NL Short Takes

Mediatrix granted patent for VoIP 911 callingThe Canadian Intellectual Property Office has granted Montreal-based Mediatrix Telecom Inc. a patent for a Voice over IP access device, which allows 911 calling in a VoIP network architecture. The patent (#2303392) allows conventional telephones to make phone calls over IP networks, but in the case of 911 calls they are routed over the legacy circuit-switched telephone network. This is accomplished by a controller circuit, with an embedded software agent, that intelligently routes calls based on a set of pre-established routing rules. A news release reads: "This proprietary intelligent routing technology provides a reliable emergency 911 service allowing accurate location and call back of the individual in distress." The device also allows for calls to be routed over the PSTN in the event of a power failure. Fiberoptic One inks deal to acquire GlobeeComMontreal-based Fiberoptic One has reached an agreement with the shareholders of GlobeeCom International Inc. to acquire the Quebec-based company. GlobeeCom’s primary product, GlobeMeeting, is an online collaboration software package that enables remote monitoring, participating and recording of meetings. The software can also be used for conferencing, making presentations or providing personalized, interactive online training. Under terms of the agreement, Fiberoptic will pay a maximum of $2 million to be covered through the issuance of 10 million common shares of Fiberoptic. Court rules ISPs don’t have to pay music royaltiesThe Supreme Court of Canada has ruled in the matter of Tariff 22 that Canadian ISPs won’t have to pay a proposed royalty fee for music downloaded over their networks. The tariff was filed in 1996 with a proposal to levy a blanket 3.5% of revenues fee on ISPs to compensate music copyright holders. The court ruled that ISPs aren’t responsible for the content being routed over their pipes, and that they should enjoy the same exemptions from liability as telcos under common carrier rules. A lower court found last year that the system of caches used by service providers to speed downloads would be subject to a levy, interpreting those as unnecessary to Internet delivery, but the Supreme Court overturned that decision in its June 30 ruling. EXFO narrows net lossEXFO Electro-Optical Engineering Inc. saw sales growth of 35.4% in its third quarter of 2004 ended May 31 to reach US$20.5 million. That compares to US$15.1 million in the same quarter a year previous. The figure also represents a 21.2% sales growth from US$16.9 million in its Q2 2004. Net loss on the quarter totaled US$1.2 million, or US$0.02 per share, compared to a net loss of US$38.4% for Q3 2003, and a net loss of US$2.9 million for its Q2 2004. "It is becoming clear that focusing on top-line growth through market share gains and operational excellence is the right strategy to bring us back to profitability. I believe that our decision to sustain R&D investments in our fibre-to-the-premises and next-generation IP networking test solutions will pay off," says EXFO chair and CEO Germain Lamonde. Shaw says progress ‘good’ in readying VoIP offeringShaw Communications Inc. tells shareholders that the company is making good progress in all areas with respect to its decision to launch a VoIP offering. On June 28, the company issued a clarification that stated it planned to launch service early in calendar 2005. That is later than the previously announced date in the fiscal fourth quarter ended August 31. During Shaw’s quarterly conference call on June 25, company CEO Jim Shaw told analysts that telephony service would be launched in early fiscal 2005, which is in the September to December 2004 calendar time frame. In its Q3 2004 results released June 25, the company said it has selected Bell Canada to provide wholesale services for its initial phone service launch. Bell will provide interconnection with the PSTN and LD termination. The softswitch platform will be provided by Siemens. The company is now focused on developing its network, customer support, billing and provisioning systems for trials and initial deployment.In the same quarterly results, Shaw notes that its Big Pipe division has reduced bandwidth costs by approximately two-thirds over the last two years by serving as the primary Internet backbone for Shaw’s broadband Internet customers and through the development of over 400 peering relationships throughout North America. The company also says that by the end of fiscal 2004, 90% of its systems will be DOCSISTM-compliant. Cogeco sees lower high-speed Internet addsCogeco Cable Inc. says a double cohort of students leaving campus is responsible for a reduced number of new high-speed Internet additions in Q3 2004 compared to the previous year. Net high-speed Internet additions for the quarter totalled 4,608 for the quarter ended May 31, down from 7,641 in the same quarter a year prior. For the first nine months of the fiscal year, Cogeco added 34,657 net new high-speed customers compared to 37,545 in the first three quarters of 2003. Total customers now count 239,836, and pending orders would bring that total to 242,634. TELUS completes asset transferTELUS Communications (Québec) Inc. (TCQ) and TELUS Communications Inc. (TCI) confirmed July 6 that the transaction previously announced March 26 pursuant to which TCQ indicated its intent to transfer substantially all of its assets and business to TCI was successfully completed on July 1. Under the terms of the contract, TCI has assumed all of the liabilities and obligations of TCQ including the $30 million principal amount of first mortgage bonds held by institutional investors as well as the $70 million principal amount of publicly held medium term notes. TCQ has applied to the various securities regulatory authorities in Canada to revoke its reporting issuer status. Nicer appoints SolarTcom as a distributor for VoIP productsNicer Canada Corp., which provides VoIP services and network infrastructure services, has announced an expansion of its global distributor/reseller network by appointing SolarTcom S.A. de C.V. as its exclusive dealer for Mexico. Primus puts VoIP service on Future Shop shelvesPrimus Telecommunications Canada Inc. has announced a deal with Future Shop and Best Buy to make its TalkBroadband available on the retailer’s shelves. Start-up kits are available at all 20 Best Buy and 109 Future Shop locations as of July 2. "TalkBroadband is a natural extension of the wide variety of electronics products and services...already available at Best Buy and Future Shop," says Primus VP of marketing, residential services, Rob Warden.

NL Short Takes

News | July 7, 2004

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