Use of AI will bring benefits to telecoms, but also risks

Media | 05/01/2017 5:22 pm EDT

Artificial intelligence is a tool telecoms will increasingly use to manage networks and enhance various products, but its susceptibility to hacking will also pose big security-related concerns,...

Shoan wins appeal of CRTC dismissal; judge sends decision for reconsideration

Media | 04/29/2017 12:23 am EDT

Raj Shoan was denied procedural fairness when he was fired from his job as the CRTC’s regional commissioner for Ontario last summer, three years into a five-year term, a Federal Court justice...

Digital platforms open to cultural diversity message: Joly

Media | 04/28/2017 8:29 pm EDT

OTTAWA — Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly said she found a receptive audience for her message of cultural diversity on digital platforms among the executives of the digital media giants she...

AI, 5G, rural broadband funding in Ont., N.S. budgets

Media | 04/27/2017 9:27 pm EDT

The Ontario government said it will support the latest technologies in the coming years, with funding for artificial intelligence and 5G networks included in its 2017 budget. Finance Minister Charles Sousa tabled Ontario’s...

CRTC issues first non-telemarketing fine to telecom

telecom | 04/27/2017 8:44 pm EDT

A $15,000 fine imposed on VOIS Inc. Thursday marks the first time the CRTC has fined a telecom under the Telecommunications Act for not complying with a regulatory requirement “not related to telemarketing,” the commission said in a press release. The CRTC fined the company for being expelled from the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunication Services (CCTS). It added in the release that it’s also issued a mandatory order requiring the company to rejoin the CCTS within 30 days. It will also consider, as part of a public proceeding,...

Quality of service regime needed for wholesale Internet: CNOC

telecom | 04/27/2017 6:51 pm EDT

Small Internet service providers (ISPs) and advocacy groups are asking the CRTC to put in place protections regarding the quality of service they and their customers receive when buying wholesale...

Virgin Mobile leads in wireless customer satisfaction: study

telecom | 04/27/2017 4:40 pm EDT

Good customer service goes hand-in-hand with price as a popular reason customers pick their wireless service provider, according to a new J.D. Power study released Thursday. When asked why they...

FCC head outlines plans for Open Internet rejig

telecom | 04/26/2017 7:58 pm EDT

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will introduce a proposal next month for a new plan to replace the existing Open Internet order, also referred to as Title II, Chairman Ajit Pai said Wednesday. Speaking at an...

Bell to launch new TV service to combat cord-cutting

Media | 04/26/2017 7:04 pm EDT

BCE Inc. will introduce a new television service aimed at customers who have been turning away from traditional TV to online alternatives, president and CEO George Cope said on a conference call with analysts discussing the...

Shaw, Corus closing 3 community TV stations, shifting to Global

Media | 04/26/2017 6:06 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. and Corus Entertainment Inc. will close three Shaw local TV stations in Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary, and redistribute the annual funding to Global News...

Canadian music streaming brings in $128M US: report

Media | 04/26/2017 5:43 pm EDT

Canada has become the world’s sixth-largest market for recorded music, according to a new report from the International Federation for the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). The group’s 2017 Global Music Report said...

11th domestic Internet exchange point opens in Moncton

telecom | 04/26/2017 4:29 pm EDT

Atlantic Canada is gaining a second Internet exchange point (IXP), in Moncton, N.B., the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) announced in a Wednesday press release. The Moncton...

Cyber security costs to outpace spending by 2022: Juniper

telecom | 04/25/2017 5:04 pm EDT

Global cyber security spending is expected to reach almost $135 billion by 2022, but that will be dwarfed by losses due to security and data breaches, according to a new report by Juniper Research....

CRTC consulting on broadband funding regime

telecom | 04/25/2017 4:20 pm EDT

The CRTC is asking for input on the $750-million fund for improving broadband service it first announced in December as part of its basic service decision. The project will be funded by repurposing the existing local service subsidy and new contributions from telecoms based on broadband revenues, the commission said at the time. In a notice released Tuesday, the CRTC said the consultation will deal with issues “including its governance, operating, and accountability frameworks, as well as eligibility and assessment criteria for proposed projects.” This...

Telus investing $80 million in Quebec fibre network

Media | 04/24/2017 8:50 pm EDT

Telus Corp. announced Monday a new investment of $80 million in its fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) network in Quebec. It said in a French-language press release that the investment would affect almost 20 communities in...

Canadian, int’l satellite providers at odds on NGSO licensing

telecom | 04/24/2017 8:26 pm EDT

Canadian satellite companies are asking Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) to ensure a level playing field with their international competition when it comes to the licensing...

Sirius ordered to make up $300K CanCon contribution shortfall

Media | 04/24/2017 7:04 pm EDT

Sirius XM Canada Holdings Inc. has to pony up more than $300,000 to make up a deficit in its Canadian content development contributions, the CRTC said. In a letter dated April 5, the regulator...

CCSA leads March lobbying pack

Media | 04/21/2017 8:39 pm EDT

The Canadian Cable Systems Alliance (CCSA) led the telecom field for lobbying the federal government in March, logging 15 communication reports for the month, according to the federal lobbyists’ registry. Those...

Telecoms to compete on service after zero-rating decision: analysts

Media | 04/21/2017 4:11 pm EDT

The CRTC’s decision Thursday to ban most forms of zero-rating means telecoms will have to rely on service in order to stand out from the competition, analysts said. The new rules that prohibit differentiated pricing practices (DPPs) that aren’t data-agnostic and aren’t offered to all customers, among other stipulations, mean Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron won’t be able to keep operating its Unlimited Music service. “In our view, this is a...

CRTC effectively bans most zero-rating in differential pricing decision

Media | 04/20/2017 8:04 pm EDT

As the CRTC banned most forms of differential pricing practices Thursday — including declaring that telecoms can’t pick and chose Internet content to zero-rate and...

Gatineau says it can’t reach access agreement with telecoms

telecom | 04/20/2017 6:21 pm EDT

The city of Gatineau, Que., is turning to the CRTC to approve its municipal access agreement after BCE Inc., Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron, Rogers Communications Inc., Telus...

OTT revenues north of $970M by 2018: Convergence

Media | 04/20/2017 5:27 pm EDT

Annual subscription revenue from over-the-top (OTT) providers is estimated to be inching toward the billion-dollar mark in Canada, according to a new report from Convergence Consulting Group Ltd., which estimated a...

Telus to offer WiFi in Montreal’s Old Port

telecom | 04/20/2017 5:25 pm EDT

Telus Corp. said Thursday it will provide free WiFi in Montreal’s Old Port as part of a 20-year agreement “to equip the historic site with the latest next-generation wireless technology.” The company...

Bell claims first launch of quad band LTE-A in North America

telecom | 04/20/2017 4:39 pm EDT

BCE Inc. said it is now the first carrier on the continent to have the capability of delivering quad band LTE-advanced service.  “Also known as 4-carrier aggregation, Quad Band...

Scant evidence to oppose HPODs in 5GHz: telecoms

telecom | 04/19/2017 9:59 pm EDT

Canada’s largest telecoms said opponents of high-power and outdoor devices (HPODs) in the 5GHz frequency band have failed to provide adequate evidence against the move. Earlier this month, Canada’s major...

Natale says ‘more work to do’ as he takes the reins at Rogers

Media | 04/19/2017 8:25 pm EDT

In his first day on the job, newly minted Rogers Communications Inc. president and CEO Joe Natale gave few details about his priorities, but said he’ll be working on a strategy in the coming...

Sandvine warns about zero-rating ‘fraud’

telecom | 04/19/2017 5:33 pm EDT

A new report from broadband equipment maker Sandvine Corp. says that some Internet users are avoiding data charges by disguising Internet traffic to look like zero-rated content. “Enticed by the potential of receiving...

Telecoms shouldn’t be gatekeepers, Blais says ahead of differential pricing decision

Media | 04/18/2017 8:30 pm EDT

The CRTC may very well complete the record on net neutrality policy in Canada when it releases its decision Thursday afternoon on differential pricing practices, chairman Jean-Pierre Blais told a Harvard University audience Tuesday. The decision on the proceeding — which started with complaints over Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron’s Unlimited Music Service back in 2015 and morphed into a survey of the entire scope of zero-rating and sponsored...

ISED releases timeline, allotments for 600 MHz transition

Media | 04/18/2017 8:16 pm EDT

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) has released a schedule and details how it plans to shift the use of 600 MHz spectrum from over-the-air (OTA) television to wireless. ISED...

Bell asks CRTC for clarity on stolen-device tariff clause

Media | 04/18/2017 4:11 pm EDT

BCE Inc. is asking the CRTC to reinsert a phrase into its terms and conditions removed in last month’s decision on mobile wholesale mobile wireless roaming service tariffs that the company...

Cathia Badiere joins ACTRA

Media | 04/18/2017 3:47 pm EDT

The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) has hired Cathia Badiere as its national director of research. Effective immediately, Badiere will oversee the organization’s collective bargaining, policy and industry research “to support ACTRA’s objective of...

600MHz auction wraps in U.S.

telecom | 04/13/2017 9:21 pm EDT

A year after it began, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has completed its incentive auction of 600 MHz spectrum to be repurposed for wireless use. The auction, which ran March 29, 2016 to March 30, 2017, grossed $19.8...

Digital media finances on CRTC’s three-year plan

Media | 04/13/2017 7:01 pm EDT

The CRTC will begin measuring the books of digital media operations in the country, with the aim of eventually publishing data on their finances, the regulator said in its new three-year plan. Published on its website Thursday, the 2017-2020 plan includes a new item on its to-do list to “undertake research to deepen its understanding of the financial state of digital media in Canada, including a targeted survey of broadcasters’ digital media activities.” The CRTC also intends to place CBC/Radio-Canada under scrutiny in the coming years, saying in the plan...

Joe Natale to join Rogers next week

Media | 04/13/2017 4:29 pm EDT

After a series of high-profile departures from the company, Rogers Communications Inc. announced Thursday that it will welcome its new president and CEO next week. Former Telus Corp. head Joe Natale...

Shaw promises more integration with Freedom under new COO

telecom | 04/12/2017 9:10 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. said Wednesday that its Freedom Mobile division will have a new chief operating officer, as Paul McAleese takes over from Alek Krstajic. CEO Brad Shaw...

Anglophone TV subs drop to 75 per cent: MTM

Media | 04/12/2017 5:41 pm EDT

Analog and digital cable’s share of the TV market declined from 40 per cent to 36 per cent in 2016, while IPTV subscriptions picked up among English-speaking Canadians, according to new research from Media Technology Monitor...

Bell says retroactive regulation can’t be basis for simsub ban

Media | 04/11/2017 9:11 pm EDT

The CRTC can’t retroactively apply regulations established almost a year after the fact to justify its prohibition simultaneous substitution during the broadcast of the National Football...

‘Unprecedented’ collaboration necessary for connected cars: lawyer

telecom | 04/11/2017 8:44 pm EDT

OTTAWA — Canada must develop a national policy and form a multi-party committee involving different levels of government to help inform decisions on autonomous and connected cars, a...

Twitch asks for court order to identify Shaw customer

Media | 04/10/2017 5:52 pm EDT

Amazon.com Inc.’s Twitch is asking the Supreme Court of British Columbia to order five companies, including Shaw Communications Inc., to identify a customer Twitch is accusing of “malicious spambot...

5G wireless substitution ‘not in the cards,’ says Cogeco’s Audet

Media | 04/07/2017 8:14 pm EDT

Cogeco Inc. CEO Louis Audet said Friday that he’s not concerned about customers substituting wireline Internet service with wireless with the advent of 5G, and that the company...

Chris Jones joins CWTA

Media | 04/06/2017 9:11 pm EDT

The Canadian Wireless Telecommunication Association has hired Chris Jones as its new director of regulatory affairs, policy and research. Jones replaces Kurt Eby, who left the role at the CWTA in January to take a position in Toronto. According to emails from CWTA spokeswoman Sophie...

Wireless emergency alerts to be mandatory by April 2018

telecom | 04/06/2017 6:34 pm EDT

The CRTC has ordered wireless service providers to implement a system for the sending of emergency alerts over LTE networks that will be operational in a year’s time. In its decision Thursday, the CRTC said that since more Canadians now have cellphones than landlines, and that alerts have been mandatory for broadcasters since March 2016, requiring wireless providers “to distribute emergency alert messages on mobile devices would be in the public interest and would help protect Canadians from imminent threats to life and property.” The CRTC noted interveners,...

Consumer advocates request basic services rejig for affordability fund

telecom | 04/06/2017 5:32 pm EDT

A trio of consumer advocacy groups are asking the CRTC to revise December’s basic telecom services decision, stating in a review-and-vary application filed Wednesday that the regulator...

Amazon scores NFL deal, Canadian rights still under negotiation

Media | 04/05/2017 9:50 pm EDT

Amazon.com Inc. has secured the streaming rights to 10 Thursday Night Football games from the National Football League (NFL), according to a Wall Street Journal report. The deal is...

Telus, B.C. pledge $2M to connect youth in government care

telecom | 04/05/2017 9:33 pm EDT

Telus Corp. and the government of British Columbia are committing $2 million to offer subsidized smartphones to up to 1,000 youth who are currently, or were previously, in government care. The...

CCTS complaints continue downward trend

telecom | 04/05/2017 9:27 pm EDT

There were fewer complaints accepted by the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS) in the second half of 2016 than in the comparable time period a year earlier, according to the CCTS mid-year...

Quebec approves class action over Fibe advertising

telecom | 04/05/2017 9:15 pm EDT

The Quebec Superior Court has approved a class-action lawsuit against BCE Inc. for allegedly misrepresenting the type of connections customers receive when subscribing to its Fibe services. The representative plaintiff, Quebec resident Shay Abicidan, is suing for damages and a permanent injunction on the sale of Bell’s Fibe Internet and TV services due to the connections not being composed entirely of fibre optics, according to the March 30 decision authorizing the action. According to court documents in French, the applicant said Bell’s network is comprised of both...

Regional telecom disruption on Competition Bureau’s radar: commissioner

Media | 04/05/2017 4:44 pm EDT

The Competition Bureau will be keeping an eye on how regional telecom providers can disrupt the incumbents’ hold on the market, the commissioner said Tuesday. In a speech to the...

Open 5GHz to HPODs before 2019: telecoms

Media | 04/04/2017 9:03 pm EDT

Canada should allow high-power and outdoor devices (HPODs) in the 5GHz band before the World Radiocommunications Conference in 2019 (WRC-19), Canada's major telecom companies said in comments to the Ministry of Innovation,...

Rogers adds towers, deploys 700 MHz in Kelowna, B.C.

telecom | 04/04/2017 8:40 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. said Tuesday it has improved its wireless service in the Kelowna, B.C. area. It said in a press release two new towers will provide better wireless coverage, adding it has also deployed...

Federal gov’t investigating source of IMSI catchers on Parliament Hill

telecom | 04/04/2017 8:25 pm EDT

The IMSI catchers found to be in use in Ottawa around Parliament Hill are not being operated by a Canadian agency and an investigation has been launched to find the culprits, Public Safety Minister...

Toronto city council adopts motion on unlimited data

telecom | 04/04/2017 8:21 pm EDT

Toronto city council voted last week to ask the CRTC to force wireless providers to offer unlimited data plans. The motion, brought forward by councillor Michelle Holland, directs the city manager to convey a request to the CRTC...

Connected cars ‘smartphones on wheels,’ Senate committee hears

Media | 04/04/2017 7:57 pm EDT

OTTAWA — The development of connected and autonomous vehicles might be the thing that makes the issue of cyber security tangible, a Canadian intelligence official told senators Tuesday....

Frank Boulben to exit Rogers

Media | 04/04/2017 4:38 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc.’s chief strategy officer, Frank Boulben, is leaving the company. Rogers spokesman Andrew Garas said in an email Tuesday Boulben would depart at the end of April. Boulben joined Rogers...

Telus closes deal for 100K MTS subscribers

Media | 04/04/2017 3:41 pm EDT

Telus Corp. has finalized a deal it struck as part of BCE Inc.’s acquisition of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. to have 100,000 former MTS subscribers, or about one quarter of its postpaid wireless subscriber base,...

IMSI catchers in use around Parliament Hill: CBC

telecom | 04/03/2017 9:39 pm EDT

IMSI catchers are in operation around Ottawa’s Parliament Hill, according to an investigation by CBC/Radio-Canada’s news division. Also known as stingrays, the devices mimic cell phone towers and collect information from mobile phones in a given area. During a “months-long” investigation, the news outlet used a device that detects IMSI catchers which “set off alerts at locations around Parliament Hill, including the nearby Byward Market, the Rideau Centre shopping mall and CBC offices in downtown Ottawa” in December and January, CBC News...

Appoint cyber czar, endorse certification program: Chamber of Commerce

telecom | 04/03/2017 8:59 pm EDT

OTTAWA — Cyber security is everyone’s responsibility, but the federal government needs to take a leadership role to help stem the flow of money draining from the Canadian economy due to...

Ontario court bars FBI from handling Canadian data in piracy case

Media | 04/03/2017 8:43 pm EDT

Ontario’s highest court has reversed an order by a lower court to allow a U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation team to investigate and prepare a report on seized data in a copyright infringement...

Ken Whyte leaving Rogers

Media | 04/03/2017 8:06 pm EDT

Ken Whyte, Rogers Communications Inc.’s senior vice-president of public policy, is leaving the company effective April 28. Whyte said in a posting on LinkedIn Monday that he resigned “this morning after 12 happy, fruitful years.” According to a note from...

Too soon to see benefits of BlueSky TV: Barclays

Media | 04/03/2017 4:37 pm EDT

Despite being well received in some western markets, it’s too early to determine how Shaw Communications Inc.’s BlueSky TV is working out for the company, according to Barclays Capital. “We expect it will take...

Canada’s VR industry is nascent, but set for growth

Media | 03/31/2017 8:57 pm EDT

Though virtual reality is still in its early days, it holds promise for Canada’s media industry — including for broadcasters as a new way to draw eyes to live events, such as sports, according to Nordicity’s Kristian Roberts. For example, it could be used to allow a viewer to watch the National Hockey League’s Stanley Cup finals from some of the best seats in the house, he suggested. “That’s a better experience than watching it on TV, and you get that immersive experience,” Roberts, a partner at Nordicity’s Toronto office, said in a...

‘Sense of urgency’ for plan supporting 5G: Innovation Canada

telecom | 03/31/2017 8:48 pm EDT

Targeted funding, flexible spectrum regulations and national testing infrastructure are key elements to an effective rollout of 5G in Canada, Innovation Canada heard from stakeholders last fall....

Cogeco fined $84K for breach of contract clause

telecom | 03/31/2017 8:44 pm EDT

Cogeco Inc. has been fined for being offside of Quebec consumer protection rules by changing a contract without notifying the customer, the province’s consumer watchdog said Friday. The Consumer Protection Bureau...

Verizon planning new online TV service: report

Media | 03/31/2017 8:39 pm EDT

Verizon Communications Inc. is working on delivering an online streaming television package this summer, according to Bloomberg. The report, published Thursday and citing anonymous sources, said the telecommunications...

CNOC asks for CRTC action on growing wholesale wireline ‘service gaps’

telecom | 03/30/2017 8:54 pm EDT

As large Internet Service Providers (ISPs) push on with the build of fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) networks, small providers say they are encountering an increasing number of areas where they have no...

SaskTel completes LTE expansion

telecom | 03/30/2017 8:34 pm EDT

Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. said Thursday that it has finished its LTE expansion project. In the province, 99 per cent of residents are now served by its LTE network, SaskTel said in...

Google launches AI research institute in Toronto

Media | 03/30/2017 4:30 pm EDT

Alphabet Inc.’s Google has launched a research facility in Toronto dedicated to the development of artificial intelligence (AI). The Vector Institute will focus on “expanding the applications of AI by performing...

Rogers pilots 1GB Internet in Toronto schools

telecom | 03/30/2017 3:10 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. is making its gigabit Internet service available in 20 Toronto-area schools as part of a pilot project. “This pilot program will deliver top Internet speeds up to 55 times faster than those...

Quebec union ‘disappointed’ budgets didn’t address taxation imbalance

Media | 03/29/2017 8:58 pm EDT

A Quebec union representing communications sector employees said it is disappointed with both the federal and provincial budgets, saying that in “both cases, no action has been taken to counter...

U.S. House votes to repeal ISP privacy measures

telecom | 03/29/2017 8:45 pm EDT

The United States House of Representatives has voted to repeal the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)’s privacy measures for Internet Service Providers (ISPs). The legislation was approved by the Senate last week, and must still receive presidential approval — which is expected to be granted — to go into effect, the Washington Post reported Tuesday. The rules, among other measures, require ISPs to obtain opt-in consent from customers to share data such as precise geo-location, web browsing history and app usage history. Once the...

Ice Wireless offering unlimited data, roaming plans

telecom | 03/29/2017 5:35 pm EDT

Iristel Inc.’s Ice Wireless is now selling plans with unlimited data and roaming in the United States and Mexico, the company said in a press release Wednesday. The plans “include unlimited calls, texts and...

Big three say conditions for strong wireless continue: Desjardins

telecom | 03/29/2017 4:16 pm EDT

BCE Inc., Telus Corp., and Rogers Communications Inc. believe the conditions supporting the wireless growth they have seen in recent quarters will stay in place in 2017, according to a...

Jacob Glick joins University of Ottawa

Media | 03/29/2017 3:14 pm EDT

Jacob Glick is leaving Rogers Communications Inc. after two years with the company and becoming a distinguished executive fellow in residence at the University of Ottawa. Glick was chief corporate affairs officer at...

Privacy commish funding work on rules for connected cars

Media | 03/28/2017 8:29 pm EDT

OTTAWA — The federal privacy commissioner will be working with stakeholders to develop a “code of practice” to help address privacy concerns around connected and autonomous vehicles,...

OPC, CIRA-supported initiative maps out Canadians’ Internet traffic

Media | 03/28/2017 6:24 pm EDT

A tool that allows users to see exactly where their Internet traffic is travelling, backed partially by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, has received a facelift make it easier to use for Canadians. “Researchers estimate that the vast majority of Canada’s Internet traffic travels through the U.S., where it’s especially vulnerable to [National Security Agency] surveillance,” the Tuesday press release from Internet advocacy group OpenMedia said,...

Bell accelerates FTTH deployment with $854M plan for Montreal

telecom | 03/27/2017 8:45 pm EDT

MONTREAL — BCE Inc. will invest $854 million to bring fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) to all of Montreal’s homes and businesses within five years, the company said Monday....

Encrypted messaging apps no place to hide, says U.K. official after killings

Media | 03/27/2017 8:23 pm EDT

Facebook Inc.’s WhatsApp messaging service should not be a place “for terrorists to hide,” according to U.K. Home Secretary Amber Rudd, who appeared on a Sunday BBC program...

Flanker brands ramped up promos in March: Barclays

Media | 03/27/2017 8:04 pm EDT

Following a quiet first quarter, wireless companies’ flanker brands stepped up the competition in March, ramping up promotional activity through data increases and handset discounts, according to Barclays Capital. Just...

Supreme Court weighs privacy of text messages

telecom | 03/24/2017 7:47 pm EDT

OTTAWA — There should be a reasonable expectation of privacy from search and seizure not just for the recipient of a text message but for the sender as well, a lawyer argued in front of Canada’s highest...

Hydro One expands fibre network

telecom | 03/24/2017 6:50 pm EDT

Hydro One Telecom Inc. — a subsidiary of Ontario electricity provider Hydro One Networks Inc. — has expanded its fibre network to connect to 30 data centres in Ontario and Quebec. It said in a press...

NGSO consultation deadline extended

Media | 03/24/2017 2:55 pm EDT

The federal government has extended the deadline for comments in its consultation on licence requirements for non-geostationary satellite orbit systems (NGSO). In a notice on its website Thursday, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada said “based on the merits of several requests for additional time to respond, the...

Mixed reaction to budget viewed as long on potential, short on details

Media | 03/23/2017 9:37 pm EDT

For all the focus on the digital economy, there was little in Wednesday’s budget for digital content creators, broadband infrastructure enthusiasts or fans of long-term planning, according to...

U.S. Senate votes to repeal ISP privacy rules

telecom | 03/23/2017 7:19 pm EDT

The United States Senate voted Thursday to repeal broadband privacy rules the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) put in place last year, Reuters reported Thursday. The rules, which among other...

Telus launches ehealth medication management program

telecom | 03/23/2017 5:44 pm EDT

Telus Corp. is partnering with Quebec company Groupe DOmedic Inc. to offer a pharmacy management service called xPill Pharma to retirement homes, the company said in a Thursday press release. "Medication management is a key area of healthcare that can be rife with issues, which health information technology can help resolve," Paul Lepage, president of Telus’ ehealth division, said in the release. Such electronic management systems allow care teams to “access information recorded in the patient's file such as recommendations from the...

Bell, Rogers to increase sports channels prices for bars

Media | 03/22/2017 9:38 pm EDT

BCE Inc. and Rogers Communications Inc. are removing TSN, RDS and Sportsnet from traditional TV subscriptions for business customers with a liquor license and offering the channels...

Affordable Internet carrot, legislation review in federal budget

Media | 03/22/2017 8:54 pm EDT

OTTAWA — With a focus on the digital economy, the federal government will start looking beyond geography to bridge the digital divide in Canada, adding new funding to encourage Internet Service...

Kepler and Iristel partner on IoT devices

telecom | 03/22/2017 8:20 pm EDT

Iristel Inc. is partnering with satellite company Kepler Communications Inc. to help Internet of Things (IoT) devices seamlessly connect between cellular networks on the ground and satellites in the sky. The...

Videotron launches recommendations chatbot

telecom | 03/22/2017 7:53 pm EDT

Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron says it’s the first Canadian telecom to launch a chatbot on Facebook Inc.'s Messenger service, which it will use to give users viewing recommendations from its Illico video-on-demand (VOD) catalogue. Called Chillico, the chatbot “harnesses technology rooted in artificial intelligence to communicate...

No clear winner in cableco, telco fibre ‘investment race’: Moody’s

telecom | 03/22/2017 7:24 pm EDT

Canada’s telecommunications companies will continue to invest heavily to improve their networks’ fibre-optic infrastructure, driving competition between the telcos and the cablecos that will reach “unprecedented levels,” a Moody’s Investors Service report predicted. But what Moody’s called the “investment race” in the report, released Tuesday, will be too close to call a winner, it said. “Canada’s particular market structure and competitive landscape dictate these capital investment decisions, with cross-platform competition between the [telcos] and cable companies creating a particular set of risks and...

NAFTA renegotiation could affect privacy rules on Canadian data: Geist

Media | 03/22/2017 5:24 pm EDT

The upcoming renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) could include pressure to change rules requiring some information to stay in Canada, University of Ottawa law professor...

Cogeco launches 4K PVR

Media | 03/21/2017 5:06 pm EDT

Cogeco Inc. has launched a new 4K personal video recorder (PVR) to allow its subscribers to record and watch content at four times the resolution of high-definition TV. “This evolution in our offering is consistent with our ongoing commitment to better meet the changing needs of our...

Bell’s scale advantage widening after MTS deal: Barclays

Media | 03/21/2017 4:18 pm EDT

The acquisition of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. expands the scale at which BCE Inc. operates, which is “becoming one of its most important competitive advantages,”...

Facebook beefs up lobbying squad

Media | 03/21/2017 3:04 pm EDT

Facebook Inc. is increasing its government relations presence in Ottawa, with three new registrations filed with the lobbying commissioner’s office last month. According to the federal lobbyists’...

5G to arrive sooner after standards approval: AT&T

telecom | 03/20/2017 8:56 pm EDT

The rollout of 5G services will come sooner than expected after a wireless standards body agreed to accelerate the process for the deployment of the next-generation technology, according...

Court dismisses appeal of set-top box sales ban

Media | 03/20/2017 8:33 pm EDT

MONTREAL — The Federal Court of Appeal dismissed Monday a challenge to an injunction on the sale of pre-loaded set-top boxes. “In our view, in light of the uncontradicted evidence, including the advertisement that...

Are provinces filling the federal broadband strategy gap?

telecom | 03/17/2017 6:57 pm EDT

Nova Scotia may not be formulating its provincial broadband plan as a direct response to federal inaction, but that doesn’t mean the provincial government isn’t acting out of a need to...

Bell-MTS acquisition completed

telecom | 03/17/2017 4:12 pm EDT

The purchase of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. by BCE Inc. has officially closed, Bell said in a press release Friday. “Uniting the local and national strengths of MTS and Bell Canada, the new Bell MTS...

Quebecor revenue, profits up in Q4

Media | 03/17/2017 3:15 pm EDT

Quebecor Inc. reported $3.88 billion in revenue in the fourth quarter of 2015, up 7.5 per cent or $271.8 million from a year earlier. It also reported a net loss of $22.5 million in the three-month period ending December 2015, a decline that was less than the $50.3 million it suffered in the comparable quarter last year.  The company said in a press release that a “favourable variance” in its net income attributable to shareholders, which was $151.8 million compared to a loss of 30.1 million last year, was due to “due in part to the $102.1 million...