Canadians should have digital identities: group

Media | 05/06/2015 7:15 pm EDT

The Digital ID and Authentication Council of Canada (DIACC) has issued a report calling for the creation of an official digital identity for all Canadians, which would be accepted across the country, by government and the private...

Wholesale decision positive for Bell, Rogers, Telus: analysts

telecom | 05/06/2015 5:45 pm EDT

Financial market analysts say Canada's incumbent wireless operators were generally left undamaged in this week's decision by the CRTC to regulate the rates they charge smaller domestic...

CRTC should not mandate access to FTTH: report

telecom | 05/06/2015 5:28 pm EDT

The CRTC should not give small Internet service providers the right to buy wholesale space on fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) networks, a new report from the Montreal Economic Institute says. A report released Thursday, written by...

Ericsson moving Montreal headquarters

telecom | 05/06/2015 3:41 pm EDT

Ericsson AB said in a press release Tuesday it is moving its Montreal-based research-and-development centre to a new location near the Trans-Canada Highway in the borough of Saint-Laurent. The press release added that the facility would house more than 1,700 employees. Ericsson Canada spokeswoman Patricia MacLean said in an email that this facility...

Glentel sale to Bell approved by Competition Bureau

Media | 05/05/2015 9:29 pm EDT

The Competition Bureau has approved the purchase of Glentel Inc. by BCE Inc., and will not attempt to prevent a deal that sees Rogers Communications Inc. taking a 50 per cent stake in Glentel from Bell, both Glentel and the Competition Bureau said in separate announcements Tuesday. Bell announced plans to purchase Glentel in November last year. Roger initially went to court to prevent the deal, but ultimately reached an agreement to share the retail company with Bell. Glentel operates sales outlets under brands such as Wireless Wave and Tbooth Wireless, among others. The Competition Bureau...

Incumbents could have fared worse in wholesale wireless decision: analyst

telecom | 05/05/2015 8:10 pm EDT

GATINEAU, Que. — Wireless incumbents are going to have to play by a different set of rules than smaller carriers when it comes to providing network access to competitors, though one industry...

Linda Vennard, Christopher MacDonald to join CRTC

Media | 05/05/2015 4:59 pm EDT

CRTC Chairman Jean-Pierre Blais announced Tuesday that the federal government has appointed Linda Vennard and Christopher MacDonald as regional commissioners for the CRTC. A memo from Blais, forwarded to The Wire Report, said...

CIRA announces Internet testing application

telecom | 05/05/2015 4:28 pm EDT

The Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) announced Tuesday a new website for testing the performance of one's Internet service. The web application will tell users their current download and upload speeds, and...

Government reducing rural satellite spectrum fees

telecom | 05/05/2015 4:05 pm EDT

Industry Canada said Tuesday that it is reducing licensing fees on spectrum for companies whose satellite technology provides telecommunications services to Canadians in rural or remote areas. The department said in a press...

Rising wholesale Internet rates have reached ‘critical status’: CNOC

telecom | 05/04/2015 8:30 pm EDT

The rates large telecom companies charge small Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to access their wireline networks have reached extreme levels and are eroding competition “with every passing day,” according to a CRTC application filed by the Canadian Networks Operators Consortium (CNOC). “The amount of...

Competition Bureau backs CRTC’s wholesale code

Media | 05/04/2015 8:11 pm EDT

The Competition Bureau said in a press release Monday that it supports the CRTC’s proposed code of conduct governing agreements between broadcasters and TV providers. In March, the CRTC said it would consult on a revised...

More spectrum to be sold in August

telecom | 05/01/2015 11:35 pm EDT

The federal government announced Friday evening that it will auction off unsold portions of 700 MHz and AWS-3 spectrum this August. According to a document posted on Industry Canada’s website, a sealed-bid auction is...

Chinese fibre optics company sets up shop in Vancouver

telecom | 05/01/2015 6:26 pm EDT

A subsidiary of a Chinese fibre-optics company said Friday it has established Vancouver as its North American headquarters. F-Pacific, a division of China Fiber Optic Network System Group Ltd., had...

Mobilicity monitor says Wind promotion did little harm

telecom | 05/01/2015 5:41 pm EDT

New court documents show Mobilicity lost only 1,600 customers during the first four months of 2015 despite Wind Mobile’s offer of six months of free service to defectors from Mobilicity. An April 29 report from Ernst & Young Inc., Mobilicity's court-appointed monitor in its bankruptcy proceeding, said Mobilicity expected to have a "healthy" base of 157,000 active customers at the end of April, down from 158,600 at the end of 2014, despite  “one of the Applicants’ main competitor’s offering six months of free service to any Mobilicity customers...

SaskTel launches new enterprise Internet service

telecom | 04/30/2015 8:20 pm EDT

Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. said in a press release Thursday it has launched a new Internet service for its business customers with speeds of up to 10 Gbps per second. The Saskatchewan-government owned company...

Most Internet traffic will be encrypted by next year: Sandvine

Media | 04/30/2015 3:42 pm EDT

Encrypted Internet traffic currently makes up about one-third of North American traffic, a figure that is projected to grow to two-thirds by 2016, after Netflix Inc. begins using encryption, according...

Pay-per-view sports getting boost from boxing

Media | 04/30/2015 3:25 pm EDT

Despite streaming services eating away at the profits of pay-per-view movies and TV shows, TV providers could see their biggest PPV revenues in history on Saturday as two of boxing’s biggest names fight in front of a...

BCE posts slightly lower profits in Q1

Media | 04/30/2015 3:02 pm EDT

BCE Inc.’s latest earnings report shows the company made $532 million in profits in the first quarter of 2015, down from $615 million in same period last year. Despite the 13.5 per cent year-on-year drop in profits, the...

Tablet market continues shipment decline: IDC

telecom | 04/30/2015 2:41 pm EDT

The global tablet market saw its second straight year-over-year decline in shipments in the first quarter of 2015, International Data Corp. said Thursday. The technology research company said in a press release that companies shipped 47.1 million tablets in the first quarter, down 5.9 per cent from a year earlier. Jean Philippe Bouchard, IDC's research director for the tablet market, said that certain types of tablets are seeing growth, such as those equipped to run on cellular networks. "In addition to driving higher usage than WiFi-only tablets, cellular-enabled tablets also help...

Google launches Digital News Initiative in Europe

Media | 04/29/2015 7:34 pm EDT

Google Inc. announced a new partnership with European news organizations on Tuesday called the Digital News Initiative. The search and advertising giant said it will work with newspapers including the Financial Times, the...

Wireless health damage as certain as human-caused climate change: scientist

telecom | 04/28/2015 11:56 pm EDT

OTTAWA — A U.S. scientist who was part of a team that won a Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore in 2007 for their work on climate change told a Canadian parliamentary committee on Tuesday that...

YouTube to make feature films

Media | 04/28/2015 4:23 pm EDT

Google Inc.'s YouTube said Tuesday that it will be partnering with a division of DreamWorks Animation LLC to make feature films in the coming years. It said in a blog post that it will work with DreamWorks' AwesomenessTV...

PIAC re-launches undue-preference complaint against Shomi

Media | 04/27/2015 11:08 pm EDT

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) has re-launched an undue-preference complaint against Rogers Communications Inc.'s and Shaw Communications Inc.’s Shomi streaming service,...

Nadir Mohamed to lead venture-capital fund

Media | 04/27/2015 7:24 pm EDT

Former Rogers Communications Inc. CEO Nadir Mohamed will lead a new venture-capital fund created by the Ontario government, the office of Premier Kathleen Wynne said on Monday. Mohamed will lead a council of about 30 business...

Facebook adds video calling to Messenger

Media | 04/27/2015 6:56 pm EDT

Facebook Inc. said Monday it has updated its Messenger app to add video-calling capabilities. In a press release, the company said the app, which introduced voice calling in January 2013, now accounts for more than 10 per cent of...

Coming cyber-security legislation to affect telecoms, but details scant

telecom | 04/24/2015 7:47 pm EDT

The government will introduce new legislation aimed at strengthening the security of “Canada’s essential cyber systems” that will impose new obligations on telecommunications...

SaskTel launches mobile-payment capabilities

Media | 04/24/2015 7:03 pm EDT

Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. said Thursday it has launched mobile-payment capabilities for wireless customers who bank with Toronto Dominion Bank and have certain devices. SaskTel said the current service works...

Corus seeks more flexibility for OWN

Media | 04/24/2015 5:40 pm EDT

In the wake of the CRTC's recent changes to specialty-TV genres, Corus Entertainment Inc. has applied to change the licence conditions of the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), which it has the licensing rights for in Canada. In a letter sent to the CRTC, Corus noted the decision announced in March by the CRTC said it had "eliminated the genre exclusivity policy" and replaced it with requirement for licensees to "provide the Commission with the name and a brief description of the service and to update this name and description any time it changes.” As a result, Corus has...

Comcast, Time Warner deal nixed

Media | 04/24/2015 1:36 pm EDT

Comcast Corp. on Friday confirmed that it is walking away from its proposed $45-billion US buyout of Time Warner Cable Inc. In a statement on Comcast's website, CEO Brian Roberts said: "Today, we move on. Of course, we...

Wind adds two new executives

telecom | 04/23/2015 7:37 pm EDT

One month after Alek Krstajic took over the top job at Wind Mobile, two other key jobs at the wireless carrier are also seeing change. Bob Boron has replaced Simon Lockie as chief regulatory officer at Wind, while Bruce Kirby has...

CIBC announces Apple Watch app

Media | 04/23/2015 6:30 pm EDT

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce announced Thursday it will soon have a banking application for Apple Inc.'s Apple Watch. CIBC said in a press release that its app will allow users to check account balances, transfer funds...

CRTC denies radio station’s request to expand coverage

telecom | 04/23/2015 4:44 pm EDT

The CRTC on Thursday denied an application by Radio Markham York Inc. for a new transmitter for its CFMS-FM Markham station in nearby Aurora, Ont. In its decision, the regulator said the new transmitter would “significantly expand” the coverage areas of the radio station beyond its original licence and the...

PIAC, seniors group denied costs in CRTC proceeding

Media | 04/23/2015 4:31 pm EDT

The CRTC has denied an application by the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and the Council of Senior Citizens' Organizations of British Columbia for reimbursement of about $13,500 for their participation in a complaint against Rogers Communications Inc.'s NHL GamePlus web product. The case was brought before the CRTC by BCE Inc. in October, shortly after GamePlus launched. Bell took issue with Rogers offering the service — which provides footage of NHL games from unique camera angles along with interviews and other features — just to subscribers of Rogers'...

Government funds effort to increase women execs in tech, media

Media | 04/23/2015 3:31 pm EDT

The federal government said in a press release Thursday that it would provide $417,215 for a program aimed at increasing “the number of women in senior executive positions and on the boards of companies in the communications, media and technical sectors across Canada.” The money will go to the to the...

Shaw names Trevor English SVP of corporate development

Media | 04/23/2015 3:12 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. said in a press release Thursday that it has named Trevor English its senior vice-president of corporate development and business planning. The release noted that...

Public safety spectrum set-aside raises questions: analyst

telecom | 04/23/2015 3:03 pm EDT

The federal government’s proposal to set aside more spectrum and spend $3 million next year to plan for a dedicated public-safety wireless broadband network, as detailed in the budget released...

Little growth in music streaming services: MTM

Media | 04/22/2015 9:05 pm EDT

Media Technology Monitor (MTM), a project of CBC/Radio-Canada, said in report released Wednesday that the percentage of anglophones using "personalized" audio streaming services over the last year or so has been...

Google launches wireless service in U.S.

Media | 04/22/2015 7:35 pm EDT

Google Inc. on Wednesday announced it has launched a wireless service in the United States, partnering with T-Mobile U.S. Inc. and Sprint Corp. for coverage on their networks. A website for Google's new service, called...

HBO notifying Canadian streamers using VPNs: report

telecom | 04/22/2015 7:31 pm EDT

HBO has been sending notices to users in countries outside of the U.S., including Canada, who have attempted to access its over-the-top (OTT) HBO Now service, the National Post reported. The newspaper said in an article Tuesday...

California group to buy International Datacasting’s ‘key’ assets

Media | 04/22/2015 5:54 pm EDT

Pico Digital Inc. of San Diego has reached an agreement to purchase the "key" assets of Ottawa's International Datacasting Corp., the companies said in a joint news release Wednesday. The announcement said Pico would acquire International Datacasting's broadcast products business, which would include its...

Comp watchdog seeking experts for Google case: report

Media | 04/22/2015 1:43 pm EDT

The Competition Bureau is looking for experts in the fields of online search and advertising, and experts say it's likely related to its probe into Google Inc.'s advertising practices, the Financial Post reported....

Budget includes new money for networks, satellites

Media | 04/21/2015 8:40 pm EDT

The federal budget, released Tuesday, includes new money for broadband and research networks, satellite communications, securing the government’s own online properties and a dedicated public safety network. The government is promising to spend $1.33 billion over six years through the Canada Foundation for Innovation, beginning in 2017, to support “advanced research infrastructure” at public institutions including hospitals, universities and colleges. The foundation is a non-profit organization that uses funding from the government and other sources to invest in the “facilities...

Main IoT market to be worth $6.5B by 2018: IDC

Media | 04/21/2015 7:20 pm EDT

The main Internet of Things (IoT) market will generate $6.5 billion in revenue in Canada in 2018, representing average annual growth of 18 per cent in comparison to the $2.88 billion the market was worth in 2013, International...

Bill S-4 passes at committee

telecom | 04/21/2015 6:25 pm EDT

Industry Minister James Moore said on Twitter Tuesday that Bill S-4, the Digital Privacy Act, has passed at the House of Commons industry committee and would be “referred back to the House for final debate [and] vote...

SaskTel brings fibre to Swift Current

telecom | 04/21/2015 4:07 pm EDT

Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. said Tuesday that it has officially launched its fibre-to-the-home Internet service in Swift Current, Sask. SaskTel said in a press release that some customers have already been...

Sonia Carreno new president of IAB Canada

Media | 04/21/2015 2:54 pm EDT

The Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada (IAB) has named Sonia Carreno its new president, the organization said in a press release Monday. The release said Carreno has “more than 15 years of integrated leadership...

Telus to invest $2.1 billion in Ontario

telecom | 04/21/2015 2:01 pm EDT

Telus Corp. announced Tuesday that it will spend $2.1 billion in Ontario by the end of 2018, the latest in a series of funding announcements from the company. The money will go toward new infrastructure and facilities, including the upgrading of cell towers to LTE and the continuing rollout of the 700 MHz spectrum the company purchased in the 2014 auction. Telus also said it would look at how to “best leverage” the AWS-3 spectrum it bought in March. The $2.1-billion investment in Ontario also includes spending on Telus’ health-care division, as well as security, cloud...

BlackBerry to purchase document-security company

Media | 04/21/2015 1:26 pm EDT

BlackBerry Ltd. announced Tuesday that it has reached a deal to purchase a California-based company that makes technology to secure shared documents. The company being bought is called WatchDox Ltd. Terms of the deal were not...

Rogers revenue up, helped by NHL contract

Media | 04/20/2015 9:07 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. on Monday reported a 5.1 per cent annual gain in revenue for the first quarter, driven largely by a 26 per cent jump in its media division that benefited from Rogers' exclusive national rights to NHL...

Ken Engelhart leaves Rogers for ‘new adventures’

Media | 04/20/2015 8:41 pm EDT

Ken Engelhart, Rogers Communications Inc.’s former vice-president of regulatory affairs, has quietly left the company after 25 years and will be starting his own law firm. His last day at Rogers was April 10, he said in a...

Small Toronto ISP to provide fibre link for Pan Am athletes

telecom | 04/20/2015 8:10 pm EDT

Athletes from across two continents competing in the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto this summer will be able to connect with family and friends back home via high-speed fibre Internet connections...

VPNs facing barriers in Australia, New Zealand

telecom | 04/20/2015 5:01 pm EDT

A new bill in Australian parliament could block virtual private networks (VPNs), while Internet service providers in New Zealand could face lawsuits for a VPN-like service, two articles in the Guardian said. The British newspaper...

Android updates smartwatch technology

Media | 04/20/2015 4:30 pm EDT

Google Inc.'s Android division on Monday announced several upgrades to its smartwatch technology, including built-in WiFi, making apps visible even when devices are in energy-saving mode, and adding easier functionality for...

Recon Jet smart goggles released

Media | 04/20/2015 2:22 pm EDT

Vancouver-based Recon Instruments announced Thursday the release of its new smart goggles for outdoor sports enthusiasts called Recon Jet. It said in a press release that the product is equipped with GPS, a camera, a display...

Rogers enjoying playoff boost, but benefits hard to quantify

Media | 04/17/2015 7:54 pm EDT

Having five Canadian teams reach the NHL playoffs for the first time in more than a decade is set to translate into a winning season for Rogers Communications Inc. as it completes the first...

Bell says IPTV customers have reached 1 million

Media | 04/17/2015 5:55 pm EDT

BCE Inc. said in a press release Friday that its IPTV customer base has reached one million households. In the release, Bell said IPTV, which it offers through its Fibe TV and FibreOP TV brands, has  since its launch in 2010 become one of the fastest growing product lines in the company's 135-year history. Rizwan Jamal, president of residential services at Bell, said the company is winning customers from cable with features such as digital recordings that can be shared across different set-top boxes in the home, wireless connections and a new feature that can restart a...

Keith Pelley leaving Rogers this summer

Media | 04/17/2015 3:36 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. said Friday that Keith Pelley will leave as president of the company's media division this summer to take over as CEO of the PGA European Tour. Pelley was appointed president of Rogers Media in...

Apple Pay could launch in Canada this fall: report

Media | 04/17/2015 3:32 pm EDT

Apple Inc. is negotiating with Canada's major banks about a launch of its mobile-payment service, Apple Pay, in November, according to the Wall Street Journal. An article published online Friday said Apple is negotiating with...

Rogers condo connection could be cut off without Bell access

telecom | 04/16/2015 4:05 pm EDT

The CRTC said Thursday that unless a developer provides BCE Inc. "timely access" to a Toronto condominium building about to accept new occupants, the other service providers that have been...

New business gigabit-Internet service launched in Vancouver

telecom | 04/16/2015 3:05 pm EDT

Urban Communications Inc. said Thursday it has launched its gigabit Internet connections for business customers in Vancouver. The company, which also offers 1 Gbps residential service, said in a...

Telus announces $116M investment in Montreal

telecom | 04/16/2015 2:36 pm EDT

Telus Corp. said Thursday it will invest $116 million in technology in the Montreal area this year as part of a $1.6-billion capital plan for Quebec between now and the end of 2018. Telus said in a press release that the investment in Montreal and surrounding communities will go toward growing wireless capacity, making data speeds faster, connecting more businesses to its fibre-optic network and improving its health-related services. In recent days, Telus has also made funding announcements worth billions of dollars for British Columbia and Alberta....

Netflix to make marketing push outside of U.S.

Media | 04/16/2015 2:19 pm EDT

Netflix Inc. said in letter to shareholders Wednesday it would be shifting some of its U.S. marketing budget to other parts of the world in the coming months "to take advantage of the substantial available growth...

CRTC removes most restrictions on Al Jazeera Arabic

Media | 04/15/2015 3:28 pm EDT

Al Jazeera Media Network has won its fight to delete most of the conditions on Canadian distribution of is Al Jazeera Arabic channel, the CRTC said Wednesday, making it easier for Canadian service providers to distribute the...

Sandvine launches service-management app for mobile providers

Media | 04/15/2015 3:00 pm EDT

Network management provider Sandvine Inc. said Wednesday it has launched a smartphone application for mobile service providers to allow customers to manage their plans on their device. The...

Telus to invest $4 billion in B.C. through 2018

telecom | 04/15/2015 2:21 pm EDT

Telus Corp. said Wednesday it will spend $4 billion on infrastructure and facilities in its home province of British Columbia over the next four years, including $1 billion this year. The company said in a press release that the...

Quebecor roaming plan could point to national ambition: analyst

Media | 04/14/2015 8:53 pm EDT

Quebecor Inc.’s Tuesday announcement of nationwide roaming at no charge for its Videotron wireless customers could allow the company to test the waters for a national mobile service, according...

Shopify files for cross-border IPO

telecom | 04/14/2015 8:24 pm EDT

Ottawa-based e-commerce provider Shopify Inc. announced Tuesday that it has filed for an initial public offering on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange. The number of shares or the proposed price range for the IPO have not been finalized, the company said in a press release. No date was provided for the IPO. Shopify says on its...

U.S. industry groups fight new net-neutrality regulations

telecom | 04/14/2015 7:24 pm EDT

CTIA-The Wireless Association is among a number of U.S. industry groups making court challenges to net-neutrality rules the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) put in place earlier this year....

Class-action suit launched against Bell ad program

telecom | 04/14/2015 4:59 pm EDT

Toronto law firm Charney Lawyers said it is launching a class-action lawsuit against BCE Inc.’s targeted advertising program. In a post on its website, the company said it “has commenced a class action lawsuit on...

CRTC closes Bell complaint about access to Toronto condos

telecom | 04/14/2015 3:44 pm EDT

The CRTC has closed a complaint filed by BCE Inc. against Plazacorp Investments Ltd. and Rogers Communications Inc., regarding access to one of Plazacorp’s Toronto condo buildings. Bell told the CRTC in July 2014 that it was being denied timely access to the "Ivory on Adelaide" condo building and asked the CRTC to mediate the dispute. In an April 9 letter posted on the CRTC’s website, the commission said it was closing the file after it asked Bell for an update and was told Bell “had been receiving on-going access” to the building....

Shaw loses profits, subs in Q2

telecom | 04/14/2015 2:51 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. on Tuesday reported $1.34 billion in revenue in its second fiscal quarter, up five per cent from the same period a year earlier, though its net income during the three-month period ended Feb. 28 fell to...

Nokia in talks to take over Alcatel-Lucent

telecom | 04/14/2015 2:14 pm EDT

Nokia Corp. said Tuesday it is in “advanced discussions” about a takeover of Alcatel-Lucent SA, in a statement posted on the Finnish mobile equipment maker’s website. The “full combination” would be an offer from Nokia to buy the outstanding public shares of Alcatel-Lucent, the company said, but there is “no...

Bell to make targeted ad program ‘opt-in,’ PIAC still fighting it

Media | 04/13/2015 9:00 pm EDT

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre said it will not drop a CRTC complaint against BCE Inc.’s targeted ad program, despite the company’s plans to re-launch the program according to...

Report shows 95,000 TV cord-cutters last year

telecom | 04/13/2015 8:24 pm EDT

Convergence Consulting Group Ltd. says in a new report that Canada lost 95,000 TV subscribers in 2014, the second year of decline, while TV subscriber revenue continued to grow. A summary of the report posted to the Convergence...

Government: Retailers can opt out of mobile payments

Media | 04/13/2015 7:51 pm EDT

The federal government said Monday that retailers will be allowed to opt out of accepting payments through mobile devices, without penalty, if higher fees are being charged than for card-based transactions using contactless technology. It was among several updates the Department of Finance announced to the code of conduct for the credit- and debit-card industry. Department spokeswoman Stéphanie Rubec said in an email that updates pertinent to mobile technology include the provision that merchants can opt out of higher-priced mobile payments without losing their privileges to other...

Next spectrum auction seen as less substantial than previous sales

telecom | 04/13/2015 5:03 pm EDT

Canada's third wireless spectrum auction in a little more than a year is set to start Tuesday, and it is generally predicted to bring in far less money than the other two, though at least one...

Does VoLTE conflict with net neutrality?

Media | 04/10/2015 8:23 pm EDT

Voice-over-LTE (VoLTE) had a small-scale launch in Canada recently, with Rogers Communications Inc. making the service that allows carriers to transmit voice calls on the same networks as data available to a portion of its...

Bell moves forward with appeal in mobile-TV case

Media | 04/10/2015 8:12 pm EDT

BCE Inc. on Friday took the next steps in appealing the January CRTC ruling regarding its mobile-TV service, having been granted leave to appeal the matter last week. The date the appeal will be heard has not yet been determined,...

SaskTel plans $313M in capital spending this year

telecom | 04/10/2015 6:14 pm EDT

Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. said Thursday it plans to make about $313 million in capital expenditures in its home province this year, including $177 million on what it calls its "core Saskatchewan...

Rogers extends Roam Like Home to Europe

telecom | 04/10/2015 5:19 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. on Friday said it will launch a Roam Like Home service for customers travelling to Europe that is similar to what's been available for travellers to the United States since November. Rogers...

Industry Canada streamlines satellite-station licensing

telecom | 04/10/2015 5:13 pm EDT

Industry Canada said Friday that it is implementing a single-licence system for operators of large networks of satellite-to-earth communication stations, a move the department said would save...

Telecom customer info sought in most criminal investigations: report

telecom | 04/10/2015 2:18 pm EDT

Police ask telecommunications service providers for information about their customers in the vast majority of criminal investigations, said an online report by CBC on Friday. "Canadian police...

CRTC to consider whether broadband should be basic service

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

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

Kevin Crull out as Bell Media boss

Media | 04/09/2015 8:52 pm EDT

BCE Inc. said Thursday that Kevin Crull is out as president of its Bell Media division, and a press release appeared to link Crull's ousting to his recent conflict with news staff over coverage of the CRTC's decision on TV-channel unbundling. Bell CEO George Cope said in the release that "Kevin Crull departs Bell with our thanks for his contributions to our customers and shareholders,” noting achievements such as the integration of Astral Media and the launch of CraveTV. Yet Cope added that “the independence of Bell Media's news operations is of paramount...

CRTC looking into Telesat pricing

telecom | 04/09/2015 7:08 pm EDT

The CRTC has launched a public consultation to review a price ceiling on some services provided by satellite operator Telesat Holdings Inc. In a press release, the regulator said commissioner Candice Molnar had, in a report...

DiversityCanada refused costs on multiple applications

telecom | 04/09/2015 6:05 pm EDT

Three different CRTC decisions issued on Thursday left the DiversityCanada Foundation more than $70,000 short of what it hoped to get out of applications for reimbursements on initiatives taken in...

Rogers reports 35% fewer law-enforcement info requests

telecom | 04/09/2015 4:55 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc., in its second transparency report, said there was a 35 per cent reduction between 2014 and 2013 in the number of law-enforcement requests it received for customer...

Ericsson completes TimelessMind purchase

telecom | 04/09/2015 1:56 pm EDT

Ericsson AB said Thursday it has completed its purchase of Mississauga, Ont. consulting and systems integration company TimelessMind. Ericsson said in a press release that the acquisition includes around 30 employees and consultants. TimelessMind, according to the release, specializes in “operations and business support” and the buyout...

Cogeco boosts revenue as TV subs continue decline

telecom | 04/09/2015 1:49 pm EDT

Cogeco Cable Inc. reported late Wednesday a decline in profit for its second fiscal quarter, a gain in revenue and fewer TV subscribers. It said in a press release that its profit was $58.9 million for the three months ended Feb. 28 this year, down from $60.4 million a year earlier. It attributed the decline to depreciation, amortization, financing expenses and income taxes. Cogeco Cable’s revenue was up 4.8 per cent to $509.5 million. It said Canadian cable revenue was up 0.3 per cent, U.S. cable gained 18.3 per cent and enterprise data services brought in 6.4 per cent more....

Jury out on Bell plans for targeted advertising: OPC

telecom | 04/08/2015 7:11 pm EDT

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner said it had a meeting with officials from BCE Inc. on Wednesday, and it is keeping its legal options open despite Bell's expressed willingness to follow its direction. Tobi Cohen,...

Microsoft adds OTA broadcasts to Xbox One

Media | 04/08/2015 2:11 pm EDT

Microsoft Corp. announced Wednesday that users of its Xbox One gaming console in Canada and the United States that are subscribed to its beta updates program will now be able to receive over-the-air broadcast television with an...

Bell looks to avoid legal showdown with privacy commish

telecom | 04/07/2015 8:30 pm EDT

Faced with a possible legal fight against another agency of the federal government, BCE Inc. on Tuesday backed down after the Office of the Privacy Commissioner said the company refused to require...

Online video viewing up an hour a week over year: MTM

Media | 04/07/2015 7:50 pm EDT

In the fall of 2014, Canadian anglophones spent an hour more watching online video in a typical week than they did a year earlier, according to new data from the Media Technology Monitor (MTM). MTM, a project of CBC/Radio-Canada,...

Fido customers to get exclusive content from Vice

Media | 04/07/2015 3:36 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. has launched new wireless plans for customers of its Fido brand that include exclusive content from Vice Media Inc. Rogers said in a press release that its new “Fido Pulse” plans will...

SaskTel extends LTE to 62 rural communities

telecom | 04/07/2015 3:24 pm EDT

Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. announced Monday that it has extended LTE coverage to 62 more rural communities in the province on the 850 MHz band. SaskTel said in a press release it is approximately doubling the...

Telus to make $4.2B investment in Alberta

telecom | 04/07/2015 3:22 pm EDT

Telus Corp. said Monday it will spend $4.2 billion on infrastructure and facilities in Alberta between now and the end of 2018, including $1 billion in the current year. The company said in a press release that, when combined...

Bell granted leave to appeal in mobile-TV case

telecom | 04/02/2015 7:47 pm EDT

The Federal Court on Thursday granted BCE Inc. leave to appeal in its challenge of a CRTC ruling regarding its mobile-TV service. Bell applied for leave to appeal in February, seeking to overturn a January CRTC ruling that...

Ontera looking for higher subsidies

telecom | 04/02/2015 4:32 pm EDT

BCE Inc.-owned Ontera, formerly a provincial-government-owned telecom operation in northern Ontario, has applied to the CRTC for higher subsidies under established practices for providers serving high-cost areas. In an application filed with the CRTC this week, the provider of phone and Internet services said it is receiving a rate of subsidy for a tax-exempt entity. However, it argued that as a result of its takeover in October last year by Bell Aliant (which was later fully bought by BCE), it should be subsidized at the higher rate for tax-paying entities. Ontera said the rate for what it...