Pecman named commissioner of competition

Media | 06/13/2013 1:57 am EDT

John Pecman was named to a five-year term as new commissioner of the Competition Bureau, Industry Canada said Wednesday. Pecman has served as interim commissioner since former commissioner Melanie Aitken stepped down last year,...

Telus investing in Ontario wireless infrastructure

telecom | 06/13/2013 1:47 am EDT

Telus Corp. will spend $245 million on new technology and infrastructure in Ontario this year to expand its wireless network and mobile health division, the company said. In a release Tuesday, Telus said the spending, which...

Videotron debuts $60 mobile plan

telecom | 06/12/2013 9:26 pm EDT

Videotron, a subsidiary of Quebecor Media Inc., introduced a new mobile plan that includes unlimited calling within Canada and the U.S. and 6 GB of data. The plan, released Wednesday with details on the company's website,...

Wireless carriers may take hit on retroactive wireless code

telecom | 06/11/2013 9:23 pm EDT

Wireless carriers may be hit with hundreds of millions of dollars in one-time additional costs as they deal with the CRTC's new wireless code of conduct and unpaid device subsidies on existing...

Privacy commissioner seeks details on metadata surveillance program

telecom | 06/11/2013 8:10 pm EDT

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner wants more information about a Canadian program that gathers data on individuals’ Internet and phone communications, The Globe and Mail reported Monday. The newspaper reported Monday that the program, initially brought in by the Liberal government in 2005, was discontinued in 2008 and renewed two years ago. “When it comes to the metadata program, we know very little specific information at this point—but we want to find out more,” Scott Hutchinson, a spokesman with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, told The Globe and Mail in an email in a separate news report Monday. The government says the program, run by the...

Telus avoids $10m non-refundable loan to Mobilicity

telecom | 06/11/2013 3:48 pm EDT

Telus Corp. avoided a $10 million, non-refundable loan by backing out of its $380-million deal to acquire Dave Wireless Inc. by a June 10 deadline, said Ted Woodhead, Telus’ senior vice-president of government and regulatory...

Telus officially cancels Mobilicity deal

telecom | 06/11/2013 12:40 am EDT

Dave Wireless Inc. will pursue a recapitalization plan after Telus Corp. withdrew its $380-million deal to acquire the company, the new entrant wireless provider said. In a release Monday, new entrant Dave...

BCE, Bell Aliant face delays in broadband rollouts: CRTC

telecom | 06/06/2013 9:14 pm EDT

The CRTC asked BCE Inc. and Bell Aliant Inc. to identify how they will complete their plans to expand broadband services in Ontario and Quebec using funds from the deferral accounts, the commission said. Deferral accounts are regulated telecom funds originating from CRTC phone rate regulation that led to surcharges paid on...

Teliphone acquires Next Layer

telecom | 06/06/2013 9:12 pm EDT

Vancouver-based network operator Teliphone Corp. acquired Next Layer Inc. through its Teliphone Navigata-Westel Communication subsidiary, the company said. As part of the acquisition, the company will acquire four data centers and Next Layer will change its name to Telephone Data Centers Inc., the company said in a release Wednesday....

Private equity firms scoop up Public Mobile, aim for more deals

telecom | 06/06/2013 3:58 pm EDT

Two private equity firms, including one in New York and another with ties to Canada’s wealthiest family, acquired new entrant wireless carrier Public Mobile Inc. and intend to pursue other...

Aziz registers to lobby for Telus deal

telecom | 06/06/2013 3:29 am EDT

One day before Industry Canada denied the deal, Dave Wireless Inc. board member William Aziz registered with the federal lobbying commissioner to lobby for approval of the company's acquisition by Telus Corp. as well as the...

Incumbents become ‘political punching bags’ as Tories appeal to public opinion

telecom | 06/06/2013 2:45 am EDT

Incumbent wireless carriers may be forgiven if they can’t wait for this week to be over. For two days, on Monday and Tuesday, the CRTC and the Conservative government struck at the country’s three largest wireless players in the arena of public opinion, releasing two unfriendly policy...

Rogers supports removal of foreign ownership rules for broadcast, telecom

telecom | 06/05/2013 2:20 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc.’s senior regulatory executive said he would support the complete removal of foreign ownership restrictions for Canada’s broadcasting and telecom sectors....

Wind Mobile says ‘extreme rents’ higher than the cost of building a tower

telecom | 06/05/2013 2:17 pm EDT

TORONTO—Wind Mobile said it is paying “extreme rents” for wireless tower sharing and called for mandated tower access at regulated rates as the Conservative government is said to be considering stronger roaming and tower sharing rules favouring the new entrants. On a panel Tuesday at the Canadian Telecom Summit conference, Ed Antecol, vice-president of regulatory affairs at Wind, said tower sharing fees on other companies’ infrastructure are so high that it is often cheaper for Wind to put up its own tower. Industry Canada's arbitration process is also long and costly, he said, and often not worth it. “The incumbents have inflated the cost of tower access...

TeraGo completes Data Centers acquisition

telecom | 06/04/2013 7:47 pm EDT

TeraGo Inc. completed its deal to acquire data centre operator Data Centers Canada Inc., the company said Monday. In a release, TeraGo said that the transaction was completed on May 31 and financed with RBC Knowledge-Based Industry. TeraGo said last month that the $9.5-million deal would support its strategy of offering complementary services to...

MTS expands DSL service

telecom | 06/04/2013 7:43 pm EDT

Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. subsidiary MTS Inc. expanded its DSL Internet service to Falcon Lake, West Hawk Lake, Victoria Beach and Grand Beach, Man., the company said. In a release Tuesday, MTS said it plans to expand its high-speed Internet service to 20 additional rural communities in Manitoba this year. MTS recently expanded its fourth generation LTE network to Grand Beach and Victoria Beach, Man....

Ericsson to build Quebec ITC centre

telecom | 06/04/2013 7:42 pm EDT

Ericsson will build a global information and communications technology centre in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que., the company said Monday. In a release, Ericsson said the new, 40,000-square-meter facility, will be used for research and development of next-generation technologies and cloud-based services. Ericsson currently has research and development hubs in...

CRTC will look at wholesale Internet access for new, fibre-to-the-home networks

telecom | 06/04/2013 6:24 pm EDT

TORONTO—The CRTC will hold a proceeding to look at whether incumbent Internet service providers should be required to give smaller competitors wholesale access to their fibre-to-the-home...

Paradis delays auction, says no set aside spectrum transfers to incumbents

telecom | 06/04/2013 1:29 pm EDT

OTTAWA, TORONTO—Industry Canada will block Telus Corp.'s proposed deal for Dave Wireless Inc.’s mobile spectrum, as well as any other proposal from an incumbent to acquire wireless frequencies set aside for new entrants, and will delay the department’s 700 MHz spectrum auction until early next year, Industry Minister Christian Paradis said. In an early morning announcement Tuesday at Industry Canada’s offices, Paradis said the deadline to apply for the upcoming 700...

Paradis to make telecom announcement Tuesday

telecom | 06/03/2013 9:54 pm EDT

Industry Minister Christian Paradis will make an “important announcement” about Canada’s wireless sector Tuesday morning, Industry Canada said in a media advisory. The announcement will take place at 8 a.m. at Industry Canada’s offices in Ottawa with a question and answer period to follow, said the advisory, issued Monday...

Glick moving to Google’s California office

Media | 06/03/2013 9:17 pm EDT

Jacob Glick, head of Google Inc.’s government relations and public policy team for Canada, will move to the company’s head office in California. Glick, a former technology lawyer at McCarthy Tetrault, joined Google’s policy team in Ottawa in 2007, according to his LinkedIn page. He also worked as general counsel at the Canadian...

Wireless created $20.7b in 2011 GDP: report

telecom | 06/03/2013 8:51 pm EDT

The Canadian wireless industry generated $20.7 billion in direct GDP in 2011, Nordicity said in a new report commissioned by the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA). In a study called “The Benefit of the Wireless Telecommunications Industry to the Canadian Economy,” released Monday, the CWTA said the Canadian wireless...

BlackBerry’s QNX system in 60% of new connected cars

telecom | 06/03/2013 8:11 pm EDT

Machine-to-machine communications will become more important in the mobile wireless sector as the QNX operating system, the foundation of BlackBerry’s new BB10 operating system, is in 60 per...

Wireless code could replace four-carrier policy: analyst

telecom | 06/03/2013 7:48 pm EDT

The federal government should let the CRTC’s wireless code of conduct regulate the mobile wireless sector and back away from its policy objective of ensuring four competing carriers in each region of the country, Scotia Capital analyst Jeff Fan said. In a research note Monday, Fan said the CRTC’s...

CRTC says consumers can cancel wireless contracts after two years, no fees

telecom | 06/03/2013 2:08 pm EDT

Canadian wireless consumers can cancel long-term wireless contracts with mobile phone providers after two years without any cancellation fees, the CRTC said in new wireless code of conduct...

Rogers launches Toronto affordable Internet program

telecom | 06/03/2013 1:38 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. will lead a new pilot project this year to provide affordable broadband, computers and software for people living in Toronto community housing, the company said Monday. The program, called Connected for...

Spectrum auction should protect Canadian jobs: union

telecom | 05/31/2013 7:37 pm EDT

Rules for the upcoming 700MHz spectrum auction should include “commitments to Canadian workers,” said Dave Coles, president of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada. "The sale of this highly...

CRTC wireless code coming Monday

telecom | 05/31/2013 7:26 pm EDT

The CRTC plans to release its consumer code of conduct for wireless carriers on Monday, the commission said. The code of conduct could place limitations on wireless carriers' contracts with consumers, such as contract cancellation fees and better disclosure of terms and conditions. The commission issued a draft code on Jan. 28 that said the code of conduct should “be interpreted in favour of the consumer," and held a public hearing on the issue. The new guidelines for wireless carriers are scheduled for release on the regulator's website on June 3 at 9 a.m., CRTC spokeswoman Patricia Valladao said....

Uncertainty of telecom file delaying Wind Mobile’s ownership change

telecom | 05/31/2013 6:56 pm EDT

Seven months after VimpelCom Ltd. filed an application to change control of Wind Mobile, Industry Canada still hasn't released a decision. VimpelCom, an international mobile operator based in Amsterdam, filed application last October with an expectation that the agreement would be approved within 45 days, and before an...

Rogers to launch Fido in Atlantic Canada

telecom | 05/31/2013 6:25 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. will offer its discount wireless brand Fido in Halifax and Fredericton this spring, as well as in Moncton and Saint John, N.B., the company said. In a release Friday, Rogers said it will launch the Fido brand in five kiosk locations in the four cities, and through “over 50 third-party retailers,” including some in...

Rogers deal a win for Quebecor: analyst

telecom | 05/31/2013 5:21 pm EDT

A network sharing agreement between Rogers Communications Inc. and Quebecor Media Inc.'s telecom subsidiary is a “material win” for Videotron and positive for Rogers, RBC telecom analyst Drew McReynolds said. In a...

CRTC to trial landline replacement program

telecom | 05/30/2013 8:31 pm EDT

The CRTC will “cut the cord” and trade in some of its landline telephones for exclusive use of mobile devices, the commission said. In a note to employees Tuesday, the CRTC said it will undertake a pilot project to...

Bell Mobility extends Glentel deal

telecom | 05/30/2013 8:28 pm EDT

BCE Inc. and Glentel Inc. renewed a partnership to offer Bell Mobility products and services in Glentel stores, Bell said. In a release Wednesday, Bell said Glentel, a mobile phone retailer based out of Burnaby, B.C., has 360 retail stores in Canada and will add 74 Target Mobile locations in the “coming months.” "This agreement builds on the GLENTEL/Bell partnership that has long offered Canadians the best mobile products along with friendly and knowledgeable customer service," Wade Oosterman, president of Bell Mobility and residential services, and Bell's chief brand officer, said in the release....

Rogers, Videotron reach network deal for capex savings, more competition in Quebec

telecom | 05/30/2013 7:09 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. will be better positioned to compete against rival incumbent wireless carriers BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. in the Quebec market under a new network-sharing agreement with...

IDC appoints board member

telecom | 05/29/2013 10:04 pm EDT

Ottawa, Ont.-based International Datacasting Corporation (IDC) said president and CEO Doug Lowther has been appointed to the corporate board of directors. "We view Doug's appointment to the Board as a major step in the development of IDC as a technology provider to broadcasters," Del Lippert, chairman of the board at IDC said in a release Tuesday. Lowther became president and CEO of IDC on May 13 and was...

Cook says Apple has ‘game changing’ products

Media | 05/29/2013 9:57 pm EDT

Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook said at the All Things Digital conference Tuesday that the company has more “game changing” products ahead. “Many people now say that innovation means a new category,” Tim Cook said, according to technology news website TechCrunch. “Yes, we’re still a company...

Bell Aliant expands fibre in N.L.

telecom | 05/29/2013 9:52 pm EDT

Bell Aliant Inc. is expanding its FibreOP fibre-to-the-home network to Bishop’s Falls, N.L., this month, the company said. In a release Tuesday, Bell Aliant said it has invested $1 million to expand its fibre network to 1,650 subscribers in Bishop’s Falls. The company's fibre-based Internet and TV serviced offer Internet download...

Telecom union elects new president

telecom | 05/29/2013 9:49 pm EDT

The Telecommunications Workers Union announced Monday that it has elected a new national president, Lee Riggs. Riggs has worked for Telus Corp. for 32 years and was first elected as the union's business agent in 2006. "I am humbled and so proud to have been elected to serve the TWU membership," Riggs said in a statement. "The...

Shaw Direct launches 120 new HD channels

Media | 05/29/2013 9:19 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. launched 120 new high-definition channels on its Shaw Direct satellite TV system, the company said. In a release Wednesday, Shaw said it is offering the new channels using Telesat’s Anik G1...

Absolute cashes in on ‘persistent’ technology as opportunities rise for mobile

telecom | 05/29/2013 9:12 pm EDT

As the cliché goes, there is success in persistence. For Absolute Software Corp., it's in “persistent,” unerasable software. A Canadian company based in Vancouver, Absolute sells software that allows companies and consumers to locate lost or stolen mobile devices and laptops....

Fair Deal coalition lobbies Fast on TPP copyright issues

Media | 05/29/2013 6:16 pm EDT

A new network of groups called the Fair Deal coalition wrote a letter to International Trade Minister Ed Fast asking for protections for citizens and innovative companies in copyright policy as part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade talks. Governments should reject copyright proposals that restrict the open...

Telus-Mobilicity deal receives court approval

telecom | 05/28/2013 8:39 pm EDT

The Ontario Superior Court approved Telus Corp.’s deal to purchase Dave Wireless Inc., operating as Mobilicity, for $380 million, the companies said. "Following on last week's vote in favour of the proposal by Mobilicity's debtholders, today's court decision takes us another important step closer to completing this acquisition, which will allow TELUS to save the jobs of Mobilicity's 150 employees and continue service for their 250,000 customers without the disruption that company's current financial issues could cause," David Fuller, Telus’ chief...

Telus investing in B.C., Manitoba

telecom | 05/28/2013 8:36 pm EDT

Telus Corp. will invest $1 billion in new infrastructure in British Columbia this year to expand its wireless and fibre networks, the company said. In a release, Telus said the spending, which is part of previously announced...

Telus says it hasn’t pursued Mobilicity lawsuit

telecom | 05/27/2013 9:12 pm EDT

Telus Corp. has not pursued a false advertising case against new entrant carrier Mobilicity since a British Columbia court struck down the company’s request for an injunction against Mobilicity’s ads in December, Telus spokesman Shawn Hall said. Telus, which said this month it reached a $380 million deal to acquire Mobilicity (operated by...

Telus investing $700m in Alberta this year

telecom | 05/27/2013 9:12 pm EDT

Telus Corp. will invest $700 million this year in new infrastructure and facilities in Alberta, including expansions of its wireless and fibre networks, the company said. In a release Monday, Telus said the investment, which is...

BCE launches wireless TV receiver

telecom | 05/27/2013 9:11 pm EDT

BCE Inc. launched a wireless receiver for its fibre-based, Fibe TV Internet protocol television service, the company said Monday. In a release, Bell said the wireless receiver will allow subscribers to connect up to five...

Allstream’s fibre network supports Accelero’s plans for Wind: analysts

telecom | 05/27/2013 8:15 pm EDT

Accelero Capital Holding's deal to purchase Allstream from Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. will give the company a cross-country fibre network that would provide backhaul support for mobile wireless services and bundled Internet, voice and mobile wireless contracts in the business market. That is, of course, if Accelero, based in Paris and co-founded by Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris, succeeds in its offer to purchase Wind Mobile from VimpelCom Ltd. “In Canada you can give an advantage to yourself, radically, if you own your own infrastructure,” Brownlee Thomas, a telecom analyst with Forrester, said in a phone interview. “Anywhere you need fibre, it's going...

Telus must help Mobilicity with $10m if deal fails after June 10

telecom | 05/24/2013 9:09 pm EDT

Telus Corp. would be on the hook for at least a $10 million non-refundable deposit to Mobilicity if its deal to acquire the new entrant carrier does not proceed after a June 10 deadline, the...

Government responds to private members bill C-475

telecom | 05/24/2013 8:49 pm EDT

Private members' bill C-475 would impose an “unwieldy” financial and administrative burden on the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, Conservative MP Parm Gill said Thursday. During a second reading debate on the bill, first put forward in the House on Feb. 26 by NDP MP Charmaine Borg, Gill said the requirement in the bill that...

Sawiris re-enters Canadian market with deal for Allstream

telecom | 05/24/2013 6:40 pm EDT

Former Wind Mobile backer Naguib Sawiris said he is re-entering the Canadian telecom market with a “long-term commitment” and the purchase of Allstream from Manitoba Telecom Services Inc....

Stoddart proposes amendments to PIPEDA

Media | 05/24/2013 5:34 pm EDT

Better incentives are needed to ensure companies build privacy protections into their products and services from the start, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner said in a new report. In a paper released Thursday called “The Case for Reforming the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA),” Privacy Commissioner...

TeraGo to buy Data Centers Canada

telecom | 05/24/2013 5:19 pm EDT

TeraGo Inc. said it reached a $9.5-million deal to acquire data centre operator Data Centers Canada Inc. In a release Thursday, TeraGo said the acquisition would support its strategy of offering complementary services to business customers. It said Data Centers Canada operates a 16,000-square foot data centre in Vaughan, Ont., and offers...

Wind targeting Mobilicity customers

telecom | 05/24/2013 5:16 pm EDT

Wind Mobile is appealing to customers of fellow new entrant Mobilicity, operated by Dave Wireless Inc., to “switch to Wind” as Mobilicity waits to hear whether Industry Canada will approve its acquisition by Telus...

McIver named mobile research chair

telecom | 05/24/2013 5:08 pm EDT

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) announced $850,000 over five years for a new research chair looking at expanded uses of mobile devices, Industry Canada said. William McIver will become the NSERC industrial research chair in mobile first technology at New Brunswick Community College. He will research expanding...

Shaw, City of Edmonton, expand WiFi network

telecom | 05/23/2013 9:42 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. and the City of Edmonton reached an agreement to expand the company’s Shaw Go WiFi network to public areas in Edmonton. In a release Thursday, the parties said the expansion would take place over...

Delays in 700 MHz auction process increasingly likely, analysts say

telecom | 05/23/2013 7:52 pm EDT

Delays in Industry Canada's spectrum auction process are looking more likely by the day, analysts said. They said new wireless entrants will need more time to look at consolidation options after Industry Minister Christian Paradis announces changes to the rules for spectrum transfers, expected as early as this month. Those rules, which Paradis has said will be issued before the next wireless auction, are expected to clarify whether the struggling new entrant carriers can sell their...

Bell Aliant expanding fibre to Sault Ste. Marie

Media | 05/22/2013 9:18 pm EDT

Bell Aliant Inc. is expanding its FibreOp fibre-to-the-home network to Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., the company said. In a release Wednesday, Bell Aliant said it will invest $15 million to roll out its fibre network past 24,000 buildings and residences in the Northern Ontario city. The move will allow the company to offer fibre-based Internet and TV...

Dholandas replaces O’Leary in Paradis’ office

Media | 05/22/2013 9:06 pm EDT

Carl Dholandas replaced Sean O’Leary as Industry Minister Christian Paradis' lead telecom policy adviser, a person with knowledge of the staffing change said. O'Leary, who met frequently with members of the telecom industry according to registrations in the federal lobbying registry, is now working as a...

Industry Canada clarifies 700 MHz issues

telecom | 05/22/2013 8:31 pm EDT

Industry Canada released answers to “clarification questions” the department received about its rules for the upcoming 700 MHz auction. In a notice Tuesday, the Industry Department posted answers to industry...

Ontario communities look at repurposing broadcast towers for mobile services

telecom | 05/22/2013 5:53 pm EDT

Six Ontario communities are looking for partnerships with wireless carriers to launch or improve local mobile services using repurposed radio and TV broadcast towers, which could mean cellphone...

Canada, U.S., reach spectrum coordination deals

telecom | 05/21/2013 10:25 pm EDT

Industry Canada and the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) reached an agreement to coordinate the two countries’ use of 10 spectrum blocks along the border, including the public safety portion of the 700 MHz spectrum band, the FCC said. In a May 14 notice on the U.S. regulator’s website, the FCC said it had reached “interim” agreements to update the two countries’ spectrum coordination arrangement that will “aid in the deployment and use of mobile broadband and improve public safety communications.” Kelly Gillis, senior assistant deputy minister at Industry Canada, said in a May 1 letter to the FCC that the deal covers 10 bands, including the Personal Communications Services (PCS) and Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) bands used by...

Tories should look at ‘broken’ Copyright Board: Geist

Media | 05/21/2013 10:23 pm EDT

The Conservative government should take a look at the Copyright Board as its next move on copyright policy, said Michael Geist, the Canada research chair in Internet and e-commerce law at the University of Ottawa. “If the government is looking for the next copyright issue to examine, it might well focus on a board...

Chatr hearings wrap up

telecom | 05/21/2013 9:31 pm EDT

The Ontario Superior Court wrapped up hearings in Toronto last week on the Competition Bureau's lawsuit against Rogers Communications Inc. for alleged "misleading advertising" related to its discount Chatr wireless brand. Final arguments finished last week for the Competition...

Paradis may still block Telus’ deal for Mobilicity, observers say

telecom | 05/21/2013 9:23 pm EDT

Industry Minister Christian Paradis' policy aim for four competing wireless carriers in each region of the country is not yet dead as the minister may block Telus Corp.'s deal to purchase new entrant Mobilicity, analysts and observers said. Telus' $380-million deal for Mobilicity, operated by Dave Wireless...

Tories to offer ‘relief’ to new entrants: analysts

telecom | 05/17/2013 8:44 pm EDT

The federal government will provide “regulatory relief” for Canada's new entrant wireless carriers within the next three weeks, Veritas Investment Research analysts Neeraj Monga and Desmond Lau predicted. In a research note Tuesday, Monga and Lau, based in Toronto, said they believe the government will...

Consumer groups urge Paradis to block Telus-Mobilicity

telecom | 05/17/2013 8:16 pm EDT

Public and consumer advocacy groups called on Industry Minister Christian Paradis to block Telus Corp.'s deal to acquire new wireless entrant Mobilicity for $380 million. The Public Interest...

Google, Apple top Q1 smartphone shipments

telecom | 05/17/2013 7:51 pm EDT

Phones running on Google Inc.’s Android and Apple Inc.’s iOS operating systems accounted for 92.3 per cent of all smartphone shipments worldwide in the first quarter of 2013, research firm IDC said in new data released Thursday. In a release, IDC said Android smartphone vendors and Apple shipped a combined 199.5 million units worldwide in...

MTS expands LTE to Grand Beach, Victoria Beach

telecom | 05/17/2013 7:49 pm EDT

Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. subsidiary MTS Inc. expanded its fourth generation LTE network to Grand Beach and Victoria Beach, Man., the company said. In a release Friday, MTS said the communities are among six that will gain access to its LTE wireless service in 2013, including Selkirk, Portage La Prairie, Steinbach and Ste. Anne, Man. The company...

Rogers also in talks to purchase Wind; BCE for Public Mobile

telecom | 05/17/2013 7:34 pm EDT

Further consolidation in Canada's wireless market is expected this year as Rogers Communications Inc. is another player in talks with Wind Mobile about purchasing the new entrant carrier and BCE...

Telus informed government in advance of $380m deal for Mobilicity

telecom | 05/16/2013 2:57 pm EDT

Telus Corp. reached a deal to acquire new entrant carrier Mobilicity, including its 250,000 customers, for $380 million, the companies said, indicating they informed Industry Canada about the deal in advance. In releases Thursday, the companies said the agreement, which remains subject to regulatory approval by Industry Canada and the Competition Bureau, would allow Mobilicity (operated by Dave Wireless Inc.), to pay off its debt. The release said Telus would integrate the new entrant's...

Wind passes 600,000 subscriber mark

telecom | 05/15/2013 10:10 pm EDT

Wind Mobile's Canadian subscriber base rose by 11,000 customers in the first three months of 2013, reaching 600,000 for the first time, said Wind owner Orascom Telecom Holding S.A.E., which is owned by parent company VimpelCom...

York Capital to buy Primus’ retail operations

telecom | 05/15/2013 8:39 pm EDT

Primus Telecommunications Group Inc. has agreed to sell its Canadian and U.S. retail telecommunications operations to York Capital Management, the company said. In a release Friday, Primus said the $129 million US transaction is “not subject to a financing condition” and is expected to close by the third quarter of 2013, subject to...

700 MHz auction rules mean some new entrants not expected to bid

telecom | 05/15/2013 8:12 pm EDT

Some new entrant wireless carriers are not expected to file applications to participate in Industry Canada's upcoming 700 MHz spectrum auction due to regulatory restrictions on consolidation...

WiFi offloading growing faster than expected: Sandvine

Media | 05/15/2013 5:10 pm EDT

Mobile wireless subscribers offloaded their Internet traffic onto fixed, or wireline, WiFi networks at a much higher rate than forecasted, Sandvine Inc. said in a new report. Sandvine's...

BlackBerry makes BBM available for iPhone, Android

telecom | 05/15/2013 1:18 pm EDT

BlackBerry will roll out a new, low-cost smartphone and make its popular BBM messaging service available to iPhone and Android users, the company said. In a speech at the company’s annual BlackBerry Live event in Orlando, Fla., Tuesday, BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins said the new phone, called the Q5, will be rolled out in mostly emerging markets starting in July.  The company said in a release that the phone will be initially available in parts of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Latin America. In a release, U.K.-based research firm Ovum said the “low-cost” Q5 will allow BlackBerry to better compete in emerging markets against smartphones offered by Nokia Corp. and Google Inc.’s Android phones. “Emerging markets accounted for roughly 17% of...

Wavefront and Communitech to collaborate

telecom | 05/15/2013 1:13 pm EDT

Ontario-based wireless commercialization and research centre Wavefront and the Communitech Hub incubation centre reached a new collaboration agreement. In a release on Tuesday, Wavefront said financial support available through the National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program would lead to the offering of advisory,...

Bell, Telus to use deferral funding to improve accessibility

telecom | 05/13/2013 9:17 pm EDT

BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. said they intend to allocate remaining deferral account funds towards initiatives that would improve accessibility for telecommunications services and websites. In a regulatory filing dated April 29, 2013, posted on the commission’s website last week, BCE and its division Bell Mobility said...

Telus expands LTE in New Brunswick and Ontario

telecom | 05/13/2013 9:01 pm EDT

Telus Corp. said its fourth-generation LTE wireless service is now available in Fredericton, N.B., and additional Ontario communities. In a release Monday, Telus said its LTE service now covers more than 70 per cent of...

Gestion Audem sells subordinate voting shares in Cogeco

telecom | 05/13/2013 8:54 pm EDT

Gestion Audem Inc. reached an agreement with Cogeco Inc. for the private sale of 432,270 subordinate voting shares, Cogeco said. In a release Monday, Cogeco said the transaction does not change the...

CRTC deregulates areas in Quebec, Ontario

telecom | 05/13/2013 8:34 pm EDT

The CRTC approved a request from Bell Aliant Inc. to deregulate residential telecom services in four markets in Quebec and Ontario and denied the company’s request to deregulate three other areas of Ontario, the commission...

Mobilicity a ‘nice to have,’ not ‘need to have:’ Entwistle

telecom | 05/10/2013 7:54 pm EDT

Telus Corp. would seek direction from the government before attempting to acquire one of Canada’s new entrant carriers, Darren Entwistle, Telus’ president and CEO, told the Financial Post. In an article published Thursday, Entwistle said he views new entrant carriers such as Dave Wireless Inc., operating as...

BCE agrees to possible condition to more quickly resolve carriage disputes

Media | 05/10/2013 4:58 pm EDT

BCE Inc. executives appeared before CRTC commissioners to make a final pitch for the company's proposed $3.38 billion purchase of Astral Media Inc., where they twice shot down suggested conditions...

BCE profits higher on wireless growth

Media | 05/09/2013 9:56 pm EDT

BCE Inc. reported higher first quarter profits driven by strong earnings and lower costs at its wireless division. In a quarterly earnings statement released Thursday, Bell reported $566 million in profit in the three-month...

Telus profits rise on wireless, TV and Internet adds

Media | 05/09/2013 9:48 pm EDT

Telus Corp.'s first quarter profits rose by 13.5 per cent due to strong growth across its wireless and wireline services, the company said. In a quarterly earnings statement released Thursday, Telus reported $362 million in profits for the three-month period that ended March 31, up from $319 million in the same period a year earlier. First quarter revenues, the company said, reached $2.76 billion, up 4.8 per cent from $2.63 billion a year earlier. “The increase in consolidated revenue was generated by greater than six per cent growth in wireless revenue and almost three per cent...

Bell, Telus chipping away at Rogers’ lead in postpaid wireless

Media | 05/09/2013 8:35 pm EDT

Data usage and subscriber growth powered BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. to higher first quarter wireless revenues as the two companies added more postpaid subscribers at a faster pace than rival incumbent...

Bragg to further build network over summer, plans more aggressive marketing

telecom | 05/09/2013 3:17 pm EDT

MONTREAL—Bragg Communications Inc. plans to continue strengthening its mobile wireless network in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island this summer as it prepares for more aggressive marketing of...

MTS’ revenues fall on legacy businesses

telecom | 05/08/2013 9:21 pm EDT

MTS Allstream Inc. reported lower first quarter revenues due to declines in its legacy Internet, business phone and wireless wholesale businesses, the company said. In a quarterly earnings statement Wednesday, MTS Allstream said revenues in the three-month period that ended March 31 were $406.7 million, down 6.5 per cent from $435.1 million during the...

Telus rolling out FTTH in Rimouski

telecom | 05/08/2013 8:18 pm EDT

Telus Corp. said it will roll out a fibre-to-the-home network in Rimouski, Que. as part of a $265 million investment to expand its telecom services in the province in 2013. In a release Wednesday, Telus said the fibre-to-the-home...

MTS to spend $40m on 2013 upgrades, expansion

telecom | 05/08/2013 8:03 pm EDT

MTS Inc. will invest $40 million this year to upgrade and enhance its telecom infrastructure in rural Manitoba, the company said. In a release Wednesday, MTS said the investment, which comes in addition to “normal operating investments,” will be used to expand the coverage of its fibre-to-the-home and fourth-generation LTE wireless networks, and to make other improvements to its basic telephone services. The company said it will expand its LTE network to six new Manitoba communities this year, including Portage la Prairie, Selkirk, Steinbach, Ste. Anne, Victoria Beach and Grand...

Videotron says wireless division passes ‘break-even point’

telecom | 05/08/2013 8:02 pm EDT

Quebecor Media Inc.’s first quarter profits fell by more than half this year despite higher revenues from its telecom services, the company said. In a quarterly earnings statement Wednesday, Quebecor said its Videotron Ltd. telecom subsidiary had $668.8 million in first quarter revenues, up $23 million, or 3.6 per...

Fibre Noire acquires competitors

telecom | 05/07/2013 7:43 pm EDT

Network operator Fibre Noire Internet Inc. acquired two rival networks and now has the Quebec’s largest business-only fibre network, the company said. In a release Tuesday, Fibre Noire said it had acquired Montreal-area operators Société des Réseaux Dédiés et Privés Inc. (SRDP Telecom) and Réseau...

Bamforth to leave Craig Wireless

telecom | 05/07/2013 6:07 pm EDT

Craig Wireless Systems Ltd. will not renew the contract of its chief financial officer, Murray Bamforth, the company said. In a release Tuesday, Craig Wireless said Bamforth will leave the company as of July 15. The company said it has a transition plan in place and will appoint a new chief financial officer “in due course.” Bamforth, who...

Canadian wireless prices ‘middle average,’ Paradis says

telecom | 05/07/2013 6:06 pm EDT

Industry Canada is considering using revenues from the planned 700 MHz spectrum auction to fund telecom infrastructure projects, Industry Minister Christian Paradis said at a House of Commons industry committee meeting. Paradis, who appeared before the committee last Thursday, said the government has not yet decided...

Text messages rise 24% in 2012, CWTA says

telecom | 05/06/2013 6:40 pm EDT

Canadian wireless subscribers sent 96.5 billion text messages in 2012, 24 per cent more than 78 billion in 2011, the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) said. In statistics posted on the association's text.ca website Monday, the CWTA said Canadians sent 25 billion text messages in 2012’s fourth quarter, representing an...

Minister approves Rogers bank application

telecom | 05/06/2013 6:39 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. is one step closer to launching credit cards after receiving the Finance Department’s clearance to incorporate its own bank, the company said. In a release Friday, Rogers said it received a...

Q10 sells out in first week

telecom | 05/03/2013 7:43 pm EDT

Toronto-area and U.K. retailers have seen “broad sell-outs” and “generally limited stock” of BlackBerry’s new Q10 smartphone, Jefferies Group LLC analyst Peter Misek said. “Based on our store checks, the BlackBerry Q10 has been selling extremely well and has been...

CRTC exempts business services in N.L.

telecom | 05/03/2013 7:42 pm EDT

The CRTC approved Bell Aliant Inc.’s request to deregulate business telephone services in four Newfoundland and Labarador municipalities, the commission said. In a decision Friday, the CRTC said it will deregulate...

Morcon to lobby for Northern Ontario telecom funding

telecom | 05/03/2013 7:41 pm EDT

Morcon Consultants lobbyist Morry Brown has registered with the federal lobbying commissioner to lobby for funding for cellular and wireless Internet services in Northern Ontario. In a lobbying registration Wednesday with the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying, Brown registered to lobby Industry Canada on behalf of NetCentral Community Communications Network for funding “to expand cellular telephone and wireless high speed Internet services in unserved and underserved communities in Northeastern Ontario.” According to the registration, NetCentral is seeking funding from the federal department’s FedNor program. The registration was effective April 11....