Shaw Communications Inc. has argued that the type of off-tariff-agreement (OTA) that its hopeful future owner Rogers Communications Inc. has agreed to enter into with Quebecor Inc.‘s Videotron to facilitate the Quebec-based company’s acquisition of Shaw’s Freedom Mobile are in fact pro-competitive and will contribute to the regulator’s telecommunications policy objectives.
The CRTC is reopening its proceeding into whether or not BCE Inc., Cogeco Inc., Bragg Communications Inc., and Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Co. can increase the retail price of so-called “skinny basic” plans from $25 to $28 per month with a yearly indexing mechanism.
The CRTC has denied an application by Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron unit seeking final offer arbitration (FOA) with BCE Inc.’s Bell Mobility over mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) access service rates. In a Friday letter to both parties, the regulator questioned the sincerity of the parties.
There is a consensus forming that the CRTC should open up BCE Inc.‘s Northwestel to competition through mandated wholesale access, and that mandated wholesale access is the best way to ensure service improvements for people living in those areas.
For the fourth time, the deadline for the proposed merger of Rogers Communications Inc. and Shaw Communications Inc. and the corresponding sale of Freedom Mobile by Shaw to Quebecor Inc. has been extended. Most recently set for Feb. 17, the new deadline is Mar. 31.
The CRTC announced that it will publish the data collected in its Annual Digital Media Survey – covering 2020-2021 – aggregated by industry segment, audio and audiovisual. For the latter segment, the commission will combine revenues from digital media broadcasting undertakings (DMBUs) with those revenues reported by hybrid video-on-demand (HVOD) services.