NL Short Takes

AT&T Canada cancels $200 million credit facility AT&T Canada Corp. announced that it is cancelling the unused portion of its bank credit facility. The telco said its new operating structure meant that it could leave $200 million of the facility untouched. BCE raises $2 billion to buy back SBC stake BCE Inc. has raised $2.078 billion by selling 85 million common shares at $24.45 per share. The funds garnered from the issue will be used to buy out SBC Communication Inc.'s 20% minority stake in the conglomerate. Teleglobe sells stake in Intelsat back to company Troubled telecom carrier Teleglobe Inc. is unloading its 3.8% interest in satellite company Intelsat for US$65 million. The shares are being sold to Intelsat Global Sales & Marketing Ltd., a division of the larger firm. Bell, union still in fight over pay equity The Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union is launching an advertising campaign urging Bell Canada to settle an outstanding pay equity dispute with its operators. Bell replies that the Canadian Telecommunications Employees' Association is studying the deal and wants the CEP to make the same presentation to its members. Manitoba Telecom wins right to cable broadcasts The CRTC has approved an application by MTS Communications Inc. for a local cable BDU (NL, Dec. 18/01). Broadcasting Decision 2002-235 permits the telco to operate in Winnipeg only, even though the company had applied for a licence in all three prairie provinces. Court approves 360networks disclosure statement The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York has approved the disclosure statement filed by 360networks Inc. Creditors of the troubled fibre giant have until September 24 to vote on the proposed restructuring. Nortel enters rural VoIP market with product upgrades Nortel Networks Corp. of Brampton ON is upgrading its DMS-10, its Succession Communications Server 2000-Compace softswitch and its Succession Media Gateway 9000. The equipment manufacturer believes changes to these VoIP products will help independent service providers deliver improved next-gen multimedia service to rural customers. Manitoba Telecom launches new web address Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. has changed its web address. Customers can now surf to mts.ca, a simpler handle than the former mts.mb.ca. Total Telcom wins Alberta fibre contract from utility Edmonton's Total Telcom Inc. is building a five-km fibre network for an unnamed electrical utility company in Alberta. The deal is worth $160,000. Canada Payphone posts half million dollar loss in Q3 Canada Payphone Corp. of Burnaby BC had a loss of $571,313 in Q3 2002, compared with the $1.4 million of a year earlier. The decline in losses is attributed to the fewer pay phones in operation. Revenue for the quarter was $846,589, up 34% from Q2. Eiger Technology posts lower revenues and losses in Q3 Revenues for Eiger Technology Inc. of Toronto declined from $7.7 million in Q3 2001 to $4.1 million this year. Losses from 2001 to 2002 plummeted from $12.9 million to $1.1 million. The costs of building subsidiary Onlinetel's national voice network are factored into the figures. CRTC upholds contribution appeal by Ont. Telecom Assn. In Telecom Decision 2002-49, the CRTC approved a review and vary application filed by the Ontario Telecommunications Association. The commission found it had made an error in determining the contribution subsidies for North Renfrew Tele-phone Co. Ltd., Nexicom Telephones Inc. and Nexicom Telecommunications Inc. Aliant barred from rolling out bundled services The CRTC has prohibited Aliant Telecom Inc. from selling a bundle of local, high-speed Internet, television and service support to the Nova Scotia Agricultural College. The commission, in Telecom Decision 2002-48, agreed with a complaint from EastLink Ltd. that the ILEC was not complying with bundling rules and that Aliant could not provide the service without seeking prior tariff approval. CRTC approves three ILEC service improvement plans The CRTC has accepted service improvement plans for three ILECs. It granted the approval to Aliant Telecom Inc. (Telecom Order 2002-341), Bell Canada (Telecom Order 2002-342), and Telus Communications Inc. (Telecom Order 2002-343). Bell flex bundle package receives renewed approval The CRTC has upheld Bell Canada's revision to its general tariff allowing for the introduction of flex bundles to residential customers. Telecom Order 2002-348 came in response to complaints from Call-Net Enterprises Inc. that the new package would adversely affect competition. European telcos, ISPs ordered to hold data for one year The European Union has ordered all telcos and ISPs to store data for at least one year under new telecommunications rules. The firms will be obliged to record all phone, email and Internet traffic information and make it available to all EU member states. Canada is debating the imposition of an 18-month holding period (NL, March 25/02). Qwest sells Yellow Pages for US$7 billion Qwest Communications International, seeking to lighten its debt load, is selling its Yellow Pages directories for US$7.05 billion. The two buyers are Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe and The Carlyle Group, whose partners and advisors include former American president George Bush, ex-British prime minister John Major, onetime U.S. secretary of state James Baker and Arthur Levitt, the former securities and exchange commission chair. KPN in discussions to sell Belgian holdings KPN Telecom is holding talks with several companies to sell its KPN Belgium division. Among the firms said to be interested are British Telecom, Versatel, and Telenet. Telefonica still enthusiastic about Latin American market Spain's Telefonica is continuing to invest in Latin America, even though Brazil and Argentina are in financial straits. COO Fernando Abril-Martorell told a conference the telco has set an investment goal of between 11 and 13% in the area, which accounts for almost half of the Spanish telco's revenues and earnings. British Telecom loses lawsuit over hyperlink patent The BT Group has lost a lawsuit against Prodigy Communications, which claimed the SBC Communications subsidiary was infringing on the British telco's hyperlink patent. BT maintains it invented the process that permits Internet users to move between web sites. Nippon T&T to expand IP services across Japan The LD unit of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. is expanding its IP telephone offerings, moving it closer to full-scale IP service. The Japanese firm will allow consumers to make calls anywhere in the country for 25 yen (about 32 cents) for three minutes, much cheaper than the rates charged for calls more than 20 km away. Verizon introduces bundles in two eastern states Verizon Communications is offering bundled services in Massachusetts and New York state. The Veriations All package includes local, LD, regional toll, DSL and wireless. Sprint wins right to build Maine tower Sprint Spectrum, a division of the American telco, has won a court fight allowing it to erect a 120-foot tower in Cape Neddick ME. Local council had opposed the move, but were overruled by judge David Cohen of the U.S. District Court of Maine. The council then voted unanimously for an out-of-court settlement with Sprint. Telia wins university IP contract in Europe Telia International Carrier will be providing IP-transit to 18 European National Research and Education Networks. The deal, which was necessitated by the bankruptcy of KPNQwest, covers six IP-nodes in five countries. Power dialers aren't idle in American Idol balloting Producers of the television program American Idol are worried that power dialers are distorting the voting process of the show. Around 100 "phone phreaks" have slammed the lines, voting as often as 10,000 times in one night.

NL Short Takes

News | August 27, 2002

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