Last week’s Together for China – Earthquake Relief Telethon, an effort by Fairchild Television in partnership with the Canadian Red Cross, raised $2,286,300 across Canada. The event featured renowned performing artists from Asia and was simulcast on Shaw TV Cable and Shaw Multicultural Channel, Cable 109. Shaw, Rogers, Cogeco, Telus and Star Choice also made Fairchild Television available to customers across Canada for the duration of the telethon. A toll free number from Red Cross with over 100 designated phone lines and a website was effective on Friday to assist in taking donations. In addition, Fairchild Television and Talentvison contributed all commercial revenues generated within the programs to the China Earthquake Relief Fund.

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The promise of the mobile wallet – the mobile devices capable of purchasing goods and services – is coming to Canada, albeit in a limited trial. MasterCard Canada announced a four-month trial of its PayPass service on mobile phones in conjunction with Bell Mobility this morning.

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Canadian actor R.H. Thomson and labour activists from the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) media caucus will hold a new conference Monday, May 26 at 1 p.m. at  the CLC Convention in Toronto to outline cultural issues. Thomson will join with other workers in media and culture, including Communications, Entergy and Paperworkers Union VP Peter Murdoch, in calling for government action to stop the censorship provisions of Bill C-10, limit foreign ownership of media companies, stop further media convergence, fix the crisis in Canadian dramatic television programming and restore local news. The CLC affiliated unions include: the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists; the American Federation of Musicians; the Canadian Auto Workers Union; the Canadian Union of Public Employees; the CEP; Communications Workers of America/Syndicat des communications d’Amérique; the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees; Teamsters Canada; and the United Steelworkers. The news conference will take place in Room 203 D Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

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Citing an inability to reach "agreement on a handful of key issues", MTS Allstream Inc. and its two main financial backers Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Blackstone Capital Partners have decided to dissolve the consortium created to bid on spectrum in the Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) spectrum auction scheduled to begin on May 27.

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