TORONTO — Telstra Americas, which recently opened a point of presence (PoP) in downtown Toronto, announced today Kris Schaffer (above) has been named as Telstra’s Canada country lead to drive accelerated growth out of the Toronto area.
Schaffer is “an accomplished IT and telecom professional with both leadership and customer-facing roles at IBM, Bell Canada and Telus,” reads the press release announcing her hiring.
Most recently, Schaffer was business development executive at ISM Canada, a wholly owned subsidiary of IBM, where her responsibilities included helping companies with cloud-based business intelligence, advanced analytics and big data solution initiatives. Prior to ISM…
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VANCOUVER – In time to celebrate Leonardo Da Vinci’s 569th birthday Telus is adding a new historical drama, Leonardo, to Telus Presents on April 15.
The new show is added to the current 16-title collection of Telus Presents – which gives Optik TV and Pik TV customers free on demand access to curated, hard-to-find programming from abroad.
The eight-episode series is from writers Frank Spotnitz (The X Files) and Steve Thompson (Sherlock) and takes viewers inside the life of one of history’s most well-known figures, showing the “drama and passion behind his genius – and keeps us hooked with a tantalizing…
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GATINEAU — Cartt.ca readers will be glad to know the CRTC’s new wireless policies will finally be released this week, with mandated mobile virtual network operators (will they or won’t they?) undoubtedly the biggest item of interest among telecom providers, big and small.
A Commission spokesperson confirmed the policy decision will be issued at 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, April 15 (i.e., after the stock market closes).
It’s been a long wait, seeing as the Commission first announced the wireless policy review proceeding back in February 2019, held a public hearing in February 2020 and final submissions were in July…
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QUEBEC CITY — In two separate announcements today, Cogeco Connexion and Bell Canada have been awarded more than $50 million in combined funding as part of Canada-Quebec Operation High Speed, to bring high-speed Internet services to underserved households in the Memphrémagog regional county municipality (RCM) and Bas-Saint-Laurent region, respectively.
Cogeco is receiving $22.7 million in joint funding to provide high-speed Internet access to close to 3,000 households in the Memphrémagog region by September 2022. Cogeco’s investment in the project was not announced.
Municipalities who will benefit from the Cogeco broadband project include:
Austin, Ayer’s Cliff, Bolton-Est, Eastman, Hatley, Canton de…
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VANCOUVER — Telus-owned smartphone repair chain Mobile Klinik announced today it has launched a van service to bring smartphone and tablet repair directly to customers in more than 100 communities across the country.
Telus’s acquisition of Mobile Klinik was announced in July 2020.
Through the Onsite Repair Unit service, customers can schedule appointments online or by phone, and a Mobile Klinik service van will arrive to provide contactless repair services at the location of the customer’s choice. Technicians will service common issues such as cracked screens, broken cameras, software updates and battery replacements from inside the van, outside a…
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By Greg O’Brien
TORONTO – Rogers Communications has made a number of changes at the top of its executive team, according to its corporate leadership web page.
In is David Fuller as president of Rogers Wireless and Lisa Damiani as chief legal and regulatory officer. Dean Prevost, who had been president of Rogers for Business, is now president of connected home and Rogers for Business. Lisa Durocher, who had been chief digital officer, is now executive vice-president financial and emerging services.
Out is Brent Johnston, who had been wireless president, Graeme McPhail, who was chief of legal and regulatory and Phil…
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QUEBEC CITY – A $19.8-million joint investment from the federal and provincial government as part of Canada-Quebec Operation High Speed will help deliver broadband to more than 1,600 households in the Mauricie region.
The residents there will have access to Cogeco high-speed Internet services by September 2022.
The investments announced will accelerate the deployment of reliable, high-performing infrastructure in the following municipalities:
Des Chenaux RCM: Batiscan, Champlain, Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel, Sainte-Geneviève-de-Batiscan, Saint-Luc-de-Vincennes, Saint-Maurice, Saint-Narcisse, Saint-Prosper-de-Champlain, Saint-Stanislas.
Maskinongé RCM: Saint-Boniface, Yamachiche
Mékinac RCM: Grandes-Piles, Hérouxville, Lac-aux-Sables, Lac-Normand, Saint-Adelphe, Sainte-Thècle, Saint-Roch-de-Mékinac, Saint-Tite, Saint-Séverin, Trois-Rives
Shawinigan Territory: Shawinigan
“Over the next few months, Cogeco will take an…
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SAINT-TITE, Que. – Telus announced today it will spend close to $2 million in the Mékinac and des Chenaux RCMs (Regional county municipalities) in 2021 to accelerate the deployment of its PureFibre and 5G networks.
It includes deploying PureFibre to more than 1,200 families and businesses in Saint-Prosper, Saint-Stanislas, and Saint-Adelphe and bringing 5G to select communities in the region, including in Saint-Tite.
The company will also improve wireless coverage by bringing a new tower to Saint-Adelphe and expanding its 4G LTE network there. Telus has also submitted projects to the CRTC under its Broadband Fund program with the goal of…
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GATINEAU – Today, the CRTC denied an application brought by large facilities-based ISPs to review and vary telecom regulatory policy 2019-269, specifically, the application of the Internet Code.
“The applicants (Bell, Rogers, Telus and others) submitted the Commission erred in its determination to apply the Internet Code to only the 10 largest facilities-based ISPs at this time; however, the Commission finds that the applicants have failed to demonstrate that there is substantial doubt as to the correctness of that determination,” reads today’s decision.
“As stated in Telecom Regulatory Policy 2019-269, the Commission expects that all Internet service providers will…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Between losing a fourth wireless player in a merger and difficulty negotiating with big telecoms on leasing wireless network capacity, smaller carriers and their representatives told members of the industry committee Tuesday that the one-two punch of divesting Freedom Mobile in a Rogers-Shaw combination and mandating wireless negotiations with service-based operators could spell the last vestige of hope for a competitive telecom environment.
Appearing before the committee studying the Rogers-Shaw merger proposal, Matt Stein, who is head of the Competitive Network Operators of Canada, an industry group representing smaller internet service providers (as well as president…
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