Next CRTC decision on TV won’t be about pick-and-pay

Media | 02/26/2015 9:04 pm EST

The CRTC on March 12 will announce most decisions related to its Let's Talk TV consultation, but it won't be about whether to force TV-service providers to unbundle channels. The Canadian Club of Ottawa will host a lunchtime presentation by CRTC Chairman Jean-Pierre Blais on that day. CRTC spokeswoman Patricia...

Payphone use ‘decreasing’ but still ‘important’: CRTC

telecom | 02/26/2015 8:58 pm EST

The CRTC said Thursday that it has found use of payphones in Canada is "decreasing steadily" though they remain "important" and careful consideration should be given before removing a community's access to them. The commission said in report that a fact-finding mission found that just 32 per cent of...

Google announces work software for Android devices

Media | 02/25/2015 9:05 pm EST

Google Inc. said Wednesday it has a developed a program that will help utilize Android devices for business purposes in a way that ensures security for employers. A blog post from Google said the technology is called Android for...

IPhone 6 Plus data usage double that of regular iPhone 6: report

Media | 02/25/2015 6:06 pm EST

Users of Apple Inc.'s iPhone 6 Plus are using twice as much data as those with the iPhone 6, according to a report from Citrix Systems Inc. The U.S. provider of workplace mobility technology said...

Android, iOS approach ‘total domination’ of smartphone market

Media | 02/25/2015 3:47 pm EST

Google Inc.'s Android and Apple Inc.'s iOS operating systems "inched closer to total domination of the worldwide smartphone market" in the fourth quarter of 2014, International Data Corp. said Tuesday. The technology research company said in news release that the two operating systems powered 96.3 per cent of all smartphones shipped during the last three months of 2014, compared to a combined market share of 95.6 per cent during the same period a year earlier. IDC said there were a total of 377.5 million smartphones shipped in 2014's fourth quarter, up 29.2 per cent from a year earlier. Data provided by IDC showed Android's share of the smartphone market in the...

Bell extends LTE network in Ontario, Quebec

telecom | 02/25/2015 2:54 pm EST

BCE Inc. announced Wednesday it has extended its LTE service to 120 rural and remote communities in Ontario and Quebec. The company said in a release it aims to bring LTE connectivity to 98 per cent of Canada’s population...

Online video factors into cord-cutting: CIRA survey

Media | 02/24/2015 9:43 pm EST

Newly released results from a Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) survey show the availability of online video content is a factor for four in 10 Canadian Internet users who do not subscribe to cable TV. The data,...

Telus partners with Jasper on IoT

Media | 02/24/2015 4:48 pm EST

Telus Corp. announced Tuesday it is partnering with Internet of Things (IoT) platform provider Jasper Inc. for its own IoT platform, the Telus Control Centre. The new platform “simplifies the deployment and management of...

Shaw ‘welcomes’ third-party ISP customers: CRTC filing

telecom | 02/24/2015 4:20 pm EST

Shaw Communications Inc. has filed a response to the small ISPs that oppose its proposed new prices for wholesale Internet access that argues against the notion of its moves being anti-competitive. In a Feb. 19 filing to the CRTC, Shaw denied that the new prices —which one operator called “egregious”...

Bell seeking costs in appeal to overturn mobile-TV ruling

Media | 02/23/2015 9:34 pm EST

BCE Inc. is seeking to recover legal costs from a range of parties — including an advocacy group representing senior citizens, private individuals and companies in the telecommunications sector...

Shaw partners with B.C. city to provide free WiFi

telecom | 02/23/2015 9:16 pm EST

Shaw Communications Inc. has partnered with the City of Port Coquitlam, B.C., to bring free WiFi to the city’s parks and public facilities, the city and company announced Monday. Under the five-year agreement, Shaw will...

Ericsson to purchase Ontario’s TimelessMind

telecom | 02/23/2015 5:11 pm EST

Ericsson AB said Friday it has reached an agreement to purchase TimelessMind Inc., a Mississauga, Ont.-based provider of technological services for the telecommunications sector. Ericsson said in a press release that with the purchase, expected to close before the end of June, the company will "gain access to a flexible, cloud-based intranet...

Apple to spend billions on European data centres

Media | 02/23/2015 5:09 pm EST

Apple Inc. said Monday it will spend 1.7 billion euros ($2.4 billion Cdn) on two data centres in Europe that are expected to be operational in 2017. The company said in a press release the facilities will each be 166,000 square...

CRTC suspends proceeding against Shomi, CraveTV

Media | 02/20/2015 9:27 pm EST

The CRTC has suspended the proceeding initiated the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and Consumers' Association of Canada (CAC) against video-streaming services CraveTV and Shomi. CRTC dispute resolution manager Tandy Yull said in a letter to PIAC lawyer Geoffrey White dated Friday that in "light of submissions received" since Feb. 11, the "processes are suspended until further notice." She added: "Further direction with regard to the process and timelines will be provided to parties in due course." The CRTC provided no further information beyond the...

Snapchat reportedly worth as much as $19B US

Media | 02/20/2015 4:43 pm EST

Snapchat Inc., the maker of mobile apps for picture and video sharing, is being valued at as much as $19 billion US in current talks to secure a new round of funding, Bloomberg reported this week. An article Tuesday said the...

Canada lagging in health technology innovation: experts

Media | 02/20/2015 3:17 pm EST

The next generation of health technology is slowly rolling out in Canada, but experts say more government leadership is needed to bring innovations such as remote health monitoring and personalized...

Telus institutes Internet data caps

telecom | 02/19/2015 10:41 pm EST

Telus Corp. announced Thursday it is implementing usage-based billing for customers who exceed their monthly data caps on its wireline Internet packages, starting next month in some areas. The company will charge customers an...

Cogeco lays off 20 data service workers in Toronto

telecom | 02/19/2015 7:32 pm EST

Cogeco Cable Inc.'s data services division has cut about 20 jobs in Toronto, the company said Thursday. Cogeco Data Services spokeswoman Shawna Abbott said in an email that the cuts were made Wednesday "to increase...

Bell, PIAC trade procedural shots regarding streaming complaint

Media | 02/19/2015 7:24 pm EST

BCE Inc. on Thursday reiterated its position that a complaint from the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and the Consumers' Association of Canada (CAC) about its CraveTV streaming service is "frivolous" and should be dismissed, but if the CRTC review does go ahead, the deadline for responding should be extended by 30 days. A Bell Media document obtained by The Wire Report responds to a filing made by PIAC two days earlier that challenged Bell's positions — made in a submission last week — which include the assertion that the CRTC has no jurisdiction to make...

Music’s ‘competitive value’ 2.5 times what’s paid: study

Media | 02/19/2015 5:27 pm EST

A new study from the C.D. Howe Institute says the "competitive value" of music in Canada is two and a half times what is actually paid through copyright tariffs. The report, authored by economist Marcel Boyer, came to this conclusion based on an analysis of conventional radio, for which he said established...

Canada lags in mobile broadband adoption: OECD

telecom | 02/19/2015 4:55 pm EST

Mobile broadband subscriptions rose 11.9 per cent for the 12 months to June 2014 in the 34 countries the make up the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the group said in a Thursday release. Mobile...

Digital advertising exchange adds 4 companies

Media | 02/19/2015 3:39 pm EST

A coalition called Canada's Premium Audience Exchange (CPAX) said Thursday that four new companies have joined the exchange, which allows website operators to sell digital advertising in real time. CPAX said in a press...

CTV Go picked up by Rogers, other BDUs

Media | 02/19/2015 3:15 pm EST

BCE Inc.'s online TV-everywhere service, CTV Go, is now available to customers of Rogers Communications Inc. and four other TV service providers, CTV said Thursday. The network said in a press release that other broadcast...

Copyright Board considers changes to become ‘more efficient’

Media | 02/18/2015 10:09 pm EST

The Copyright Board of Canada has produced a report outlining a number of changes it is considering in order to make its processes "more efficient and more productive." Recommendations included in a working document posted on its website include: improving the way it communicates proposed tariffs; requiring...

Bell changes opt-out policy for tracking program

telecom | 02/18/2015 9:35 pm EST

BCE Inc. will no longer collect or keep information on the wireless activity of customers who opt out of its targeted advertising program, the company said. “Bell has changed its opt-out process so that an opt-out will...

Verizon Wireless head Daniel Mead steps down

telecom | 02/18/2015 6:14 pm EST

Daniel Mead is stepping down as head of Verizon Communications Inc.’s wireless division and will retire following the close of his company’s deal to sell a chunk of its wireline assets to Frontier Communications Corp.,...

BlackBerry seeks injunction against Typo 2: report

Media | 02/18/2015 5:27 pm EST

BlackBerry Ltd. is seeking an injunction against the latest version of a keyboard add-on made by Ryan Seacrest's Typo Products LLC for Apple Inc.'s iPhones, Reuters reported Tuesday. The article said BlackBerry claimed in...

Mobile shopping growth doubling overall e-commerce gains: PayPal

Media | 02/18/2015 4:50 pm EST

Mobile shopping in Canada is growing at a pace that more than doubles the growth of overall online purchasing, PayPal said Wednesday. The digital-payment processing company said in a press release that research it has conducted with polling company Ipsos shows mobile shopping is expected to show average annual growth of 34 per cent between the years 2013 and 2016, compared to 14 per cent for overall e-commerce. It said there was $3.45 billion worth of mobile shopping in Canada in 2013, and that figure is anticipated to have grown by 142 per cent by 2016. "We are at the dawn of a...

Bell to be part of M2M demo at Mobile World Congress

Media | 02/18/2015 4:23 pm EST

BCE Inc. will be among an international coalition of six telecommunications service providers demonstrating what it called a "revolutionary" new integrated platform for machine-to-machine (M2M) communications at next...

Rogers expands Smart Home service to Vancouver

Media | 02/17/2015 8:55 pm EST

Rogers Communications Inc. said Tuesday it has brought its Smart Home Monitoring service to Vancouver and other parts of British Columbia's Lower Mainland. Rogers said in a press release there are multiple packages available,...

One-third of Netflix users have used U.S. IP address: survey

Media | 02/17/2015 8:50 pm EST

About one in three Canadian customers of Netflix Inc. have used a U.S. IP address to access the company's American service because it offers more content than the Canadian version, Media...

Rogers seeks CRTC for clarity on wireless disconnections vs. suspensions

telecom | 02/17/2015 5:06 pm EST

Rogers Communications Inc. has asked the CRTC to clarify whether wireless code rules concerning advance notice of service disconnections apply equally to suspensions of service. In materials...

Bell asks CRTC to dismiss PIAC’s CraveTV complaint

Media | 02/13/2015 8:10 pm EST

BCE Inc. is asking the CRTC to dismiss a “frivolous and vexatious” Feb. 6 complaint from the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) against the company’s CraveTV service, arguing that the case has no chance of success and that the regulator has made such streaming services exempt from oversight. PIAC should be “well aware” that the CRTC has no power to dictate the business model for streaming services, Bell said in a Friday letter, adding that the group is “effectively asking the Commission to substitute their business judgment for Bell Media's as to...

Industry Canada accepts all bidders in AWS-3 and 2500 MHz auctions

telecom | 02/13/2015 3:19 pm EST

Industry Canada released the list of qualified bidders in both the AWS-3 and 2500 MHz spectrum auctions on Friday, with every applicant meeting the qualifications. There are 10 qualified bidders in...

CRTC gives 90 days for talks on wholesale Internet service dispute

telecom | 02/12/2015 9:44 pm EST

The CRTC is demanding that four of Canada’s largest cable companies and small ISPs represented by the Canadian Network Operators’ Consortium (CNOC) work out a dispute over customer service...

Mobilicity hoping for post-auction sale approval: report

telecom | 02/12/2015 9:11 pm EST

Mobilicity is hoping that spectrum ownership in Canada after two upcoming auctions becomes diluted enough that the government changes course on its previous refusal to allow the sale of the company...

Tom Jenkins named NRC chairman

Media | 02/12/2015 7:36 pm EST

OpenText Corp. chairman Tom Jenkins was announced by Industry Canada Thursday as the new chairman of the National Research Council of Canada (NRC). It said in a press release that the appointment took effect Feb. 5. Jenkins was...

CTV Go now works with Google Chromecast

Media | 02/12/2015 3:47 pm EST

BCE Inc.'s CTV network announced Thursday that its TV everywhere service, CTV Go, has become the first of its kind in Canada to work with Google Inc.'s Chromecast streaming device. Chromecast is a thumb-sized device that...

Q9 Networks launching new support services for data centres

Media | 02/12/2015 3:44 pm EST

Q9 Networks Inc. said Thursday it is launching a new support option for its data centre customers that includes hardware installation and management for the full life cycle of customers’ servers...

Telus profits up on higher data revenues

telecom | 02/12/2015 3:21 pm EST

Telus Corp.’s fourth-quarter profits rose 7.6 per cent from a year earlier as the company reported a double-digit jump in data revenue from its wireless and wireline customers. According to the company’s latest...

Canadian tech company to help carriers implement VoLTE

telecom | 02/11/2015 9:44 pm EST

Sandvine Inc., a Canadian company that provides software to telecommunications service providers around the world, said Wednesday that it has added capabilities enabling it to help carriers offer...

Shaw shutting call-centre operations in 3 cities

Media | 02/11/2015 8:26 pm EST

Shaw Communications Inc. said Wednesday it is shutting down call-centre operations in Edmonton, Calgary and Kelowna, B.C., with about 1,600 workers at these locations having a choice of whether to move, assume a different position or take a buyout. The company said in a press release that it will realign its customer service along "centres of expertise," including technical service, sales and billing, loyalty care, technical field support, e-care, payment solutions and satellite operations. These centres will be in Vancouver, Victoria, Winnipeg and Montreal, Shaw said, and...

Telus to make Netflix available for Optik TV users

Media | 02/11/2015 8:14 pm EST

Telus Corp. said Wednesday it will be making services from Netflix Inc. available through its Optik TV set-top boxes in the coming weeks. Telus said in a press release that almost half of its Optik TV customers are Netflix...

CRTC extends deadline in Shaw wholesale dispute

telecom | 02/11/2015 5:56 pm EST

The CRTC has extended the deadline for Shaw Communications Inc. to reply in a dispute over the company’s  proposed changes to the prices for wholesale access to its Internet network. The regulator said in a letter...

Wind, Mobilicity held recent acquisition talks: report

telecom | 02/11/2015 4:48 pm EST

Wind Mobile had last-minute talks about a purchase of bankrupt carrier Mobilicity in advance of the Jan. 30 application deadline for bidding in the two upcoming spectrum auctions, according to a...

Super WiFi ‘exciting new area’ for wireless: spectrum expert

Media | 02/10/2015 7:47 pm EST

Industry Canada’s announcement last week that it is opening up TV white space for the use of "super WiFi" technology could improve broadband availability in rural areas and has the...

International Datacasting discussing sale

Media | 02/10/2015 5:22 pm EST

International Datacasting Corp., an Ottawa-based provider of technology for the broadcasting industry, said Tuesday it is in talks with an undisclosed party about the sale of the company. International Datacasting said in a press release that the discussions are "preliminary in nature and there can be no assurance that they will result in a transaction." It said it has established a committee of independent directors to assess the potential sale and other "strategic alternatives."...

Suit against Videotron’s Internet caps lands in court

telecom | 02/10/2015 5:20 pm EST

A class action lawsuit that claims Quebecor Inc.'s Videotron imposed caps on what were previously billed as unlimited Internet plans arrived in court on Monday, according to a press release from Quebec's Union des consommateurs, which is leading the action. The consumers' rights group said customers under...

SOCAN reports record revenues for 2014

Media | 02/10/2015 5:10 pm EST

The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) said Tuesday that collected a record amount of royalties last year, based on preliminary results. The collective representing songwriters, composers and...

Cogeco launching Montreal data centre in spring

telecom | 02/10/2015 5:01 pm EST

Cogeco Cable Inc. said Tuesday it expects to open a new 100,000 square foot data centre in Montreal in the spring. The facility is designed to meet Tier 3 standards, the company said in a release, and will serve customers in...

David Kleidermacher joins BlackBerry

Media | 02/10/2015 3:28 pm EST

David Kleidermacher has been appointed chief security officer of BlackBerry Ltd., the company announced Tuesday.  Kleidermacher was previously chief technology officer at Green Hills Software, a maker of embedded operating...

Twitter releases latest transparency report

Media | 02/09/2015 9:27 pm EST

The Canadian government asked Twitter Inc. for users’ personal information 32 times in the last six months of 2014, the social network said on Monday in its latest transparency report. The requests covered 37 different...

Netflix goes to Cuba

Media | 02/09/2015 6:53 pm EST

Netflix Inc. said Monday it is now offering service in Cuba. "Bienvenida Cuba! Netflix is now available," Netflix said in a Twitter post. The move follows the December announcement that the U.S. government is restoring diplomatic relations with Cuba after more than five decades. Netflix...

More advertisers using ‘advanced’ targeting: Videology

Media | 02/09/2015 3:53 pm EST

There's been a jump over the last year in Canadian marketers using "advanced ad targeting" methods to reach their audiences, which include using information about their purchasing or online behaviour, video advertising platform provider Videology Inc. said in a press release Monday. Videology said 92 per cent...

Ont. municipality still interested in Eastlink buyout: report

telecom | 02/06/2015 7:31 pm EST

The Municipality of Kincardine in southwestern Ontario is interested revisiting the issue of selling publicly owned Bruce Telecom to Eastlink-owner Bragg Communications Inc., according to a news...

Nigerian music TV channel proposed for Canadian distribution

Media | 02/06/2015 5:40 pm EST

Ethnic Channels Group Ltd. has filed an application to the CRTC to have a Nigerian TV channel called 1Music approved for distribution in Canada. The company said in a letter posted on the CRTC’s website Friday that the English-language channel shows music and music-related programming  aimed at African youth or those with an interest in African programming. A letter from the channel’s owner, One Music Ltd., confirms Canada’s Ethnic Channels Group as its sponsor and promises to “not hold, obtain or exercise exclusive or preferential programming rights in...

Alberta radio station can’t ditch folk music: CRTC

Media | 02/06/2015 4:55 pm EST

The CRTC issued a decision Friday the denied the operator of a Drumheller, Alta., radio station an amendment to its broadcasting licence that requires it make at least 10 per cent of the music it plays “folk or folk-oriented...

Redbox shutting down Canadian movie rental service

telecom | 02/06/2015 3:10 pm EST

The movie rental service Redbox will shut down its 1,400 kiosks in Canada, owner Outerwall Inc. said Thursday. In its latest quarterly report, Outerwall said the Canadian business is “not meeting the company’s...

Judge orders Typo to pay BlackBerry $860,600 US

telecom | 02/05/2015 9:26 pm EST

A U.S. district judge ordered Typo Products LLC to pay BlackBerry Ltd. $860,600, plus lawyers’ fees and costs, for selling an physical keyboard for iPhones despite an injunction being in place, Reuters reported Wednesday....

Government looks to TV white space to connect rural Canadians

Media | 02/05/2015 9:22 pm EST

Industry Canada said Thursday it was moving forward with initiatives it says will provide new opportunities for rural Canadians to access "WiFi-like services" through the use of TV white...

Spectrum auction applicants list holds few surprises

telecom | 02/05/2015 8:34 pm EST

The list of aspiring bidders in the upcoming AWS-3 and 2500 MHz spectrum auctions released by Industry Canada on Thursday includes the dominant players in Canada’s wireless sector as well as the remaining new entrants from the 2008 AWS auction, yet does not herald the entry of any new competitors into the market. The big three incumbent players, BCE Inc., Rogers Communications Inc. and Telus Corp., are joined by two large regional players in Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. and Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp. in bidding on the 20 MHz of AWS-3 spectrum available to them...

Moore stands by Bill S-4 at House committee

telecom | 02/05/2015 6:37 pm EST

OTTAWA — Industry Minister James Moore continued to back his Digital Privacy Act, or Bill S-4, on Thursday as he faced questions from opposition members of a House committee about clauses that allow individuals'...

Bell reports surge in wireless data usage

telecom | 02/05/2015 3:18 pm EST

BCE Inc.’s net earnings the fourth quarter grew slightly compared to a year earlier, though its wireless revenue gained by a wider margin largely on increased data usage. Bell's reported in a press release that revenue...

MTS reports lower Q4 revenue as wholesale wireless declines

telecom | 02/04/2015 10:01 pm EST

Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. on Wednesday reported lower revenue for the fourth quarter of last year, though unlike the year-earlier period, it was profitable. The company said in a press release...

Péladeau says he still controls Quebecor: report

Media | 02/04/2015 8:30 pm EST

Pierre Karl Péladeau, the controlling shareholder at Quebecor Inc., who was elected a member of Quebec’s national assembly last year, said Wednesday he maintains control of the company, the Montreal Gazette reported....

VMedia now offering triple-play bundles in Ontario

Media | 02/04/2015 8:04 pm EST

VMedia Inc. said Wednesday it has become the first independent telecommunications service provider to offer a triple-play bundle of television, Internet and home-phone service in Ontario. The company said its packages start at...

Montreal’s Valnet buys ScreenRant.com

Media | 02/04/2015 5:50 pm EST

Valnet Inc., a Montreal-based company that owns several information/entertainment websites, said Wednesday it has bought ScreenRant.com, a website for television and movie news. Valnet said in a press release that it "plans to bolster the site's unique and in-depth film and television content with enhanced features, new digital media and...

FCC chairman proposes common-carrier net neutrality rules

telecom | 02/04/2015 5:03 pm EST

U.S. Federal Communications Commissioner (FCC) chairman Tom Wheeler said on Wednesday that he will propose new rules this week to enshrine net neutrality in law and ban paid prioritization and...

CRTC says public proceeding on new powers to levy fines not ‘appropriate’

telecom | 02/04/2015 4:56 pm EST

A public proceeding regarding new CRTC powers to impose monetary penalties on telecommunications companies would “not be appropriate,” given “the fact that further guidance will be...

Business market growth elusive for some telecoms

telecom | 02/03/2015 9:31 pm EST

Canadian telecommunications providers are looking to the business market to pick up the slack from the increasingly competitive consumer space, yet financial data from the incumbent service providers shows, in the opinion of one analyst, that competing in that low-margin segment is a challenge. Macquarie Capital Markets analyst Greg MacDonald said that entering the business market as a new competitor would be "very, very difficult" but that there could be opportunities in serving small businesses. "Your competitive advantage has to be either customer service, or unique product...

Canadian mobile data to grow sevenfold by 2019: Cisco

Media | 02/03/2015 5:57 pm EST

Data running on mobile networks in Canada is set to grow an average of 46 per cent a year between now and 2019, resulting in a quantity of data that's seven times what it was last year, Cisco Systems Inc. said in a report...

NHL interest declined over last year: SRG

Media | 02/03/2015 5:43 pm EST

Solutions Research Group Consultants Inc. (SRG) released results of a survey Tuesday that suggest interest among Canadians in following the National Hockey League declined over the last year. The company said in a press release...

Pirate Bay site back in operation: report

Media | 02/03/2015 3:06 pm EST

The Pirate Bay filesharing website is back online, website TorrentFreak reported Friday. It said "the look and feel of the site is familiar, and the user accounts are working properly too." The Pirate Bay went offline...

CRTC says no to Bell meeting regarding simsub

Media | 02/02/2015 10:18 pm EST

The CRTC has turned down a request from BCE Inc. to meet and discuss the regulator's decision to get rid of simultaneous substitution for the Super Bowl starting in 2017. Last week, the CRTC said it has decided to maintain...

Toronto commuter trains expand WiFi

telecom | 02/02/2015 9:45 pm EST

Greater Toronto transit authority Metrolinx said in a press release Monday that it’s expanding WiFi service to an additional 22 stations on its GO network transit system. Metrolinx said in a press release the expansion, which began Monday, follows a 2013 pilot project which made WiFi available at 14 stations and terminals. “This second phase will provide about 80 per cent of all GO customers with free Internet access across a total of 36 stations. The remaining 31 stations and terminals across the GO network will be connected during a third and final phase later this year,”...

Videotron launches original content for Club Illico streaming service

Media | 02/02/2015 9:29 pm EST

MONTREAL — Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron hopes that producing original content exclusively for its Club Illico streaming service will help the company attract and keep subscribers, said...

Tablet’s social impact remains despite sales slowdown: expert

Media | 02/02/2015 9:04 pm EST

New data shows that tablet shipments declined year-over-year in last year's fourth quarter — for the first time in the category’s short market history — though a Canadian trends observer says the cultural impact of tablets isn't going away any time soon. International Data Corp. said in a press...

FCC raises broadband definition to 25 Mbps

telecom | 02/02/2015 7:31 pm EST

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) raised the minimum speeds required to meet its definition of broadband internet on Friday to 25 Mbps from 4 Mbps, according to a posting on its website. The regulator called the old...

5% of Rogers, Shaw customers trying Shomi: SRG

Media | 01/30/2015 10:48 pm EST

More than half of Rogers Communications Inc.'s and Shaw Communications Inc.’s customers are familiar with their Shomi streaming service, but just five per cent are using it, according to a survey. ‎...

Montreal to build public WiFi, promote FTTH

telecom | 01/30/2015 10:03 pm EST

Montreal will support public WiFi and fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) connections in a three-year plan. The document, presented by the municipal government Thursday, said the city plans to develop “ultra high speed multiservice...

Super Bowl worth estimated $15-$19M in ads for Bell

telecom | 01/30/2015 9:23 pm EST

BCE Inc. said Friday that it will use its broadcast of the Super Bowl on its CTV network this Sunday to promote its original Canadian programming, including 19-2, Orphan Black and Masterchef Canada, which will air directly...

Shaw enters partnership with Canada Games

telecom | 01/30/2015 7:19 pm EST

Shaw Communications Inc. said Friday it has entered into a partnership with the Canada Games for the next three events to take place in 2015, 2017 and 2019. Shaw will be the official telecommunications provider for the games, and...

Google deals with declining ad rates

Media | 01/30/2015 6:02 pm EST

Google Inc. said in its fourth-quarter results that the average “cost-per-click” for ads on its sites and those of its network members decreased by three per cent over the fourth quarter of 2013. Cost-per-click for...

CRTC gives SaskTel pass on flood-related problems

telecom | 01/30/2015 4:40 pm EST

Saskatchewan Telecommunications Holding Corp.'s network problems following floods in the company's home province last summer will not result in it owing rebates to companies like BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. that rely on its network, the CRTC said Friday. A decision on the CRTC website said SaskTel had applied for an exclusion from a quality of service assessment for July 2014, which is a mechanism that requires incumbents that provide network access to resellers to meet certain standards, or provide rebates back to companies that use their network. The CRTC said SaskTel argued that...

Mobile-TV ruling could be harbinger of streaming regulation: Klass

Media | 01/29/2015 9:53 pm EST

The CRTC’s ruling on Thursday that BCE Inc. and Quebecor Inc.-owned Videotron can no longer exempt their mobile-TV services from data charges could have implications for the regulation of...

Wind confirms participation in spectrum auctions

telecom | 01/29/2015 4:22 pm EST

Wind Mobile on Thursday confirmed its participation in the upcoming AWS-3 and 2500 MHz spectrum auctions. The registration deadline for both is Friday. The AWS-3 auction is set to begin on March 3 and the 2500 MHz auction will...

Bell Media ‘extremely disappointed’ by Super Bowl simsub decision

Media | 01/29/2015 2:27 pm EST

The CRTC said Thursday that it would prohibit the use of simultaneous substitution for the Super Bowl, but would otherwise keep the practice in place, in an approach BCE Inc.’s media division...

Some say Rogers vulnerable to ‘double cohort,’ others downplay issue

telecom | 01/28/2015 9:46 pm EST

In June, wireless carriers face a higher-than-usual number of expiring contracts, as a result of the wireless code effectively banning the previously standard three-year agreements. But experts...

FTC report on IoT calls for self-regulation on security, privacy

telecom | 01/28/2015 4:08 pm EST

On Monday the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a report on the Internet of Things that calls for manufacturers to implement strong self-regulation regarding security and privacy concerns and suggests regulators are taking a hard look at the companies promising a connected future. The regulator called for businesses to take “concrete steps” to enhance security and privacy for users of devices such as connected home thermostats or wearable health monitors. Companies need to build security into devices from the design stage, the FTC said, as well as correctly train employees...

Mobilicity financing plan approved

telecom | 01/28/2015 4:05 pm EST

Mobilicity received court approval Wednesday to access up to $65 million in financing to participate in the AWS-3 auction in March. The approval from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice was confirmed by email by Mobilicity...

Telus buys stake in Quebec IT and consulting company

telecom | 01/28/2015 3:30 pm EST

Telus Corp. said Wednesday it has purchased a 20 per cent share in and formed a partnership with a Quebec City-based IT and consulting service. Telus said in a press release it is teaming up with Alithya, which according to...

Spy agency monitors file downloads: report

telecom | 01/28/2015 3:22 pm EST

Canada’s Communications Security Establishment (CSE) is collecting data on the downloads of millions of people as part of its efforts to fight terrorism, according to reports from CBC News and U.S. news website The...

Connecting Canadians receives more than 300 ISP applications

telecom | 01/27/2015 9:47 pm EST

The federal government’s $305-million Connecting Canadians program, meant to bring high-speed Internet to 280,000 homes, has received more than 300 proposals from Internet service providers...

Sony cutting 1,000 more smartphone jobs: report

telecom | 01/27/2015 9:29 pm EST

Sony Corp. is cutting 1,000 more jobs from its cellphone division, according to a report from the Nikkei Asian Review. These cuts are on top of a reduction of about 1,000 positions announced in October, which Sony said at the...

Rogers says it’s aggregating more spectrum

Media | 01/27/2015 7:58 pm EST

Rogers Communications Inc. said it has become the first wireless carrier in Canada to become "Category 6 enabled," meaning it has found a way to aggregate signals on both the 2100 and 2600 MHz spectrum bands. Rogers spokeswoman Patricia Trott said in an email to The Wire Report on Monday that this will allow faster downloads and a higher...

Blais to announce decision about local TV Thursday

Media | 01/27/2015 3:40 pm EST

CRTC Chairman Jean-Pierre Blais will speak to the London, Ont. Chamber of Commerce on Thursday morning about “the future of local television in Canada.” “At the event Mr. Blais will announce certain decisions...

Mobilicity, Wind in stare-down as AWS-3 deadline looms

telecom | 01/27/2015 3:39 pm EST

Mobilicity's intent to access up to $65 million in debt to participate in the upcoming AWS-3 auction has important implications for Wind Mobile, which would otherwise face no competition for the...

Telus cancelling pager service

telecom | 01/26/2015 9:30 pm EST

Telus Corp. is ending its pager service within the next few months. Spokesman Chris Gerritsen confirmed that the service, currently available in British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec, will no longer be maintained by the company after March 31.  He said in an email that the service was ending "because very few people still use it." Gerrtisen said Telus has been communicating with its customers "for the better part of a year" about this coming change. The CRTC's most recent communications monitoring report said 161,500 people subscribed to paging services in 2013, compared with 28.4 million subscribers for other wireless services in the same year. That was down from 253,600 four years earlier. The CRTC said there had been an average decline of more than 10 per cent per year in paging-service subscribers...