Spike in complaints causing delays at CCTS, mid-year report outlines

Media | 04/10/2018 6:00 am EDT

Complaints by Canadians about their telecom services increased so much in...

Manitoba town launches no-fee internet service

telecom | 04/09/2018 5:36 pm EDT

Last week, the city of Morden, Manitoba announced a May start date for a utility-like fixed wireless internet service that will be provided to residents at no monthly cost, according to its website. Called Morenet, the service...

71% of households with Kodi can access unlicensed content: Sandvine

Media | 04/06/2018 2:50 pm EDT

The vast majority of households with Kodi in Canada have the software...

OPC joins B.C. privacy commish in investigation of West Coast data company

telecom | 04/06/2018 1:47 pm EDT

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) will participate in an investigation into the activities of AggregateIQ Data Services Ltd. according to a post on its website on Thursday....

Bell celebrates Toronto FTTH build, eyes higher speeds

telecom | 04/05/2018 6:59 pm EDT

As BCE Inc. celebrates the completion of the majority of its fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) build out in Toronto on Thursday, it’s already making plans to exceed the network speeds officially unveiled today, according to a Bell executive. Originally announced in 2015, the infrastructure build out ended up being a $1.5 billion project, according to a release, which said the “all-fibre optic network is now on in Toronto.” Bell will launch new internet packages for FTTH customers in Toronto— including symmetrical gigabit download and upload rates — with a light show and concert by bands...

Corus plans TV ad tech test next month

Media | 04/05/2018 6:29 pm EDT

Corus Entertainment Inc. is “accelerating” its transformation into a more data-centric company, its...

FairPlay regime ineffective, counter to Telecom Act: opponents

Media | 04/05/2018 4:39 pm EDT

A proposal to implement a website-blocking system to fight piracy has drawn...

Data of over 600K Canadians swept up in Facebook data scandal

Media | 04/04/2018 6:34 pm EDT

Facebook Inc. released its estimates of how many people were affected by...

Ad complaints on TV highest, despite trust in medium: Ad Standards

Media | 04/04/2018 5:42 pm EDT

Despite the impact of cord-cutting on the conventional television space in...

Facebook talks election security after tough week

Media | 03/29/2018 5:52 pm EDT

Facebook Inc. announced a series of new measures to harden the platform against misinformation Thursday, saying it has needed to ban a Macedonia-based ring spreading fake news during the late 2017 Alabama senate race, and will now...

Spectrum auction complexity barrier for fixed wireless providers: Nordicity

telecom | 03/29/2018 4:35 pm EDT

OTTAWA — Complex auction and government subsidy application processes are...

Few surprises in 600 MHz auction framework: analysts

telecom | 03/29/2018 4:15 pm EDT

Innovation Canada has released its framework for the 600 MHz spectrum auction, now scheduled for March 2019, and it will set aside 43 per cent of spectrum for “regional competitors and potential new market entrants,” according...

Ontario doubles down on rural internet, AI, sets up fund for next gen tech

telecom | 03/29/2018 3:52 pm EDT

The Ontario government is pledging $50 million for a fund that will accelerate the development of next generation technology including artificial intelligence, 5G and autonomous vehicles. Unveiled...

Deadline set for mandatory emergency alerts

telecom | 03/29/2018 3:37 pm EDT

Wireless service providers are required to distribute wireless public emergency alert messages on LTE by April 6, the CRTC said in a Thursday release. The announcement puts an end to uncertainty as to when the service would mandated. The regulator initially intended for April 6 to be the official date, but in February it was still working out the kinks. A nationwide test will start between May 6 and 12, and is intended to give Canadians an opportunity to “become familiar with how public alert messages will be delivered...including the tone and vibration cadence that will distinguish...

NDP targets net neutrality, data and privacy rights in new motion

telecom | 03/28/2018 7:21 pm EDT

OTTAWA — Members of the federal NDP introduced a sweeping motion...

Quebecor, cultural groups praise Que. budget digital sales tax

Media | 03/28/2018 4:01 pm EDT

The Quebec government’s 2018 budget, unveiled Tuesday, includes a measure...

TNW pushing ahead with Part 1 despite WiFi MVNO decision

telecom | 03/28/2018 1:19 pm EDT

TNW Wireless Inc. is still hopeful the CRTC will rule in its favour in a...

Next gen WiFi to bolster connected homes, open space connectivity

telecom | 03/27/2018 6:39 pm EDT

GATINEAU — The next generation of WiFi will incorporate LTE technology...

Internet Society establishes lobby footing in Canada

Media | 03/27/2018 6:32 pm EDT

A decades-old organization that is pushing for a multilateral approach to decision-making on the future of the internet has registered to lobby the government for the first time. The Feb. 20 registration under consultant Kathleen Monk of Earnscliffe Strategy Group is on...

Enough consultation, time for action on connected cars: experts

telecom | 03/27/2018 6:17 pm EDT

The government has spent years consulting on connected and autonomous cars...

SNC-Lavalin and Carleton partnering on power plant cybersec

telecom | 03/26/2018 5:17 pm EDT

SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. and Carleton University have signed a memorandum of...

CRTC consulting on NG911 network efficiency

telecom | 03/26/2018 1:29 pm EDT

The CRTC said Monday it is asking for input on next-generation 911 (NG911) network design efficiencies...

Ontario private sector data law timely: MPPs

telecom | 03/23/2018 5:20 pm EDT

An Ontario lawmaker is pushing for consent-based privacy legislation focused on governing the collection, use and disclosure of personal information by the private sector. On Wednesday, the Personal Information Protection Act...

No slow-down for increases in data usage: telecoms

telecom | 03/23/2018 5:18 pm EDT

Executives from Rogers Communications Inc. and Telus Corp. don’t see demand for wireless data slowing down, they told an investors conference earlier this week. “We’re still seeing significant data growth in the wireless...

Phishing, DDoS attacks still dogging Canadian businesses: CIRA

telecom | 03/23/2018 3:50 pm EDT

There is high awareness of cyber threats among businesses with .ca registrations, but a sizeable sum of small and large organizations surveyed by the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA)...

Questions remain about CSE public info use, Cambridge Analytica

Media | 03/23/2018 10:46 am EDT

OTTAWA — Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan couldn’t tell MPs or reporters...

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...

OPC investigating Facebook as gov’t responds to privacy concerns

Media | 03/21/2018 6:20 pm EDT

OTTAWA — Revelations over the weekend that Facebook Inc. data was used inappropriately for political purposes are now being formally investigated by the privacy...

Default credentials factor in hospital software security breaches: McAfee

telecom | 03/21/2018 5:15 pm EDT

Default accounts on hospital systems using free software contributed to a significant increase in publicly-reported security incidents at medical centres around the world, a new report from computer...

In telecoms’ year-end, cord-cutting slows, wireline grows

Media | 03/21/2018 12:14 pm EDT

Canada’s publicly-traded telecoms lost fewer TV subscribers in 2017 than...

5G project gets $400M for grants, infrastructure and research centres

telecom | 03/20/2018 4:46 pm EDT

OTTAWA — A public-private partnership to foster 5G technology research in...

OPC to look into Cambridge Analytica revelations

Media | 03/19/2018 6:06 pm EDT

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) is looking into reports data of 50 million Facebook Inc....

Federal gov’t chipping in $17M for high-speed connections in Alberta

telecom | 03/15/2018 5:11 pm EDT

Organizations in Alberta will receive $22.5 million in federal and private funds to build high-speed internet connections in the province, according to a release from...

New promise for fixed wireless, as telecoms incorporate LTE, 5G

telecom | 03/15/2018 2:12 pm EDT

Advances in fixed wireless technology could make it a more viable option...

Videotron ‘full speed’ ahead on IPTV: Brouillette

Media | 03/14/2018 5:27 pm EDT

Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron is working on deploying its new IPTV service as quickly as possible, Manon...

Fibre backbone, last mile projects in rural B.C. getting $38M in funding

telecom | 03/14/2018 12:57 pm EDT

Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada announced an additional $38 million of funding for rural broadband in British Columbia in a release on Tuesday. The funding is on top of...

Citing nat’l security, Trump blocks attempted Qualcomm takeover

telecom | 03/13/2018 4:54 pm EDT

Microchip producer Broadcom Ltd.’s proposed takeover of chipmaker Qualcomm Inc. was blocked Monday via an executive order by United States president Donald Trump. The order referred to...

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...

Equustek case back in B.C. court over internet jurisdiction

Media | 03/12/2018 4:35 pm EDT

A British Columbia court will not delay hearing a challenge brought by...

Bell expands Lucky Mobile to Manitoba, Sask.

telecom | 03/12/2018 12:39 pm EDT

BCE Inc.’s low-cost prepaid brand Lucky Mobile is now available in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, the...

Anglophone TV subs down slightly to 73%: MTM

Media | 03/09/2018 4:54 pm EST

The percentage of anglophones subscribing to TV service fell to 73 per cent in 2017 from 75 per cent a year earlier, according to the latest numbers from CBC/Radio-Canada’s Media Technology Monitor (MTM) project. Continuing...

More emphasis on transparency needed in PIPEDA: professor

telecom | 03/09/2018 4:52 pm EST

OTTAWA — Any amendments to Canada’s privacy law for the private sector should include measures to enhance transparency, which include the privacy commissioner naming bad actors in investigations and mandating organizations report details of personal information being...

Jean-Pierre Blais new assistant deputy minister at PSPC

telecom | 03/08/2018 6:16 pm EST

The former chairman of the CRTC, Jean-Pierre Blais, is staying in the...

CRTC still eyeing April start date for wireless alerts

telecom | 03/08/2018 2:55 pm EST

In a decision on Thursday, the CRTC has said that while the launch of Canada’s upcoming wireless public alerting (WPA) system has yet to be announced, it intends for the start date to be the...

UofO teases consumer tools for wireless services

telecom | 03/07/2018 8:06 pm EST

OTTAWA — Tools to better inform consumers of their rights when purchasing wireless services are under...

Billing and collection service to remain mandated: CRTC

telecom | 03/07/2018 3:04 pm EST

The CRTC said in a pair of decisions Wednesday that BCE Inc. and Telus...

BlackBerry targets Facebook with patent infringement lawsuit

telecom | 03/06/2018 4:38 pm EST

Citing its early developments in timestamp interfaces, encryption technology and blending mobile gaming into mobile messaging, BlackBerry Ltd. has brought a patent lawsuit against Facebook Inc. and its subsidiaries WhatsApp and Instagram in a Los Angeles court, according to...

LTE open to numerous security flaws: paper

telecom | 03/06/2018 4:03 pm EST

Researchers at American universities have found a number of security vulnerabilities on the 4G LTE network, which could expose citizens to tracking, impersonation and fake text messages. The paper, which was presented at a...

Import standards on IoT devices a good idea, cyber experts say

telecom | 03/05/2018 5:21 pm EST

OTTAWA — Experts praised the idea of stricter standards for imported...

Novus asks for access to Vancouver condo buildings

telecom | 03/05/2018 4:29 pm EST

Novus Entertainment Inc. has filed a Part 1 application with the CRTC asking for access to multi-dwelling units under construction by a real-estate developer in the Vancouver area, Ledingham McAllister. Novus said it needs...

Apple gives MPs few answers on iPhone slowdown

telecom | 03/02/2018 4:09 pm EST

OTTAWA — Representatives from Apple Inc. faced down members of the House committee on industry, science...

House ethics committee backs right to be forgotten in Canada

Media | 03/01/2018 5:23 pm EST

The government should consider including frameworks for a right to erasure...

Budget’s cybersec plans invoke questions about transparency: professor

telecom | 02/28/2018 7:08 pm EST

As the federal government announced schemes to bolster Canadian...

Big Three leveraging wireless networks for digital ID business

telecom | 02/28/2018 3:52 pm EST

Canada’s major telecoms are among the leading players in the creation of...

4G will continue to dominate global connects in 2025: GSMA

telecom | 02/28/2018 3:18 pm EST

Despite indications deployment of 5G is being accelerated, a report from GSMA says 4G connections will still dwarf those of 5G into 2025. The Mobile Economy 2018 report, released Tuesday, noted...

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 half a billion dollars in funding for cybersecurity initiatives, in addition to smaller investments in...

Bell, Huawei test 5G tech for fixed wireless in rural Ontario

telecom | 02/27/2018 3:50 pm EST

BCE Inc. and Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. have successfully tested fixed wireless technology that uses Huawei's 5G tech in rural parts of Southwestern Ontario, according to a Tuesday press release....

Telecoms point to growing WiFi, IoT spectrum demand in ISED consultation

telecom | 02/26/2018 7:46 pm EST

Canada’s telecoms are taking sides on how Innovation Canada should approach the release of more licence-exempt spectrum, including whether more should be allocated for WiFi use, as it prepares for...

Bell offering steep discounts for Toronto condo dwellers: analyst

telecom | 02/26/2018 3:40 pm EST

BCE Inc. is advertising unusually low-priced promotional offers in downtown...

Videotron launches free WiFi calling, texting for travellers

telecom | 02/26/2018 1:13 pm EST

Customers of Quebecor Inc.'s Videotron can now make free voice calls and ...

NG911 operators should plan ahead for cyberattacks: CRTC

telecom | 02/23/2018 5:20 pm EST

The CRTC is encouraging emergency operators to harden next generation 911 (NG911) services from cyber attacks like malware and ransomware, as it said Friday it supports the recommendations of a report warning that the new 911 system will be more vulnerable to threats. In...

Security data overwhelming Canadian IT depts: Cisco

telecom | 02/23/2018 2:13 pm EST

Only 45 per cent of cybersecurity alerts are investigated in Canada, according to Cisco Systems Inc.’s 2018 Annual Cybersecurity Report. That puts Canada in second-lowest place behind China in a list of 17 countries and...

Data, programmatic ads benefit in telecoms’ media ownership: Moody’s

Media | 02/23/2018 12:53 pm EST

Data insights and programmatic advertising that could disrupt digital...

Don’t allow white space devices above 608 MHz, ISED hears

telecom | 02/22/2018 5:59 pm EST

Innovation Canada (ISED) is hearing from both telecoms and broadcasters that it should go ahead with its proposal to limit white space devices to bands below 608 MHz, though for very different...

Worldwide smartphone sales dip in Q4: Gartner

telecom | 02/22/2018 2:13 pm EST

Global smartphones saw a year-over-year decline in sales for the first time in the fourth quarter due to...

SWIFT takes fibre goals to the Hill

Media | 02/21/2018 5:57 pm EST

Over six years after it was established, a government-funded non-profit initiative seeking to deliver...

CRTC grants telecoms Wireless Code extension

telecom | 02/21/2018 5:02 pm EST

The CRTC has told Telus Corp., Rogers Communications Inc. and TBayTel Inc. that they can have the extra time they requested in order to implement certain requirements of the Wireless Code. The two companies told the regulator...

ISED says no to TerreStar’s bid for more spectrum

telecom | 02/20/2018 3:31 pm EST

Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada has decided against assigning additional...

Alt TV quietly becoming significant for Bell: Barclays

Media | 02/20/2018 2:47 pm EST

BCE Inc.’s Alt TV service is its “underappreciated driver for broadband growth,” Barclays Capital analyst Phillip Huang said in a research...

U.S. IC chiefs issue warning against Huawei, ZTE devices

telecom | 02/16/2018 5:43 pm EST

The United States Senate Intelligence Committee heard from six high-ranking intelligence community officials who spoke out against the use of telecommunications hardware produced by Chinese companies on Tuesday. “We’re deeply concerned about the risks of allowing any...

ISED expands AWS-1 coverage requirements, licence terms

telecom | 02/16/2018 4:49 pm EST

Innovation Canada is extending both licence terms and coverage requirements following a consultation on AWS-1 spectrum renewals, it said in a decision Friday. In 2008, ISED — then Industry...

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...

25% of Shaw workforce takes voluntary buyout, CFO leaving

telecom | 02/15/2018 2:13 pm EST

Shaw Communications Inc. has revealed that 3,300 employees, or a quarter of...

Privacy protections ‘implicit’ in C-59: CSE

telecom | 02/14/2018 3:49 pm EST

OTTAWA — Representatives from the Communications Security Establishment (CSE), when asked Tuesday about...

Municipalities argue new definitions, cost-sharing in MAA ‘unworkable’

telecom | 02/14/2018 1:58 pm EST

A group of municipalities is asking the CRTC to take a second look at a decision last year that determined how much data, including coordinates, was necessary for the city to...

Bell to pay $1M in tangible benefits for Larche stations

telecom | 02/14/2018 1:26 pm EST

The CRTC has approved the purchase of four Ontario radio stations by BCE Inc.’s Bell Media from Larche Communications Inc. The deal, announced last year, will see Bell buy the stations for $15.6...

CRTC abdicating responsibility by declining sales practices inquiry: PIAC

telecom | 02/14/2018 11:14 am EST

The CRTC has told the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) that Canadians have other outlets for complaints about telecom sales practices in response to a request from the consumer group to open an...

Bell played fair in carriage dispute with Ebox: CRTC

telecom | 02/13/2018 3:08 pm EST

In a decision on Monday, the CRTC ruled that BCE Inc. did not subject independent telecom Ebox Inc. to an undue disadvantage during carriage negotiations. In a Part 1 application in September, Ebox alleged that Bell was putting...

High fees, lack of understanding limit personal info access: Citizen Lab

telecom | 02/12/2018 5:38 pm EST

Financial barriers and complex responses still deter individuals from...

Specialized fitness wearables to take chunk of global market by 2022

telecom | 02/12/2018 4:35 pm EST

Customers’ drive to track precise data will push specific kinds of...

PIAC asks CRTC to confirm prepaid balances must be retained

telecom | 02/09/2018 5:49 pm EST

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) is asking the CRTC to declare that telecoms cannot expire balances left on customers’ prepaid accounts in cases where customers continue to top off their...

Shaw’s wireless ambitions will hit big three unevenly: Barclays

telecom | 02/09/2018 2:23 pm EST

Shaw Communications Inc.’s moves to take a larger share of Canada’s...

C-59 CSE hacking powers could put Canadians at risk: OpenMedia

telecom | 02/09/2018 2:06 pm EST

OTTAWA — The Canadian Security Establishment (CSE) could inadvertently be...

Bell, Telus report wireless sub gains from December promos

Media | 02/08/2018 6:27 pm EST

BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. both reported quarterly results for the three months ending on Dec. 31 Wednesday, and while both had significant increases in wireless customer additions, Bell especially appeared to benefit from December’s week of heightened competition....

Bell teams up with Kingston on smart city project

telecom | 02/07/2018 1:51 pm EST

Kingston, Ont., is partnering with BCE Inc. to integrate the company’s Internet of Things (IoT)...

Industry committee to go ahead with iPhone slowdown hearings

telecom | 02/07/2018 1:35 pm EST

The House of Commons standing committee on industry, science and technology has approved a motion to launch a study looking into the slowing down of Apple Inc.’s older mobile devices. NDP MP Brian Masse, who is the vice-chairman of the committee, asked it to look into a change to Apple’s mobile operating system that...

Liberals signal interest in enshrining net neutrality in law

Media | 02/06/2018 7:24 pm EST

OTTAWA — The idea of of explicitly making net neutrality part of...

Start date for wireless emergency alert system still not set: CRTC

telecom | 02/05/2018 6:08 pm EST

OTTAWA — Following a wireless emergency alert in the United States that...

As TiVo targets Telus, three telecoms now all fighting TV patent claims

telecom | 02/05/2018 5:37 pm EST

Telus Corp. is now the third Canadian telecom to be sued by TiVo Corp. over patents related to the operation of its TV services. The California-based company is alleging...

Bell to unlock all wireless devices on request

telecom | 02/05/2018 5:11 pm EST

BCE Inc. said it will unlock all devices that are restricted to its network, helping relieve concern among consumer groups who are currently asking the CRTC to clarify that policy in the new Wireless Code. Bell spokeswoman...

CRTC asks digital giants for info, promises confidentiality

Media | 02/05/2018 2:02 pm EST

As part of its government-ordered proceeding on future content distribution models, the CRTC is asking a number of companies — including Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Netflix Inc. — for information...

Trend Micro and Telus combine forces against cyber threats

telecom | 02/02/2018 5:48 pm EST

Japanese cyber security company Trend Micro Inc. and Telus Corp. have...

Bell successfully tests gigabit speeds on LTE-A network

telecom | 02/02/2018 5:27 pm EST

BCE Inc. said Friday it has achieved gigabit-per-second mobile network speeds during tests near Mississauga, Ont., according to a release on Friday. Claiming it was the "first wireless provider in...

CNOC denied ‘transitional’ access to FTTP under disaggregated regime

telecom | 02/02/2018 5:01 pm EST

In a decision on Friday, the CRTC ruled that the Canadian Network Operators Consortium’s (CNOC) application for transitional access to fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) facilities belonging to large...

Canadian media industry still behind on data, conference hears

Media | 02/01/2018 7:57 pm EST

OTTAWA — The Canadian television industry is behind the curve when it...

TFO looking for participants for March blockchain test

telecom | 02/01/2018 2:45 pm EST

OTTAWA — A Canada Media Fund-backed initiative to implement blockchain...

TiVo expands patent suit to include Bell

telecom | 01/31/2018 5:49 pm EST

TiVo Corp. is going after a second Canadian telecom for patent infringement, claiming in a lawsuit filed...

Interventions due March 1 in website-blocking proceeding

Media | 01/31/2018 5:16 pm EST

The CRTC has officially launched the Part 1 process for an application asking the regulator to set up an anti-piracy website-blocking system. The Part 1 was posted on the CRTC's website Tuesday with a March 1 deadline for interventions. The FairPlay coalition, whose membership includes telecoms, broadcasters and creative groups, is arguing that piracy is a growing threat to the industry and wants the CRTC to create an agency that would identify websites hosting pirated content, which would then be blocked. Internet advocacy group OpenMedia has begun a public campaign against the...