Canadian tech, telecom community offers support in wake of U.S. travel ban

Media | 01/30/2017 4:08 pm EST

More than 1,700 people representing a variety of tech and telecom companies have signed on to an open letter opposing U.S. President Donald Trump’s weekend executive order blocking entry of...

Extend Connect to Innovate deadline for local gov’ts: QC Opposition MPs

telecom | 01/27/2017 9:25 pm EST

Conservative members of Parliament from Quebec are asking the federal government for an extension to the application deadline for its Connect to Innovate program, saying the two-month turnaround is...

SaskTel opens Saskatoon data centre

telecom | 01/26/2017 9:00 pm EST

Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holdings Corp. said Thursday that its newest data centre is now operational. The 24,000-square-foot Tier III facility, first announced in 2015, “significantly...

Lametti, Casey take on Heritage, ISED roles

Media | 01/26/2017 8:23 pm EST

The Ministers of Canadian Heritage and Innovation, Science and Economic Development have new understudies. In a Thursday press release, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a makeover to his roster of parliamentary...

Natale to take Rogers’ top job in July: interim CEO

Media | 01/26/2017 6:56 pm EST

Rogers Communications Inc. incoming president and CEO Joe Natale will take the helm in July, the company announced as it reported fourth-quarter numbers that showed continuing growth in data usage among its wireless customers. The announcement was made by interim CEO Alan Horn on the company’s fourth quarter conference call with analysts Thursday morning. Rogers didn’t previously specify when Natale would start or whether he was being held up by a non-compete restriction from Telus Corp. However, following the surprise departure of CEO Guy...

Big three show similar wireless performance: OpenSignal

telecom | 01/26/2017 6:23 pm EST

A new report has found that BCE Inc., Telus Corp. and Rogers Communications Inc. are essentially tied when it comes to the performance of their wireless networks, concluding...

Reform tax laws, tweak CBC to bolster media landscape: PPF

Media | 01/26/2017 5:46 pm EST

Phasing out CBC/Radio-Canada’s sale of digital ads and tweaking tax laws to prevent companies from claiming exemptions for advertising on foreign digital platforms are among the...

Report on Wireless Code privacy rule compliance flags paper copies

Media | 01/25/2017 8:58 pm EST

Wireless service providers aren’t necessarily adhering to Wireless Code rules mandating that customers receive paper copies of their privacy policies, according to a new CRTC-commissioned report. The report, published on the CRTC’s website Friday, is part of the ongoing Wireless Code review,...

Connecting Canadians investing $250,000 in Eastern Ontario

telecom | 01/25/2017 7:49 pm EST

The federal government is making available $250,000 to improve Internet service in Eastern Ontario. The money will be administered through the Connecting Canadians program implemented by...

CRTC jobs, vacant or not, posted

Media | 01/24/2017 10:50 pm EST

Heritage Canada has issued a series of help-wanted ads for the CRTC — including for the not-yet vacant position of chair. Four new job openings are now on the government’s appointments website for the roles of chair,...

Mandating co-location would be a barrier to competition: CNOC

telecom | 01/24/2017 9:57 pm EST

An application by BCE Inc. asking the CRTC not to require the implementation of meet-me points through which smaller companies could connect to the telco’s network, if granted, would...

Geoff White boards CCTS team

telecom | 01/24/2017 9:29 pm EST

Lawyer Geoff White has joined the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS) as director and regulatory counsel, commissioner Howard Maker has confirmed. White is listed on the Law Society of Upper Canada...

Ajit Pai nominated as new FCC chairman

Media | 01/23/2017 10:33 pm EST

Ajit Pai has been picked by the new U.S. president to lead the United States' telecom regulator, Pai announced on Twitter Monday. In a statement, Pai said he looks “forward to working with the new Administration,...

Two rural Ontario areas receive $2.53M to improve connectivity

telecom | 01/23/2017 10:19 pm EST

The federal and Ontario governments are making available $2.53 million in funding to improve Internet service in two areas of the province, the federal government announced in a press release Monday. “In King Township, the project will expand the fibre optic broadband network to rural residents. In Huron County, the project will provide high-speed broadband service to 929 homes, dozens of small businesses and a school,” the press release said. The funding will be provided through the New Building Canada Fund’s small communities fund, a joint federal-provincial initiative...

Trump withdraws from TPP

Media | 01/23/2017 10:16 pm EST

The United States is officially withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, after president Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday. Advocacy group OpenMedia said in a press release following the announcement that Canada should also reject the deal. In Canada, the...

Telus rolls out welcome mat to lead Dec. lobbying numbers

Media | 01/23/2017 9:28 pm EST

Telus Corp. led the telecom pack in December for government relations activity, according to the federal lobbyists’ registry, logging 14 monthly communication reports. In addition to...

Sarah Schmidt joins Rogers as media relations director

Media | 01/23/2017 8:05 pm EST

Sarah Schmidt is leaving the Broadbent Institute to become the director of media relations and issues management at Rogers Communications Inc., according to a Monday report by The Hill...

OpenMedia platform to help Canadians advocate for community-owned Internet service

telecom | 01/23/2017 7:00 pm EST

OpenMedia has built a platform to make it easier for Canadians to connect with elected representatives in order to encourage more community-controlled broadband projects that are independent of big...

600 MHz auction enters final stage in U.S.

Media | 01/20/2017 8:04 pm EST

The American telecom regulator said it is entering the final stage of its incentive auction for repurposing 600 MHz spectrum for wireless use. In a statement Wednesday, outgoing Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Tom Wheeler said the auction “has delivered on its ambitious promise” and reaching this stage “means the benefits of the auction are indisputable.” Auction proceeds as of the end of round three came in at almost $18.3 billion US, according to the FCC website. Bidding will continue until “there is no excess demand in any...

Ken Engelhart joins consulting firm

Media | 01/20/2017 7:41 pm EST

Former Rogers Communications Inc. regulatory chief Ken Engelhart is joining StrategyCorp, the consulting company announced. In a Jan. 13 press release, the company said Engelhart — who served as senior...

ISED consulting on expanding use of 5GHz spectrum

telecom | 01/20/2017 7:38 pm EST

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) is seeking comments on a proposal to allow the use of additional devices on 5GHz spectrum. In a consultation paper released Friday, ISED said the proliferation of...

Eastlink asks for review and vary, stay of interim wholesale rates

telecom | 01/20/2017 7:23 pm EST

Bragg Communications Inc.’s Eastlink is asking the CRTC to delay the imposition of lower wholesale high-speed access rates it put in place last year pending the outcome of a review-and-vary...

Build voice and data support at same time in NG911 system: Freedom

Media | 01/19/2017 11:22 pm EST

GATINEAU, Que. — There are unique considerations for wireless carriers when contemplating the switch to next-generation 911 (NG911) services, a CRTC panel was told on the penultimate day of a...

CRTC approves three channels for distribution

Media | 01/19/2017 7:27 pm EST

The CRTC said Thursday in two decisions it has approved three channels — Stingray Brava, Bestseller and Mult — for distribution in Canada.   Stingray Digital Group Inc.'s Stingray Brava is an...

32% of U.S. consumers watch pirated content: survey

Media | 01/19/2017 7:19 pm EST

A new survey has found that while the majority of United States respondents think consuming pirated video content is illegal, a chunk don’t seem to care how it impacts content creation. Despite about 69 per cent of U.S....

Bell set to increase Internet and TV prices

telecom | 01/19/2017 5:55 pm EST

BCE Inc. will increase monthly prices for some of its residential services as of Feb. 1, a move it says is needed to support higher traffic on its network. On its website, the company said it spends $3.5 billion each...

Maintaining NG911 network won’t exceed current costs: Quebecor

telecom | 01/19/2017 1:04 am EST

GATINEAU, Que. — The costs to maintain next-generation 911 (NG911) services in Canada will not cost more than what telecoms pay to maintain current 911 services, Quebecor Inc. said on the third day of the CRTC's hearing on the issue, despite some suggesting costs will increase on the new...

O’Leary promises unrecognizable CRTC as he enters CPC leadership race

Media | 01/18/2017 8:37 pm EST

Celebrity businessman Kevin O’Leary has the country’s telecom regulator in his sights as he launches his campaign for leader of the federal Conservative Party. O’Leary, who announced his entry into the race Wednesday after months of speculation, said in an interview with BCE Inc.’s BNN that he will be “taking a spatula to the CRTC,” and took aim at the regulator’s decision to prohibit simultaneous substitution of American advertising...

National 911 operator could disrupt regional relationships: PSAP

telecom | 01/17/2017 11:14 pm EST

Forming a national consortium for the development of next-generation 911 (NG911) services would disrupt relationships formed under the current ILEC model, a British Columbia public-safety answer point...

Bell offering IBM enterprise apps

Media | 01/17/2017 11:03 pm EST

BCE Inc.’s business customers now have access to IBM Corp.’s MobileFirst enterprise apps for devices running on Apple Inc.’s iOS operating system. “Bell will combine its expertise in...

Address diversity gaps when filling CRTC roles, minister told

Media | 01/17/2017 9:52 pm EST

Filling all 13 spots allotted to CRTC commissioners could go a long way in addressing what some are calling decades of ongoing disparity between the demographics of those who make decisions about the...

CRTC should take charge in next-generation 911 rollout, regulator hears

telecom | 01/16/2017 11:17 pm EST

GATINEAU, Que. — The CRTC should take a leading role — at least temporarily — in co-ordinating the development of next-generation 911 services, the regulator...

TVO program to stream on Periscope in Canadian first

Media | 01/16/2017 5:40 pm EST

Starting Monday, Twitter Inc.’s live-streaming app will host a nightly showing of a Canadian media program for the first time. The Agenda with Steve Paikin, a current affairs program produced by the publicly funded educational TV station TVO, will stream on Twitter’s Periscope, according to a Monday press release. It said the show would air Monday through Friday at 8 p.m. EST. “Streaming via Periscope on Twitter is a natural evolution to extend The Agenda experience to include more participative interaction,” the press...

Data, new revenue sources to make up for OTT messaging impact: analysts

telecom | 01/13/2017 9:24 pm EST

The growth in popularity of over-the-top (OTT) messaging services will cost global mobile network operators over a hundred billion dollars this year, according to Juniper Research Ltd., but some Canadian analysts say the impact will be dampened by increased data usage and new sources of revenue, including uptake in Internet...

CRTC sides with Shaw in conduit billing dispute with Telus

telecom | 01/13/2017 7:17 pm EST

Telus Corp. can’t charge Shaw Communications Inc. or any other telecom for access to its service entrance conduit, the CRTC said in a decision Friday. It said that if Telus...

Canadians don’t want CanCon funding passed down to subscribers: report

Media | 01/13/2017 7:06 pm EST

A report prepared for the Privy Council Office found Canadians were generally in favour of increasing contributions to Canadian content, but don’t believe those increases should be passed down...

Freedom to at least quadruple handset offering by mid-2017: Shaw

telecom | 01/12/2017 10:49 pm EST

As Shaw Communications Inc. released its first quarterly earnings report since rebranding its wireless segment to Freedom Mobile, CEO Brad Shaw said the company is looking to have a...

Zero-rated programs from vertically integrated providers may cause harm: FCC report

Media | 01/12/2017 10:00 pm EST

A branch of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said it had concerns with the differential pricing practices used by Verizon Communications Inc. and AT&T Inc. as it...

Cogeco shifting data centre strategy due to Amazon, Microsoft: Audet

Media | 01/12/2017 9:56 pm EST

MONTREAL — Moves by Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. into the Canadian data centre business won’t compete directly with Cogeco Inc., which is changing its data...

Unifor asks for suspension of SimSub ban

Media | 01/12/2017 5:12 pm EST

The union representing members of the television and media sectors is asking the CRTC to reverse or suspend its decision banning simultaneous substitution for the Super Bowl in order for its impact to be fully considered. In...

Giuliani to advise Trump on cyber security following BlackBerry partnership

telecom | 01/12/2017 5:05 pm EST

Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor, will provide “his expertise and insight” to president-elect Donald Trump on private sector cyber-security issues, the transition team...

Shaw launches IPTV platform

telecom | 01/11/2017 11:40 pm EST

Shaw Communications Inc. has made its IPTV service, called BlueSky, available in Calgary, and plans to launch it in additional markets “in the coming months.” The IPTV service runs the same X1 platform from Comcast Corp. that Rogers Communications Inc. will use to launch its own IPTV service. In a press release Wednesday, Shaw said BlueSky has “more product and feature benefits than any other television service available in Canada,” such as a voice-controlled remote customers can use to search and access content. For instance, customers can ask “What’s trending” to “activate Shaw BlueSky TV's database of popular selections and what's trending on social media,” Shaw said. The service also has features for sports content, giving viewers...

Pricing for 5G unclear, but cost per GB could drop: Deloitte expert

Media | 01/11/2017 11:24 pm EST

There are still many unknowns as wireless carriers move to 5G networks in the coming years, including questions about how much companies will charge for service, though prices have the potential to...

Jay Thomson to head CCSA

telecom | 01/10/2017 9:31 pm EST

The Canadian Cable Systems Alliance (CCSA) has named Jay Thomson as its new CEO. Thomson, who is currently the vice-president of broadcasting policy and regulatory affairs for the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA), will start effective Feb. 1, 2017, the CCSA said in a press...

Xplornet buys YourLink for $28.79M

telecom | 01/10/2017 8:43 pm EST

Xplornet Communications Inc. has purchased “all YourLink Internet services operations in Saskatchewan” from Vecima Networks Inc., the satellite Internet service provider (ISP) said Monday. YourLink offers...

CRTC consulting on nuisance calls decision

telecom | 01/09/2017 9:35 pm EST

The CRTC issued a call for comments Monday on its two-month-old decision to force telecoms to implement measures to reduce caller ID spoofing and offer services to manage nuisance calls. In November, the...

As online video, data transmissions grow, need for CDNs expanding

Media | 01/09/2017 9:18 pm EST

Last month, Amazon.com Inc. announced that its data centre business was expanding into Canada, a move that illustrates what some say is the need for more data points as an increasing amount of digital content is consumed and emerging technologies like 4K and virtual reality grow. Among the features provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS), which made its debut in Montreal in December, is a service called “CloudFront,” a content delivery network (CDN) with...

Federal Court tosses patent suit against Bell for IPTV technology

Media | 01/06/2017 9:42 pm EST

What began more than three years ago as a $350-million claim of patent infringement against BCE Inc. devolved into a pale imitation of its former self and will lead to...

Competition Bureau drops Apple competition case

telecom | 01/06/2017 7:04 pm EST

The Competition Bureau said Friday it has discontinued an investigation into whether Apple Inc. engaged in anticompetitive practices related to sales of its iPhone. The bureau was looking at “contractual...

FCC asked to pull back ISP privacy rules

telecom | 01/06/2017 5:17 pm EST

A group representing American telecom companies has petitioned the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to reconsider the broadband privacy rules the United States regulator imposed last year. When passed, the FCC said...

ISP tax a good idea, former CRTC chair says

Media | 01/06/2017 4:24 pm EST

A former chairman of the CRTC is backing the concept of levying a new tax on Internet Service Providers (ISPs) as the heritage minister mulls ways to rejig the country’s cultural institutions. In a memo...

Impact of wholesale rates, pick-and-pay will be felt in 2017: Canaccord

Media | 01/05/2017 10:09 pm EST

The initial pinch of the CRTC’s decisions on two important issues in 2016 — wholesale rates and pick-and-pay — will be felt in the new year, according to Canaccord...

Canada has areas to improve before it can benefit from IoT: report

Media | 01/05/2017 9:46 pm EST

Canada is in a good position to be an “early mover” of Internet of Things (IoT) adoption, but it’s still falling behind in key areas required for forward momentum, according to a new...

AT&T testing streaming TV service over 5G

telecom | 01/04/2017 8:44 pm EST

AT&T Inc. will test how to use 5G technology to deliver its DirecTV Now streaming service to customers. “In the first half of 2017, we plan to conduct a trial in Austin where residential customers can stream...

Shaw loses bid to write off paper invoice expenses

telecom | 01/04/2017 6:58 pm EST

Shaw Communications Inc. can’t claim paper bills sent to its British Columbian customers as a tax-exempt expense, the B.C. Supreme Court ruled last month. In a decision handed down Dec. 19, judge Miriam Gropper...

Ottawa non-profit ISP launches $25 plan for social housing tenants

telecom | 01/04/2017 6:00 pm EST

Ottawa’s National Capital Freenet (NCF), a not-for-profit Internet Service Provider (ISP), has launched a $25-per-month unlimited bandwidth Internet plan for tenants of the city’s largest social housing organization. The organization announced the program on Jan. 3, which was “possible in part because of a recent gift from the estate of one of NCF's first members, plus ongoing donations from many of their other members,” according to a release on its website. The...

Facebook reports 1K gov’t info requests in first half of 2016

Media | 01/03/2017 10:35 pm EST

Canadian law enforcement and government agencies made over one thousand requests for customer information to Facebook Inc. in the first six months of 2016, four times more than the...

Bell drops Zazeen suit

Media | 01/03/2017 9:27 pm EST

BCE Inc. has dropped its second lawsuit alleging copyright infringement against a small Internet protocol TV (IPTV) provider, following changes the company made to its service. Bell Media launched the action against Zazeen Inc. in November, alleging that the company was...

Bill shock, wireless complaints continue to fall, CRTC study says

Media | 01/03/2017 8:30 pm EST

The number of Canadians surprised by the extra charges on their monthly wireless bills continues to decline, according to the latest CRTC-commissioned study on the efficacy of the Wireless Code. In a...

Look beyond incumbents with new $750M fund, Iristel tells CRTC

telecom | 01/03/2017 6:47 pm EST

Iristel Inc. is asking the CRTC to “go beyond the ‘same old players’ to companies committed to competition and enhanced services for Canadians” when it comes to providing...

Bell asks gov’t for 600 MHz revenue fund for OTA

telecom | 01/03/2017 6:15 pm EST

BCE Inc. is asking the federal government to use part of the proceeds from its upcoming 600 MHz spectrum auction for a revenue fund to support local television. In a submission filed in response to a request for comments by the department of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development (ISED) and posted on the ISED website in December, Bell said that it expects the auction will “generate a considerable amount of revenue” for the government and that a fund would “serve to recognize the valuable contribution that [over-the-air] services bring to Canadian...

50 Mbps speeds, LTE part of CRTC’s new basic service requirements

telecom | 12/21/2016 9:14 pm EST

GATINEAU, Que. — Advocates are calling the CRTC’s new basic service requirements — which include a minimum of 50 Mbps download and 10 Mbps upload speeds and LTE coverage —...

Amid political push for SimSub ruling reversal, Bell yet to file appeal

Media | 12/21/2016 4:36 pm EST

Despite having less than two months until the Feb. 5 kick off at the 51st Super Bowl, BCE Inc. has yet to start the process with the courts to put a stop to a decision prohibiting...

Court dismisses dispute over hydro pole pricing

telecom | 12/20/2016 10:31 pm EST

A panel of Ontario Divisional Court judges has dismissed an application from a group of telecom companies disputing the Ontario Energy Board’s handling of setting new rates for attaching communications equipment to hydro...

Hold consultation on IMSI catcher use, Rogers tells gov’t

telecom | 12/20/2016 10:21 pm EST

The government should consult industry, privacy experts and Canadians on the use of IMSI catchers in Canada, Rogers Communications Inc. said in its submission to the federal...

TekSavvy campaign pushes for continuation of interim HSA rates

telecom | 12/20/2016 5:52 pm EST

TekSavvy Solutions Inc. is lowering its Internet prices next month, and asking its customers to help press for the continuation of interim wholesale access rates. Using the hashtag...

CRTC gives go-ahead to Bell-MTS BDU licence transfer

Media | 12/20/2016 5:39 pm EST

The CRTC has granted approval for Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. to transfer its broadcast distribution licences to BCE Inc. as part of an overall $3.9-billion acquisition of the provincial provider. In a...

Quebec opens call for rural broadband projects

telecom | 12/19/2016 10:11 pm EST

Meant to work in concert with the federal program detailed last week, Quebec announced its own $100-million rural broadband program would be opening to applications next month. In a French press release Monday, Dominique...

Retail regulation ‘worst case’ in basic service decision: Desjardins

telecom | 12/19/2016 10:04 pm EST

The “worst case scenario” for incumbent telecom companies when the CRTC releases its decision on the basic service proceeding it held this spring will be if the commission “decides...

BlackBerry opens connected car ‘innovation centre’

telecom | 12/19/2016 9:46 pm EST

BlackBerry Ltd. has opened a centre focusing on connected cars within its existing Ottawa facilities. The company said in a press release Monday that the BlackBerry QNX Autonomous Vehicle Innovation Centre would “accelerate the realization of connected and self-driving vehicles by developing production-ready software independently and in collaboration with partners in the private and public sector.” One of centre’s first projects will be to support an Ontario pilot project to test self-driving cars and to work with partners University of Waterloo, United States-based self-driving software maker Polysync and Renesas Electronics Corp., a Japanese semi-conductor manufacturer, “to build an autonomous concept vehicle.”...

Rogers expands availability of Roam Like Home

telecom | 12/19/2016 7:52 pm EST

Rogers Communications Inc. has made its Roam Like Home plan available to “most customers on a consumer plan,” the company said Monday. The service allows customers to use the data bucket and voice...

Class-action suit filed after Yahoo hacks

telecom | 12/19/2016 7:36 pm EST

Yahoo Inc. is facing a potential class-action lawsuit in Canada following security breaches, the most-recent of which was revealed last week, involving more than one billion user accounts. A notice of claim filed Dec....

EchoStar XIX satellite launches

telecom | 12/19/2016 7:21 pm EST

One of two new satellites on which Xplornet Communications Inc. has purchased capacity has launched successfully, the company said in a press release Monday. The EchoStar XIX is the “highest capacity broadband satellite...

Mitel selling mobile division

telecom | 12/19/2016 6:32 pm EST

Mitel Networks Corp. said Monday it is getting out of the mobile business, selling its mobile division for $350 million. In a press release, the Ottawa-based telecommunications company said it was off-loading its...

Avoid ISP tax, tweak CanCon rules, companies say in Heritage review

Media | 12/19/2016 6:10 pm EST

There isn’t much disagreement between some of the country’s biggest media and telecom service providers over whether foreign entities, such as over-the-top providers like Netflix Inc., should be making a contribution to the country’s cultural sector. Submissions to Canadian Heritage’s broad cultural review from companies such as BCE Inc., Corus Entertainment Inc., and Shaw Communications Inc. generally dismissed the notion that Netflix...

Bell to test AT&T software platform for wireless traffic management

telecom | 12/16/2016 9:41 pm EST

BCE Inc. has signed on to test a platform developed by AT&T Inc. that would allow it to carry more, and better manage, traffic on its network. The software — called...

Canadian politicians follow U.S. in call to reverse SimSub ban: report

Media | 12/16/2016 9:16 pm EST

Two MPs are asking the CRTC to reverse its decision on simultaneous substitution for the National Football League's (NFL) Super Bowl, a week after four United States congressmen demanded the same,...

Rogers killing of in-house IPTV good move in long term, analysts say

Media | 12/16/2016 8:33 pm EST

Rogers Communications Inc. has abandoned the development of its own IPTV platform and will instead launch an IPTV service using a platform from Comcast Corp., a plan analysts...

Change in law enforcement powers should not harm businesses: ITAC

telecom | 12/15/2016 10:33 pm EST

The government should ensure that any changes to powers granted to law enforcement should not undermine the innovation economy and the privacy of Canadians, the association representing the...

Rural broadband program aims to bring 300 communities up to speed

telecom | 12/15/2016 10:01 pm EST

WAKEFIELD, Que. — The federal government’s new rural broadband program will focus on making high-speed connections, as opposed to simply forging Internet connections for rural and remote...

Few boomers have cut the cord: MTM

Media | 12/15/2016 9:33 pm EST

The anglophone generation that is in, or nearing, retirement is consuming more traditional TV than their younger counterparts, as less than a tenth of boomers has cut the cord, according to the latest MTM report...

Tom Wheeler leaving FCC in January

Media | 12/15/2016 5:53 pm EST

Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Tom Wheeler is leaving his post as head of the United States regulator on Jan. 20, 2017. Wheeler said in a written statement Thursday that serving as chairman...

Rob Farina named head of iHeartRadio

Media | 12/15/2016 5:26 pm EST

BCE Inc. has named Rob Farina head of iHeartRadio, syndication and strategic initiatives at Bell Media Radio. Farina was previously brought in by the company to help advise on the launch of iHeartMedia Inc.'s free...

Another Yahoo breach involved 1 billion accounts: reports

Media | 12/15/2016 4:52 pm EST

Yahoo Inc. has found a new security breach that has compromised more than one billion user accounts, a figure that is double the breach it discovered only a couple of months ago, according to reports Wednesday.  The newly unearthed breach, which occurred in August 2013, follows another discovered in September, where 500 million accounts were affected. That hack occurred in 2014.  The news comes as Verizon Communications Inc. is set to acquire the company, in a deal announced in July. The telecom company said in October that the previous hack...

Tie tax change to rural broadband: finance committee

telecom | 12/14/2016 10:39 pm EST

A House of Commons committee has recommended that if changes to the tax structure for telecom expenses are implemented in next year’s budget, they be tied to rural broadband investment. In a report tabled in Parliament Dec....

Investel to launch national Wi-Fi based wireless service

telecom | 12/14/2016 10:34 pm EST

Investel Capital Corp.’s TNW Networks Corp. (TNW) will soon start deploying a Wi-Fi-based mobile technology as part of a nationally available wireless service that the company is claiming will be...

Amazon Prime streaming service officially available in Canada

Media | 12/14/2016 9:08 pm EST

Amazon.com Inc.’s Amazon Prime Video has entered the Canadian market, as part of a worldwide launch for the streaming service, the company announced in a press release Wednesday. The...

Most Canadians satisfied with Internet service: CIRA

Media | 12/14/2016 4:48 pm EST

Canadians are “generally satisfied” with the speed of their home Internet service, according to a new report from the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA). “More than 80 per cent of those surveyed...

Iristel says traffic stimulation accusation “rests on false speculation”

telecom | 12/13/2016 10:09 pm EST

Iristel Inc. has responded to a Part 1 application by Rogers Communications Inc. accusing it of “traffic stimulation,” stating that “the entire factual basis for underlying the Application rests on false speculation.” In a November filing, Rogers defined traffic stimulation as “a mechanism for local exchange carriers to profit from increasing the volume of incoming traffic for termination of their local exchange network.” Pointing to an ad...

HoC committee touts Canada Post for Internet connections

telecom | 12/13/2016 9:27 pm EST

A group of parliamentarians has suggested that the future of the country’s postal service may lie with its entrance into the world of telecommunications. On Tuesday, the House of Commons...

Bell targets second small IPTV provider over copyright claim

Media | 12/13/2016 7:28 pm EST

Zazeen Inc. is facing legal action from BCE Inc. over its Internet protocol TV (IPTV) service, with the incumbent calling the small provider’s service copyright infringement. In...

Compensate broadcasters for 600 MHz transition: RABC

telecom | 12/12/2016 10:21 pm EST

The Radio Advisory Board of Canada (RABC) says broadcasters should be compensated for the cost of changing channels due to the repurposing of 600 MHz spectrum for wireless use. In a reply filed in response to...

‘Similar hurdles’ as U.S. possible in 600 MHz auction: Desjardins

Media | 12/12/2016 8:54 pm EST

The 600 MHz spectrum auction in the United States has again been delayed after bidders failed to meet minimum prices for spectrum, and Canada could see similar problems in its own upcoming auction,...

Canadians favour funding for international CanCon success: PIAC poll

Media | 12/09/2016 9:02 pm EST

Canadians are broadly in support of making domestic film and TV productions successful internationally and being provided the funding to do so, but don’t share a consensus on where that money...

CRTC suspends PIAC website blocking application

telecom | 12/09/2016 8:57 pm EST

The CRTC has suspended a Part 1 application by the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) asking the commission to declare as unconstitutional a Quebec law that would force providers to block certain online gambling...

Amazon expands cloud services in Canada

telecom | 12/09/2016 7:00 pm EST

Amazon.com Inc. has expanded its data centre services into Canada with the introduction of Amazon Web Services (AWS) in Montreal. It is the first AWS in Canada, joining four other regions in North America (in Northern Virginia,...

Bell asks CRTC to reconsider aspects of disaggregated regime

telecom | 12/08/2016 9:28 pm EST

BCE Inc. is asking the CRTC to hold off on requiring the company to build new infrastructure as part of the regulator’s new disaggregated wholesale wireline regime, something small Internet...

RuralCom becomes part of TNW with Investel acquisition

Media | 12/08/2016 7:41 pm EST

Investel Capital Corp., the investment fund that owns Téliphone Navigata Westel Communications Inc. (TNW), has acquired RuralCom Capital Corp., which it said is a “significant step” in TNW’s corporate transformation since the 2012 acquisition of Navigata Communications 2009 Inc. Investel said in a Thursday press release RuralCom will rebrand as TNW Wireless and will provide mobile service in northern areas of British Columbia and the Yukon “under RuralCom’s Tier-2 850 MHz mobile licenses.” Investel added that it will...