Technologies identified by the CRTC as potential tools to combat spoofed and nuisance calls have promise, but barriers to their deployment mean they’re not likely to be put in place any time soon, companies told the regulator. The CRTC launched a consultation in January following a November order requiring telecoms put in place measures to block “unwanted nuisance calls” on both wireless and wireline networks. In interventions, which were due Wednesday, companies addressed the potential effectiveness of two standards that are currently in...
Greater flexibility allowed by the federal government for market forces to shape the wireless industry would benefit most of the big players but negatively affect Shaw Communications Inc.'s Freedom Mobile, according to Barclays Capital analyst Phillip Huang. “While the Liberal government is maintaining the four-player wireless market structure introduced by the Conservative government a decade ago, it appears to allow greater flexibility for market forces to shape the industry,” Huang said in a Monday note, adding the government “appears less...
GATINEAU, Que. — The costs to maintain next-generation 911 (NG911) services in Canada will not cost more than what telecoms pay to maintain current 911 services, Quebecor Inc. said on the third day of the CRTC's hearing on the issue, despite some suggesting costs will increase on the new...
The CRTC has granted approval for Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. to transfer its broadcast distribution licences to BCE Inc. as part of an overall $3.9-billion acquisition of the provincial provider. In a...
Gigabit-speed Internet will be introduced to Northern Manitoba under a BCE Inc.-owned Manitoba Telecom Services Inc., the companies announced Monday. The improvement in Churchill,...
Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. said it made improvements to its post-paid wireless churn for the third consecutive quarter, though its total wireless subscribers were still down from a year ago,...
Manitoba Telecommunications Services Inc. will begin offering Netflix Inc.’s streaming service directly on its set-top box. The company said in a press release Thursday that the move “removes the hassle of having to switch video inputs or purchase additional hardware.” It added that it was the “only Manitoba television provider to offer direct access to Netflix.” Other Canadian telecoms to include Netflix access on their set-top boxes include BCE Inc., which is in the process of acquiring MTS, and Telus Corp....
Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall told reporters he would rather sell Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. than take the company public and sell shares on the open market, Bloomberg...
An independent proxy advisory company has backed the takeover of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. by BCE Inc., MTS said in a Tuesday press release. International Shareholder Services (ISS) is recommending...
Current Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. customers are concerned about the future of their bills if the proposed takeover by BCE Inc. is approved, suggest the results of a new poll...
TORONTO — Conservative MP Maxime Bernier took aim at the CRTC and the previous government’s telecom and wireless policies Tuesday, calling for the commission to be phased out as a telecom regulator and the wireless sector to be opened to foreign competition. “As the industry evolves, the CRTC finds new...
A new J.D. Power survey has found customers who have a skinny-basic TV package with a pick-and-pay option are more satisfied than TV customers with other types of subscriptions. Satisfaction among skinny-basic customers was 761...
An information package for Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. shareholders sheds some light on the genesis of the proposed $3.9-billion acquisition of the company by BCE Inc., announced May 2. According...
Shareholders in Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. will have their say in the proposed merger with BCE Inc. later this month. The company announced in a Wednesday press release that a special meeting...
The sale of Manitoba’s largest telecommunications company is not sitting well with Manitobans, with 61 per cent stating they don’t approve of the deal, while only 21 per cent said it would...
BCE Inc. announced Monday morning that it will purchase Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. in a $3.9 billion transaction that, if approved, will see the number of players in Manitoba’s telecom market fall from four to three. Some experts said the deal is likely to be approved, especially given a pre-emptive move to shift some subscribers to Telus Corp. The deal is subject to approval from shareholders, the CRTC, Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada and the Competition Bureau. Bell CEO George Cope said in a Monday conference call with analysts that he expects the regulatory...
When it comes to issues of affordability, the Canadian government should look to an American social assistance program to help low-income residents purchase telecommunications services, Cogeco Inc. told CRTC commissioners Friday morning. The government could provide “telecom stamps” as a...
A $422 million expansion of broadband Internet services to underserved communities has been completed, the CRTC confirmed Thursday. In 2010, the regulator approved plans by BCE Inc., Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. and Telus Corp....
Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. CEO Jay Forbes on Monday downplayed the likelihood that the whole company could be sold in the wake of a deal to unload its business communications division, Allstream....
The CRTC has approved applications from Manitoba Telecom Services Inc., Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp., Telus Corp., Bell Aliant and BCE Inc. regarding enhanced 911 services. The regulator said in separate...
Industry Canada said Friday it approved a spectrum-sharing agreement between MTS Inc. and Rogers Communications Inc. The companies announced the agreement a year ago, and The Wire Report reported at the time that the deal, which would cover the roll-out of LTE technology in Manitoba and cut the companies’ implementation costs in half, was part of Rogers’ aim to improve its competitive position against BCE Inc. and Telus Corp., which have a spectrum-sharing agreement. Industry Canada said Friday that under the deal, “both parties retain control of their existing licences and...
MTS Inc. has extended its fibre-to-the-home service to Lorette, Man. The company said in a release Friday the rollout will give residents access to its IPTV service, MTS Ultimate TV, as well as its high-speed Internet plans. The...
Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. will provide WiFi to Winnipeg’s libraries, arenas, and other community facilities, the company said Monday. MTS said in a release it would invest approximately $2 million “to bring Wi-Fi...
Egyptian billionaire and former Wind Mobile financier Naguib Sawiris said he is “finished with Canada” following the federal government's decision to reject his firm's bid to acquire Allstream Inc., Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram said. “I am finished with Canada, I tell you,” Sawiris told...
Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. subsidiary MTS Inc. expanded its next-generation LTE wireless network to Steinbach, Man., the company said. MTS said in a release Wednesday that Steinbach is the fifth of six communities in Manitoba...
MTS Inc., a subsidiary of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc., expanded its DSL Internet service to Roseau River Anishinabe First Nation, Fisher River Cree Nation, Brunkild, and Seven Sisters Falls, Man. The company plans to bring the...
Mike Strople, chief operating officer of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc.’s Allstream subsidiary, was elected to the board of international industry group the Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF), Allstream said. In a release Monday,...
Allstream has a new Internet connection point of presence in Chicago, which will give Canadian Internet service providers (ISPs) and other network operators more capacity to exchange traffic with leading Canadian and international carriers, the company said. In a release Tuesday, Allstream said its new Internet exchange point will allow network...
Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. subsidiary MTS Inc. expanded its fourth-generation LTE wireless network to Selkirk, Man., the company said Friday. Selkirk is the fourth of six communities in the province to which MTS will expand the service this year, the company said in a release. This expansion follows launches in Victoria Beach, Grand Beach, and...
The Telecommunications Employees Association of Manitoba (TEAM) Local 161 reached a tentative agreement on a revised collective agreement with Manitoba Telecom Services Inc., a release said. The union voted to authorize a strike in late June. TEAM members include MTS managers, sales team and other support staff, and its more than 1,000 members represent about one-third of MTS’ Manitoba-based workforce. Details on the ratification vote on the three-year agreement will follow, the union said in a memo on its website....
About one-third of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc.’s (MTS) Manitoba-based workforce voted to authorize a strike and could walk off the job in two weeks, the Telecommunications Employees Association of Manitoba (TEAM) Local...
Canada’s publicly traded broadcast distribution companies reported “concrete signs” of cord cutting over the past two quarters as their combined subscriber base fell for the first time since cable TV first become a feature in most homes, said Mario Mota, partner at Boon Dog Professional Services Inc. In a release Thursday, Boon Dog...
Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. subsidiary MTS Inc. expanded its DSL Internet service to Falcon Lake, West Hawk Lake, Victoria Beach and Grand Beach, Man., the company said. In a release Tuesday, MTS said it plans to expand its high-speed Internet service to 20 additional rural communities in Manitoba this year. MTS recently expanded its fourth generation LTE network to Grand Beach and Victoria Beach, Man....
Former Wind Mobile backer Naguib Sawiris said he is re-entering the Canadian telecom market with a “long-term commitment” and the purchase of Allstream from Manitoba Telecom Services Inc....
Six Ontario communities are looking for partnerships with wireless carriers to launch or improve local mobile services using repurposed radio and TV broadcast towers, which could mean cellphone service for some of the province’s most rural and hard-to-reach areas, said people involved in the project. The towers could make use of an existing mobile carrier's spectrum, extending its service into hard-to-reach areas, the people said in interviews, or the communities may look at...