Bell asks for injunction against VMedia OTT service

BCE Inc. is asking the Ontario Superior Court to grant an interim and permanent injunction to stop VMedia Inc. from delivering Bell's CTV channels on its over-the-top (OTT) service. VMedia began offering the $17.95 skinny basic package to Canadian users of Roku Inc.’s devices last month. Bell says that by including its CTV and CTV Two networks on the service, VMedia is infringing its copyright. In an Oct. 3 application filed with the court, Bell said that its agreement with VMedia allows VMedia to distribute the CTV channels to subscribers of its licenced broadcast distribution service, but it “does not permit VMedia to offer the content to users who are not subscribers of its licensed BDU service or otherwise on an unauthenticated (also known as 'over-the-top') basis.” Bell argued that by offering the OTT service over the Internet, “VMedia is acting outside the ambit of its BDU licence, and instead operating as a ‘new media retransmitter’ as defined at Section 31 of the Act. It is therefore not permitted to retransmit the signals and content without express authorization from Bell Media.” It noted that the CRTC has defined “new media retransmitter” as an entity that provides broadcasting services over the Internet. By offering the OTT service, VMedia is “acting in a capacity entirely outside the ambit of its BDU licences, which pertain to a given set of activities, rather than sheltering any given person from the requirements of the Act regardless of the activity it undertakes,” Bell argued. Bell said VMedia is “causing irreparable harm to Bell and damaging the value of its television service subscriptions.” The company added that by “infringing Bell Media's copyrights through offering and providing the New Internet-Delivered Service, VMedia is also causing and will cause the subscribers of Bell TV, and other Bell Media partners, to 'cut the cord' and terminate their television subscriptions.”

Bell asks for injunction against VMedia OTT service

Brief | October 4, 2016

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Bell asks for injunction against VMedia OTT service

Brief | October 4, 2016

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