially offering trio bundles featuring Crave, Netflix and Disney+ as well as two-service bundles that bundle Crave with one of the other two streaming services.
Bell says its bundles deliver up to 25-per-cent savings compared to subscribing to the services individually. An ad-supported “Crave, Netflix, Disney+ – Basic” bundle is priced at $22 per month, while a “Crave, Netflix, Disney+ – Premium” bundle is $49 per month.
Ad-supported Crave-Netflix and Crave-Disney+ bundles are $16.75 and $15.75 per month, respectively. Premium Crave-Netflix…
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By Connie Thiessen
Corus Entertainment has announced that Telus marketing exec Christopher Mercer is joining the company as Barb McKergow, senior vice president of advertising, gets set to retire this fall.
McKergow started her broadcast sales career with WIC (Western International Communications) in 1992, focused on national sales. She joined Canwest Mediaworks in 2000, moving on to Shaw Media for the next 14 years, where she ended her time as head of marketing ventures. She officially joined Corus in 2019 as SVP of national advertising revenue, holding the title of SVP of advertising sales for the past year, overseeing all advertising sales, revenue management, research, advanced advertising and data teams.
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The CRTC via an Aug. 12 letter is asking telecommunication service providers (TSPs), as well as intervenors, for their input on a potential increase to the $10-million revenue threshold for participation in the commission’s National Contribution Fund (NCF) and payment of annual telecom fees.
An April 2024 application by the Independent Telecommunications Providers Association (ITPA) had requested the revenue threshold be increased from $10 million to $25 million. Large telecoms, including Bell, Quebecor, Telus and Rogers, have argued against the increase, while the Canadian Communication Systems Alliance (CCSA) and the…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Canada’s largest broadcasters are asking the nation’s highest court to determine whether the Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) overstepped its authority when it effectively supplanted the Copyright Board’s decision in setting rates for the retransmission of distant signals.
Rogers, Bell, Telus, Videotron, Cogeco and the Canadian Communication Systems Alliance (CCSA) are named as applicants on a leave to appeal application, filed late last week, which seeks clarification about whether a relatively new judicial standard of review called Vavilov — which prioritizes the reasonableness of a tribunal’s decision on review and restrains courts from immediately jumping to correct issues…
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By Connie Thiessen
The CRTC has issued a follow-up decision approving a number of Certified Independent Production Funds (CIPFs) to receive contributions from online streaming services.
The approvals – which include applications from the Bell Fund, the Independent Production Fund, and the Telus Fund – follows the commission’s 2024 decision on base contributions under the Online Streaming Act, requiring certain audio-visual online undertakings to contribute five per cent of their Canadian revenues as a base contribution to support the Canadian broadcasting system.
That decision outlined that the new funding stream be directed to areas of immediate need, including producers from official language minority communities (OLMCs) and…
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By Ahmad Hathout
The head of Quebecor took a shot at a recent industry trend involving the sale of wireless infrastructure to pay down debt, claiming the company has been able to “maintain the best balance sheet” so it can avoid those kinds of transactions.
Rogers and Telus have recently committed to selling minority stakes in their wireless infrastructure in part to pay down debt. Rogers has spent a boatload of money over the past couple of years acquiring assets to shore up its core businesses, while Telus has been focused on expanding east.
“I’m not…
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By Ahmad Hathout
Bell said Thursday it has agreed to sell its home security and monitored alarm assets, in a transaction that aligns with its efforts to focus on its core businesses.
The transaction to Toronto-based a.p.i Alarm Inc. is part of a strategy of focusing on its telecommunications, enterprise solutions and media businesses, the company said Thursday. Closing is expected in the second half of this year.
The deal, whose top-end value is estimated at $170 million, comes nearly eight years after it purchased Alarm Force for $166 million – a move that it said would boost its…
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Eastlink says it is suspending planned upgrades
By Ahmad Hathout
The federal government will not send back the CRTC’s decision to allow the three largest telecommunications companies to ride on the internet networks of others, pointing to competition and lower costs.
“Canada’s new government has a strong mandate to bring costs down and to build one, strong, Canadian economy – one that aligns with our core values as a nation,” Industry Minister Melanie Joly said in a statement late Wednesday.
“According to the policy direction, the CRTC is responsible for considering how its decisions affect all forms of competition and investment, as well…
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