TAGGED AS NAVDEEP BAINS
As he steps down, Bains says telecom affordability ‘won’t go away’
Media | 01/12/2021 7:58 am EST
The affordability-focused initiatives Navdeep Bains put in place will continue to bring down prices of telecom services after he leaves the innovation minister role, he told...
New privacy legislation mixed bag in terms of enforcement, experts say
telecom | 12/18/2020 1:24 pm EST
When the federal government’s proposed new privacy legislation, Bill C-11, was announced in November, Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains billed it is an “important step”...
INDU report says government should act on fraud calls
telecom | 11/27/2020 4:48 pm EST
The House industry committee is calling on the federal government to review legislation covering fraudulent calls, and for the government and regulators to support industry-based solutions to the issue. The committee put out a...
CNOC, advocates push gov’t to be tougher on affordability
telecom | 11/27/2020 11:38 am EST
The Competitive Network Operators of Canada (CNOC) and advocacy group...
ISED opening up 6 GHz band for WiFi
telecom | 11/19/2020 5:01 pm EST
The federal government has launched a consultation on a proposal to open up the 6 GHz spectrum band for...
Gov’t tables PIPEDA reform, new consumer privacy legislation
Media | 11/17/2020 5:54 pm EST
The federal government introduced sweeping private-sector privacy law...
Feds boost Universal Broadband Fund by $750M
telecom | 11/09/2020 12:57 pm EST
The federal government announced the launch of its long-awaited Universal Broadband Fund Monday morning, increasing the funding by $750 million and the number of Canadians it aims to have connected by 2026 from 95 per cent to 98 per cent.
The fund also includes $150...
Liberals’ wireless price drop unlikely to achieve promised savings: gov’t docs
telecom | 10/15/2020 2:50 pm EDT
The Liberals' election commitment to drop wireless prices 25 per cent will...
Infrastructure Bank earmarks additional $1B for rural broadband
telecom | 10/01/2020 7:46 pm EDT
The Liberal government is doubling the Canada Infrastructure Bank’s...
ISED launches 3800 MHz consultation
telecom | 08/27/2020 5:31 pm EDT
Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada announced the launch of its consultation process on the 3800 MHz spectrum auction. The band is widely seen as being one of the bands crucial for 5G deployment. The launch...
Bell bringing cabinet’s wholesale appeal response to Federal Court
telecom | 08/17/2020 7:56 pm EDT
Lawyers representing BCE Inc. have asked a Federal Court of Appeal judge to...
Cabinet says CRTC wholesale rates too low, may harm investment
telecom | 08/15/2020 9:06 am EDT
The Liberal government has sided with Canada’s largest telecoms in their...
ISED says wireless prices goals still mostly unmet
telecom | 07/28/2020 6:00 pm EDT
Following on the Liberal election campaign promise to lower wireless prices by 25 per cent, the federal government released on Tuesday the first of its quarterly check-ins on wireless prices across the country. The data --...
U.K. government-led consortium scuppers Telesat’s reported bid for OneWeb
telecom | 07/03/2020 4:38 pm EDT
A reported bid by Ottawa-headquartered satellite service provider Telesat Holdings Inc. to acquire competitor OneWeb has been unsuccessful, with a consortium including the U.K. government and Indian...
Canada yet to make Huawei decision despite Chinese ‘pressure’
telecom | 06/22/2020 6:30 pm EDT
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has again refused to put a timeframe on when...
Gov’t launches AI centre in Montreal
Media | 06/15/2020 3:14 pm EDT
Innovation, Science, and Economic Development announced on Monday the launch of what it is calling the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI), as well as a research centre to be based in Monteal in cooperation with the Quebec provincial government. The research centre, called the International Centre of Expertise in Montréal for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence, will host the inaugural GPAI Multistakeholder Experts Group Plenary, to be held in Montreal in December 2020, according to an ISED media release. The centre will be funded by a previously-announced $5...
5G monitoring same as for all wireless tech: Health Canada
telecom | 05/06/2020 3:16 pm EDT
Health Canada has responded to an MPs’ query about what steps it is...
Bell speeding up rural broadband rollout
telecom | 04/23/2020 3:30 pm EDT
BCE Inc. will be delivering its fixed wireless internet to some 137,000 more homes than it had planned to...
Gov’t in ‘early stages’ of using cellphone data for COVID-19 tracking: Bains
telecom | 04/20/2020 3:40 pm EDT
The federal government is looking at what other jurisdictions are doing...
Bains says he’s in ‘constant contact’ with telecoms over network capacity
telecom | 04/08/2020 4:24 pm EDT
Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains says the...
CNOC calls for gov’t funding to keep Canadians connected
telecom | 04/07/2020 5:40 pm EDT
The federal government should guarantee internet service providers payments for “basic residential connectivity needs” so Canadians can remain connected during the COVID-19 pandemic, Canadian Network Operators Consortium (CNOC) president Matt Stein says.
Stein said in...
Networks coping, but future traffic impossible to predict
Media | 03/25/2020 5:48 pm EDT
Experts say Canada’s telecommunications networks are currently handling a...
Carriers to text consular information to Canadians abroad
telecom | 03/18/2020 5:30 pm EDT
Canada's wireless service providers will send out text messages to their...
Telus savages gov’t price directive, others more circumspect
telecom | 03/06/2020 5:30 pm EST
Analysts have provided nuanced reactions to the government’s plan to...
Telus introduces its own wireless affordability certification
telecom | 02/11/2020 6:20 pm EST
Telus Corp. says it has already met and exceeded the Liberal Party’s goal...
Industry waiting on detail from gov’t on wireless price drop
telecom | 01/15/2020 6:14 pm EST
If Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains wants to see a 25-per-cent reduction...
Throne speech reiterates Liberal promise to cut wireless bills 25%
telecom | 12/05/2019 3:33 pm EST
The new Liberal minority government repeated its promise to lower wireless...
Blair says ‘no timeline’ on Huawei ban; Bains promises ‘more’ on prices
Media | 11/20/2019 1:51 pm EST
OTTAWA — New Public Safety Minister Bill Blair indicated Wednesday he is...
Internet Society lobbies on project to get ahead of IoT vulnerabilities
telecom | 10/17/2019 5:33 pm EDT
The Canadian chapter of the Internet Society (ISCC) is looking to embark on...
Telus warned gov’t of Huawei ban’s ‘far-reaching impacts’: secret docs
telecom | 08/27/2019 3:18 pm EDT
Telus Corp. told the federal government that prohibiting Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd.’s equipment from next-generation networks would significantly delay the deployment of...
Government investing in new cyber security initiatives
telecom | 08/13/2019 5:45 pm EDT
The federal government announced on Monday the creation of the CyberSecure Canada program, a new certification program for Canadian businesses to further promote cyber security as a central tenet of...
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...
‘Many’ in the North to get 50 Mbps+ speeds: Bains
telecom | 07/24/2019 8:01 pm EDT
OTTAWA — As part of its strategy to tackle rural broadband in Canada,...
Rogers’ new no-data-overage plan a ‘necessary’ development: analyst
telecom | 06/12/2019 6:26 pm EDT
Rogers Communications Inc.’s launch of a wireless plan that won’t...
3.5 GHz auction will mean a level playing field for 5G: ISED
Media | 06/05/2019 7:56 pm EDT
MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — Innovation Canada will give existing holders of 3.5 GHz spectrum an opportunity to apply for flexible use of the spectrum based on their proportional holdings of the frequencies, it said in a new document outlining how the band, said to be crucial for...
No issue with Canadian wireless pricing: telecom execs
telecom | 06/05/2019 8:45 am EDT
TORONTO — Executives from Canada’s biggest carriers defended the...
Broadband strategy coming before the election: rural minister
telecom | 06/03/2019 11:43 am EDT
OTTAWA — The new rural economic development ministry will release the...
Data anonymization network launches amid privacy concerns
telecom | 05/31/2019 6:24 pm EDT
A consortium of data stewards launched an informal network last week that looks to promote the anonymization of personal information in Canada in the wake of data privacy concerns sweeping the...
Scheer promises Huawei 5G ban, but no info on what that means
telecom | 05/21/2019 5:17 pm EDT
Conservative leader Andrew Scheer said last week he was in favour of a ban...
ISED convenes AI advisory council
telecom | 05/15/2019 4:51 pm EDT
Innovation Canada announced the creation Tuesday of a new advisory panel for artificial intelligence made up of members from across academia, the private sector, and government. The panel, announced as Innovation Minister...
60% of Connect to Innovate applicants still haven’t heard back
telecom | 05/09/2019 12:32 pm EDT
More than two years after the deadline to apply for funding through the...
Bell-branded wireless hits sub-1% churn, continuing industry trend
Media | 05/02/2019 5:46 pm EDT
The expected focus by the country’s largest wireless service providers...
Gov’t aiming to release Huawei decision before election: Goodale
telecom | 05/01/2019 2:07 pm EDT
The federal government plans to issue its decision on whether to ban equipment from Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. from Canada’s 5G networks before this year’s federal election. “We understand...
Resistance to tower builds shows need to ‘rethink’ consultations: MP
telecom | 04/30/2019 4:35 pm EDT
Residents of a New Brunswick town are asking the Federal Court to review the government’s approval of a proposed telecommunications tower by Bragg Communications Inc.’s...
Include ‘investment’ in new policy direction: big telecoms
telecom | 04/15/2019 1:20 pm EDT
Canada’s four largest wireless providers are asking the government to...
Analysts surprised by Bell’s lack of 600 MHz, incumbent spend
telecom | 04/11/2019 5:57 pm EDT
BCE Inc. walking away from the 600 MHz spectrum auction with no licences,...
Bell will work with Comp Bureau following CCTS court order
Media | 04/11/2019 12:50 pm EDT
OTTAWA — A Federal Court judge has granted an application by the...
Bell opts out of 600 MHz, Rogers nabs 52 licenses for $1.7B
telecom | 04/10/2019 5:30 pm EDT
BCE Inc. was among three prospective applicants who didn’t grab licenses for the coveted 600 MHz spectrum, widely considered to be the last chance to get valuable low-band frequencies. The...
Gov’t should encourage Canadian 5G equipment: Public Safety notes
telecom | 04/01/2019 3:49 pm EDT
Amid security reviews of Canada’s 5G infrastructure lays an ‘opportunity’ for Canadian companies to enter the space and for the government to incentivize that emergence,...
Expect industry pushback on new CRTC directive, MVNOs: experts
telecom | 03/26/2019 1:27 pm EDT
The Liberal government should expect some amount of industry opposition...
OPC, AGC oppose Google expanding deindexing reference
Media | 03/14/2019 4:49 pm EDT
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner and the Attorney General of Canada (AGC) have filed appeals challenging Alphabet Inc.’s application to expand the scope of a deindexing case to include questions about whether forcing it to...
MVNO access proposal ‘burst of oxygen’ to some potential entrants
telecom | 03/04/2019 3:21 pm EST
As the CRTC signals it’s ready to make an about-face on its approach to...
Ottawa proposes new consumer-focused policy direction for CRTC
telecom | 02/26/2019 5:51 pm EST
The Liberal government is proposing a significant departure...
Bell urged Bains not to send back MVNO decision a second time
telecom | 02/12/2019 2:37 pm EST
Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains weighed sending back the CRTC’s...
Huawei 5G decision ‘beyond weeks’ away: Goodale
telecom | 01/29/2019 4:04 pm EST
The federal government’s sweeping security review that’s examining whether to ban Chinese telecom...
Bernadette Jordan tasked to ‘lead work’ to improve rural broadband
telecom | 01/29/2019 12:56 pm EST
The Prime Minister’s Office has made public the mandate letter for the...
Growing CRTC cost awards delays ‘problem for everybody’
Media | 12/18/2018 7:44 pm EST
Increases in how long the CRTC takes to pay public interest groups to...
MP asks ISED to force CRTC internet code extension
telecom | 12/07/2018 4:40 pm EST
NDP MP Brian Masse is asking Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains to force the CRTC to extend the deadline of its submission period for an internet code of conduct after a number of consumer groups said they won’t be participating due to time constraints.
“The problem...
OPC to Bains: privacy rights not ‘at odds’ with innovation
telecom | 12/05/2018 2:01 pm EST
The federal privacy watchdog is warning the Liberal government against...
ISED said it will do its ‘darndest’ for rural in face of 3.5 GHz clawback
telecom | 11/20/2018 2:49 pm EST
OTTAWA — Innovation Canada deputy minister John Knubley said his...
AG finds flaws in rural connectivity funding, spectrum auction process
telecom | 11/20/2018 10:23 am EST
OTTAWA — The federal government has been lagging behind on rural...
Lack of scale, device lineup challenges for Xplore Mobile
telecom | 11/16/2018 6:34 pm EST
New Brunswick-based internet provider Xplornet Communications Inc. started...
ISED announces signing of first supercluster funding agreement
telecom | 11/13/2018 12:28 pm EST
Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains announced the federal government has signed a funding agreement with the group constituting its “advanced manufacturing” supercluster Tuesday, showing that Ottawa is ready to start handing out funding for its supercluster initiative. The agreement paves the way for Ottawa to direct almost $230 million in federal spending into the project, an amount that will be matched by the private sector, the government said in a press release. Bains made the announcement at the headquarters of robotics company Promation in Oakville, Ontario, signalling the...
Ontario, Saskatchewan didn’t agree to ISED broadband strategy
telecom | 10/29/2018 5:45 pm EDT
Last week, ministers of innovation and economic development from three...
Bell, Rogers defend sales practices to CRTC
telecom | 10/26/2018 8:00 pm EDT
GATINEAU –– BCE Inc. and Rogers Communications Inc. defended their sales tactics Friday after a week...
ISED seeks mmWave testing after report questions spectrum readiness
telecom | 10/23/2018 10:39 am EDT
Just over a year after a critical internal report raised questions about the technological readiness of millimetre wave frequencies in the wake of a government consultation on using the spectrum for...
Alleged sales practices wouldn’t be ‘tolerated’ elsewhere: CRTC chairman
Media | 10/22/2018 6:23 pm EDT
GATINEAU— CRTC Chairman Ian Scott opened public...
OPC to seek court reference on search engine delisting
telecom | 09/27/2018 5:39 pm EDT
OTTAWA — Federal privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien says he plans to...
Broadcasters’ association, Corus, add new lobby registrations
Media | 08/24/2018 11:33 am EDT
The Canadian Association of Broadcasters registered to lobby the federal government on its review of the Copyright Act in July, which was otherwise a sleepy month in telecom and media government...
Cogeco hires lobbyist with wireless spectrum expertise
telecom | 07/03/2018 11:54 am EDT
Amir Bigloo, who has a history of successful spectrum purchases as CEO of...
Gov’t cites NAFTA over U.S. net neutrality rollback concerns
Media | 06/22/2018 1:33 pm EDT
The federal government is affirming its commitment to enforcing the...
ISED points to existing programs in response to rural broadband report
telecom | 06/21/2018 5:45 pm EDT
The government has responded to a House industry committee report that, among other recommendations, said the government should tackle the problem of rural broadband access in Canada and called for intentionally favouring small and non-traditional providers. The federal government said it agrees with the report in that small players have an “important role” in upgrading rural broadband technology in Canada, according to a response from Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains and Infrastructure...
Balsillie’s Centre for Digital Rights meets with OPC
telecom | 06/21/2018 4:00 pm EDT
A newly-minted data rights group spearheaded by former BlackBerry Ltd. co-CEO Jim Balsillie met with privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien in late May, according to the federal lobbying registry....
Private member’s bill aims to give privacy commish more powers
telecom | 06/21/2018 2:11 pm EDT
OTTAWA — As the House of Commons rose for summer break Wednesday...
Gov’t launches consultation on data, privacy
telecom | 06/19/2018 6:56 pm EDT
OTTAWA — The federal government said Tuesday it will hold consultations to look at the issue of data...
Industry should know Canadians concerned about sales practices: Bains
telecom | 06/14/2018 1:35 pm EDT
OTTAWA — Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains said Thursday afternoon that...
ISED consulting on timelines for 5G devices, 3.5 GHz for mobile use
telecom | 06/07/2018 6:11 pm EDT
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) is seeking comments, during a consultation on the 3.5 Ghz spectrum, about timelines related to the deployment of the spectrum, including the rollout of 5G equipment and when it should allow for the band’s flexible use for mobile services. The department said in its consultation, released Wednesday, that “broad deployment” of mobile consumer products won’t become available until 2020 and beyond. It is asking for comments on...
Bains says spectrum auction dates to give industry predictability
telecom | 06/06/2018 6:51 pm EDT
TORONTO — Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains announced Wednesday the...
ISED won’t rule out using spectrum proceeds for CanCon: Bains
Media | 06/01/2018 4:47 pm EDT
OTTAWA — Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains and Heritage Minister Mélanie...
Bains mum on if telecom concerns led to Aecon takeover denial
telecom | 05/24/2018 5:01 pm EDT
OTTAWA — Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains wouldn’t say Thursday...
Motion seeking to enshrine net neutrality into law passes
Media | 05/24/2018 12:56 pm EDT
A motion asking the government to consider enshrining the concept of net...
Rogers, Bell add junk food bill concerns to lobby efforts
Media | 04/25/2018 2:54 pm EDT
Rogers Communications Inc. and BCE Inc. have registered to lobby the...
Analysts welcome regulatory certainty after WiFi MVNO decision
Media | 03/23/2018 4:12 pm EDT
The CRTC decision Thursday not to mandate roaming for WiFi-first mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) brings predictability for large telecoms, financial analysts said. “At the highest level,...
Low-cost data plans ‘superior alternative’ to WiFi-first MVNOs: Scott
telecom | 03/22/2018 4:23 pm EDT
Having facilities-based carriers offer low-cost data-only plans is a better way to fulfill the government’s goals of more affordable wireless options for consumers than mandating roaming access by...
Huawei concerns raised in Parliament
Media | 03/21/2018 4:52 pm EDT
The issue of whether a Chinese telecom equipment maker poses a security threat by operating in Canada is...
Broadband price hikes ‘concerning’: Bains
telecom | 03/12/2018 5:49 pm EDT
Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains called reports of internet service price hikes by two large telecoms “concerning” on social media Friday.
He was responding to a recent story from CBC/Radio-Canada about rising home broadband prices from Rogers Communications Inc. and...
Cybersecurity, LEO satellites, data on OTT services in federal budget
Media | 02/27/2018 4:21 pm EST
OTTAWA — The 2018 federal budget, released Tuesday afternoon, includes...
Bell, Telus projects get go-ahead in superclusters announcement
telecom | 02/16/2018 2:24 pm EST
OTTAWA — Two “superclusters” involving BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. are...
Telecoms defend FairPlay to MPs, call for 5G net neutrality flexibility
Media | 02/13/2018 2:01 pm EST
OTTAWA — Representatives from Canada’s biggest telecoms argued that...
Gov’t points to open internet for ‘legal content’ in FairPlay response
Media | 01/30/2018 4:25 pm EST
Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains has released a statement on a call by a coalition of broadcasters, telecoms and creative groups to begin blocking websites hosting pirated content, in which he...
End of 2017 saw Stingray, Birch Hill reinvigorate lobby efforts
Media | 01/17/2018 4:39 pm EST
Stingray Digital Group Inc. and Birch Hill Equity Partners ramped up their lobbying in December, with both submitting their first communications reports for the year in the last weeks of 2017. Birch Hill, an investment firm whose partners include Groupe Maskatel LP, which was acquired this month by BCE Inc., saw its first lobby activity in a year and a half, filing five communications reports with officials at Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED). Representatives reached out to with Parvinder Sachdeva, policy advisor at Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains’ office, as...
NDP calls on Apple to justify software slowdown to MPs
telecom | 01/12/2018 5:39 pm EST
The NDP says silicon valley giant Apple Inc. should speak to a...
Citing gov’t signals, Cogeco CEO indicates renewed interest in wireless
Media | 01/11/2018 5:55 pm EST
MONTREAL — Cogeco Inc. is feeling more optimistic about the possibility...
Sidewalk Labs, civil liberties group register to lobby
Media | 01/08/2018 4:14 pm EST
Alphabet Inc.’s Sidewalk Labs kicked off the new year by registering to...
Canadian gov’t reiterates net neutrality support as FCC kills 2015 rules
telecom | 12/14/2017 5:00 pm EST
The United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted 3-2...
BPF registers to lobby amidst consumer group funding concerns
Media | 12/14/2017 2:25 pm EST
A few months after the emergence of a proposal asking the CRTC to shift...
Scheer mum on net neutrality as CPC MPs take opposing sides
Media | 12/13/2017 4:39 pm EST
Opposition leader Andrew Scheer isn’t going public with his position on...
Bell’s low-cost Lucky Mobile a hit with government
telecom | 12/01/2017 5:26 pm EST
BCE Inc’s move to open a low-cost, prepaid carrier is “well-timed” and positioned to support the...
IoT to impose ‘incredible’ legal responsibility on telecoms: panel
telecom | 11/15/2017 5:42 pm EST
OTTAWA — The proliferation of internet of things (IoT) devices will foist...
Government needs to move quicker, do more on telecom issues: panel
Media | 11/08/2017 6:13 pm EST
TORONTO — The federal government and the CRTC must pick up the pace and do more on critical telecom issues in order to make a much-needed impact when it comes to pricing and...