CRTC declines to fine Northwestel in dispute with Iristel

Internet and Governance | 09/19/2025 5:02 pm EDT

The CRTC has found there is no need to fine BCE Inc. subsidiary Northwestel...

Iristel arguments in interconnection fight with Bell, Northwestel dismissed again by CRTC

telecom | 06/23/2025 5:00 pm EDT

Iristel Inc.’s arguments that the CRTC was wrong...

Telecom providers spend months preparing for climate disasters, hoping their infrastructure makes it through unscathed 

telecom | 05/07/2025 4:50 pm EDT

While Canada has seen a swath of climate...

Starlink should not be blocked from northern internet subsidy, parent company argues

telecom | 03/25/2025 5:38 pm EDT

Starlink parent Space Exploration Technologies Inc. (SpaceX) says it would...

CRTC commissioner dissents on pitch to subsidize northern internet service

telecom | 01/16/2025 6:52 pm EST

The CRTC’s commissioner for British Columbia and Yukon disagrees with her colleagues on providing a subsidy for internet users in the far north.  All households in the...

Northwestel announces completion of backup fibre loop; acquisition to close in 2025

telecom | 11/26/2024 6:03 pm EST

BCE Inc. subsidiary Northwestel announced that it has completed the Canada...

Iristel asks CRTC to penalize Northwestel for disconnection in billing dispute

telecom | 08/26/2024 5:01 pm EDT

Iristel Inc. wants the CRTC to penalize BCE Inc.’s Northwestel for...

Northwestel redirecting Broadband Fund cash to rebuild network after fire damage in N.W.T. 

telecom | 08/12/2024 5:18 pm EDT

Northwestel has been given permission by the CRTC...

Indigenous communities to buy Northwestel for up to $1B

telecom | 06/12/2024 12:24 pm EDT

A group of Indigenous communities from the Yukon, Northwest Territories,...

Northwestel ordered to abandon DSL surcharge after eight years

telecom | 05/09/2024 11:48 am EDT

BCE Inc. subsidiary Northwestel has been told by the CRTC to stop charging...

Feds invest $2.3M to bring high-speed internet and mobile coverage in Northwest Territories

telecom | 03/01/2024 4:10 pm EST

The Government of Canada announced Friday that it...

CRTC announces funds for Nunavut and rejects Bell’s bid to amend Broadband Fund contributions

telecom | 12/20/2023 4:47 pm EST

The CRTC has denied a BCE Inc. application to...

Northwestel Successfully Transitions Services in Atlin, BC, Unveils Plans for Enhanced Connectivity

telecom | 12/19/2023 5:10 pm EST

BCE Inc.’s Northwestel announced to the CRTC...

Bell, Northwestel tell CRTC to leave billing dispute with Iristel in hands of the court

Internet and Governance | 10/30/2023 4:49 pm EDT

BCE Inc.’s Bell Canada and Northwestel have responded to Iristel Inc.'s application to suspend disconnection notices sent by the incumbents in a dispute over unpaid bills....

CRTC greenlights Northwestel Connecting Families packages 

Internet and Governance | 10/24/2023 2:54 pm EDT

The CRTC has given the green light to BCE Inc. subsidiary Northwestel Inc....

CRTC missed opportunity to hold NorthwesTel accountable to consumer concerns in Far North: PIAC

telecom | 06/01/2023 5:18 pm EDT

The CRTC presented its public opinion research...

Wholesale access in the North is essential for service improvement, Indigenous economic development: stakeholders tell CRTC

telecom | 02/17/2023 5:26 pm EST

There is a consensus forming that the CRTC should...

Northwestel may provide FTTP services 35% below price floor and discount to Wholesale Connect: CRTC

telecom | 12/20/2022 5:46 pm EST

The CRTC approved an application by BCE Inc.’s...

Far North does not need special consideration, Telus tells CRTC

telecom | 12/13/2022 6:15 pm EST

Telus Corp. told the CRTC that it is not charging more for the services it provides in far north communities in British Columbia and Alberta when compared to the rest of its markets in those provinces and it “maintains its position that no special policy considerations are...

Wholesale HSA service not needed in Far North; LEOs will do: Northwestel

telecom | 10/12/2022 4:59 pm EDT

There’s no need for BCE Inc.’s Northwestel to introduce wholesale...

Iristel petitions cabinet to overturn CRTC traffic simulation findings

telecom | 05/02/2022 4:47 pm EDT

Iristel Inc. filed a petition to the governor in council to vary a decision...

CRTC sets new next-gen 911 implementation deadlines

telecom | 06/14/2021 4:34 pm EDT

The CRTC is setting new deadlines for the implementation of next-generation 911 networks and services after delaying due to the pandemic.   The regulator said in a decision Monday next-gen or NG911 providers will have until...

SSi asks CRTC to mandate third-party access to fibre in the North, new wholesale rates

telecom | 12/09/2020 2:27 pm EST

Northern broadband provider SSi Canada is asking...

CRTC approves Northwestel’s waiving of overage fees

telecom | 03/24/2020 2:44 pm EDT

The CRTC has given interim approval to BCE Inc.’s Northwestel application for urgent relief that will allow to it waive data overage charges for its cable and fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP)  internet...

Northwestel ordered to redo temporary relief application

telecom | 03/19/2020 4:46 pm EDT

The CRTC has ordered BCE Inc.’s Northwestel to resubmit its “urgent” application for temporary relief in order to waive overage fees in response to the COVID-19 pandemic because the application...

Internet code will indirectly tackle poor sales practices, CRTC chairman says

telecom | 07/31/2019 11:01 am EDT

CRTC chairman Ian Scott said the new internet code will address many of the...

Northwestel boosting speeds threefold in October

telecom | 09/17/2018 5:00 pm EDT

BCE Inc.’s Northwestel says it will begin providing internet service at speeds three times as fast as...

New Northwestel rates could ‘finally’ lead to competition: SSi

telecom | 11/15/2016 8:54 pm EST

The CRTC’s order to BCE Inc. subsidiary Northwestel Inc. to file new cost studies last week “might finally bring effective telecoms competition to the Western Arctic,” SSi Micro Ltd. said in a press release. The Internet service provider is headquartered in Yellowknife, N.W.T., and said in the Tuesday release that “properly set pricing should mean drastically lower backbone transport rates, which...

Northwestel can pull grandfathered Internet plans, CRTC says

telecom | 08/29/2016 6:54 pm EDT

BCE Inc. subsidiary Northwestel Inc. can stop offering “destandardized” wireline Internet packages, the CRTC has ruled. In a decision posted Monday, the regulator approved...

High-speed Internet project completed in NWT community

telecom | 06/08/2016 8:39 pm EDT

Broadband infrastructure improvements have been completed in the remote community of Nahanni Butte, N.W.T., the federal government said in a Wednesday press release. The project to replace a...

With no network infrastructure, towns opting to build their own

telecom | 03/02/2016 9:19 pm EST

Among the arguments from BCE Inc. and those supporting its appeal to federal cabinet of the CRTC decision mandating wholesale access to fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) networks is that the ruling will slow...

Bell holds out on distributing Bloomberg TV

Media | 11/19/2015 7:11 pm EST

When Channel Zero Inc. announced the launch of its Bloomberg TV Canada channel this week, it listed every TV-service provider that was carrying it and absent from that list was Canada's biggest provider of TV service. Channel...

CRTC to release ISP performance results in spring

telecom | 11/18/2015 4:31 pm EST

The CRTC said Wednesday it will, in spring 2016, release a preliminary report on the results of an ongoing study of the broadband performance of various Canadian Internet service providers (ISPs). The regulator said in a press release that it will collect data from whiteboxes installed in the homes of 4,500 participants that were selected from about 28,000 Canadians who showed an interest in measuring their Internet performance. Rogers Communications Inc., Shaw Communications Inc., Cogeco Cable Inc., BCE Inc., Quebecor Inc.’s, Telus Corp., Manitoba Telecommunications Services...

Northwestel to dismantle last of radio-phone service

telecom | 07/24/2015 8:29 pm EDT

Northwestel Inc. has been given permission to dismantle its "manual mobile service" sites in the last six locations where it still offers the service, effective October 31. The CRTC approved the request to end the...

Modernization Plan network improvements at risk: Northwestel

telecom | 06/16/2015 3:27 pm EDT

Northwestel Inc. is asking the CRTC to reconsider its move in March to eliminate a $20 surcharge the company charges some customers. The CRTC had ruled that Northwestel was no longer allowed to...

CRTC to consider whether broadband should be basic service

telecom | 04/09/2015 9:22 pm EDT

The CRTC announced Thursday that it will re-examine the definition and role of so-called basic services, paving the way for potential changes to the offerings telecom companies are mandated to make...

Interim 911 service in Yukon cancelled

telecom | 03/09/2015 7:39 pm EDT

The Yukon government has cancelled an interim 911 service that would have allowed residents to dial 911, instead of a seven-digit phone number used by some responders, to reach all emergency personnel. The CRTC approved the...

CRTC cuts Northwestel Internet prices, will launch basic-services proceeding

telecom | 03/04/2015 9:13 pm EST

The CRTC on Wednesday ordered BCE Inc.’s Northwestel Inc. to lower its Internet prices for new and existing customers to address the “disparity” between the cost of Internet in the...

Online video factors into cord-cutting: CIRA survey

Media | 02/24/2015 9:43 pm EST

Newly released results from a Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) survey show the availability of online video content is a factor for four in 10 Canadian Internet users who do not subscribe to cable TV. The data,...

CTV Go picked up by Rogers, other BDUs

Media | 02/19/2015 3:15 pm EST

BCE Inc.'s online TV-everywhere service, CTV Go, is now available to customers of Rogers Communications Inc. and four other TV service providers, CTV said Thursday. The network said in a press release that other broadcast...

Shomi, CraveTV could be pulled if PIAC challenge succeeds: analyst

Media | 02/06/2015 10:02 pm EST

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) on Friday asked the CRTC to prohibit Rogers Communications Inc., Shaw Communications Inc. and BCE Inc. from restricting the availability of their streaming...

Videotron launches original content for Club Illico streaming service

Media | 02/02/2015 9:29 pm EST

MONTREAL — Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron hopes that producing original content exclusively for its Club Illico streaming service will help the company attract and keep subscribers, said Videotron CEO Manon Brouillette. At a Monday press conference in Montreal, the company announced it would launch Blue Moon, the first original series for Club Illico. The scripted series, about a woman taking over her father’s private security firm, will premiere in 2016 and, a press release...

Bell upgrades wireless service in North

telecom | 12/08/2014 7:02 pm EST

BCE Inc. said Monday it has launched 4G satellite wireless service in four Northwest Territories communities. The company said the upgrade in Gameti, Nahanni Butte, Paulatuk and Ulukhaktok was part of Northwestel...

Bell launches HSPA+ in 2 Yukon communities

telecom | 10/06/2014 4:33 pm EDT

BCE Inc. has launched 4G wireless service in Pelly Crossing and Burwash Landing, Yukon, the company said in a press release Monday. Bell spokeswoman Jacqueline Michelis clarified in an email that the service is delivered...

PIAC awarded $20K in costs by CRTC

telecom | 09/24/2014 4:01 pm EDT

The CRTC on Wednesday said it was awarding the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) almost $20,000 in costs for expenses incurred in three different proceedings, to be covered by various telecommunications companies. One of the...

Bell top payer, PIAC top recipient of CRTC cost awards so far in 2014

telecom | 09/12/2014 2:31 pm EDT

The CRTC this year has ordered telecommunications companies to pay more than $230,000 to various organizations participating in different telecommunications proceedings, of which BCE Inc. and its...

Northwestel allowed to dismantle radio-phone service

telecom | 08/13/2014 3:36 pm EDT

Northwestel Inc. has been given permission to dismantle most of its "manual mobile service" sites in the North due to declining usage and increasing difficulty in maintaining the infrastructure. The CRTC said Wednesday in an online notice that it has approved Northwestel's request, which came in June, to withdraw service in 19 out of 25 areas. The service allows users to make telephone calls on fixed or mobile radio equipment through an operator. The CRTC said Northwestel had made the case that equipment for such service had stopped being produced 20 years ago, and there has...

Yukon looking to implement territory-wide 911 service

telecom | 07/30/2014 4:21 pm EDT

The Yukon government is working with Northwestel Inc. to expand the 911 emergency call service to include every community in the territory, according to a Part 1 application sent to the CRTC on July 28. Currently 911 service is...

Northwestel allowed to charge extra for standalone Internet

telecom | 07/21/2014 4:31 pm EDT

The CRTC said Monday it has granted Northwestel Inc. permission to charge extra to customers who subscribe to its Internet service without its landline phone service. The commission added that it has...

Has the time come to make broadband a basic service?

telecom | 06/18/2014 7:27 pm EDT

As the CRTC is set to reconsider what constitutes a basic telecommunications service, some voices are saying that it’s about time to include broadband Internet in that definition. Under current rules, basic service includes...

CRTC allows exception on affiliate rates

telecom | 06/16/2014 5:01 pm EDT

The CRTC said Monday it has allowed an exception to its rule that telecommunications service providers' affiliates must charge identical rates to the incumbent phone company that controls them when reselling its services that...

CRTC’s consumer focus not at odds with industry: Blais

Media | 04/02/2014 9:14 pm EDT

GATINEAU, Que. — The reviews the CRTC will be holding over the coming year, which include proceedings covering wholesale access to wireless and fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) networks, the future of...

Affordability, not access, key to rural Internet delivery: ISPs

telecom | 02/12/2014 10:13 pm EST

The federal government’s new rural broadband funding program should help reduce the cost of connecting rural locations’ Internet services with the rest of the country and not just focus on...

Affordable transport key, CRTC says in NWTel decision

telecom | 12/18/2013 10:59 pm EST

The CRTC has ordered Northwestel Inc. to tweak its plan to modernize the North’s lagging telecom infrastructure with a renewed emphasis on fibre investments and will also launch proceedings next year to consider the high cost of Internet backhaul and how best to fund northern telecom infrastructure, the commission said. In a decision released...

Ice Wireless launches new mobile network in Iqaluit

telecom | 11/22/2013 9:02 pm EST

Ice Wireless, a subsidiary of Iristel Inc., launched a high-speed wireless service that’s well suited to accommodating the latest in smartphones and tablets, in the Nunavut capital of Iqaluit. It said in a press release Friday that its service provides an alternative to the “spotty, overpriced cellular coverage” that for years had...

Competitors: Northwestel ‘thwarting’ competition

telecom | 06/20/2013 9:19 pm EDT

Northwestel Inc.’s new modernization plan contains an “unhealthy emphasis” on delaying potential competitors from offering services in the North, competitor SSi Micro Ltd. told a panel of CRTC commissioners. “The latest iteration of the modernization plan still contains inadequate commitments,” Dean Proctor, SSi’s chief development officer, said in Whitehorse Wednesday, during the second day of CRTC hearings into telecom services provided by Northwestel, a BCE Inc. subsidiary. “There is a continued unhealthy emphasis on thwarting competitors and it does not focus on the major limitation to development, which is affordable backhaul.” Proctor said Northwestel’s revised plan to modernize its aging telecom infrastructure, the most recent...

NWTel plan doesn’t meet residents’ needs, governments say

telecom | 06/18/2013 9:07 pm EDT

Northwestel Inc.’s revised modernization plan fails to meet northerners’ telecom needs, representatives from the Yukon and Northwest Territories governments told a panel of CRTC commissioners Monday. “The problem is that Northwestel still has no plan to deal with the current unmet needs for broadband and...

North needs backhaul, not wireless infrastructure, small competitors say

telecom | 02/08/2013 8:14 pm EST

The CRTC should require Northwestel Inc. to improve the availability and cost of its Internet backhaul infrastructure, not its last-mile wireless services, the company’s smaller competitors said in regulatory documents this week. In an intervention filed with the commission Wednesday, SSi Micro Ltd. said the CRTC...

CRTC rejects Iristel, Ice complaint against NWTel

telecom | 02/01/2013 9:04 pm EST

The CRTC denied an Iristel Inc. and Ice Wireless Inc. request that it order Northwestel Inc. to stop launching new telecom services—and to stop reducing the rates of its existing services—until after a “holistic” review of Northwestel’s regulatory framework, the commission said. In a complaint filed with the commission in...