Bell, Rogers, Telus, and others oppose any increases in spectrum licence fees

telecom | 06/04/2009 7:00 pm EDT

Canada’s national and provincial mobile wireless operators are united in their opposition to a proposal from Industry Canada to charge licence renewal fees based on the market value of mobile spectrum. Bell Mobility, MTS Mobility, Rogers Wireless, SaskTel Mobility and Telus Mobility argue that just because the...

Retaining your telecommunications customer base: Put water in the bucket before the fire breaks out

telecom | 06/03/2009 7:24 pm EDT

The Canadian telecom industry is on the brink of a period of rapid change. With the expansion of the wireless spectrum to new competitors and the imminent introduction of 4G wireless technology, the shape of the industry will undoubtedly look much different in the next two to three years. A...

Canadian telecommunications sector “in state of crisis”, Senate committee warned

telecom | 06/01/2009 4:14 pm EDT

Canada’s telecommunications industry – considered a global leader just 10 years ago – is now in a state of crisis following years of neglect by successive governments, the absence of a national digital strategy and a “cozy uncompetitive environment”, University of...

Mitel gets legal advice, argues City of Ottawa bid process is flawed

telecom | 05/29/2009 8:14 pm EDT

Rebuffed in its attempt to win a lucrative contract with the City of Ottawa, local telecom gear maker Mitel Networks Corp. now says the whole procurement process was unfair from the get-go. Cue the lawyers. “We have now consulted with external legal counsel and have asked them to make an assessment of the...

Canadian WiMAX vendors hope to cash in on Obama’s $7-billion rural broadband stimulus

telecom | 05/29/2009 5:18 pm EDT

As expectations for mobile WiMAX are downsized, the market for fixed and fixed/mobile WiMAX is getting a boost – and when US president Barack Obama’s stimulus kicks in, Canada stands to benefit. “For president Obama’s stimulus package, the first release of funding is to hire integrators,” says Dave Gelvin, president or Tranzeo USA, which is part of BC-headquartered Tranzeo Wireless Technologies Inc., a maker of WiMAX equipment for wireless internet service providers and industry. “This is to help define the rural areas that are underserved,” adds Gelvin. “There is (US)$7 billion for rural broadband in the US stimulus package, and the...

Rogers Wireless counting on data traffic to drive revenue growth

telecom | 05/28/2009 2:56 pm EDT

Speaking at Barclay Capital’s Worldwide Wireless and Wireline Conference in New York City on Wednesday, the president of Rogers Wireless said that an expected surge in data traffic will drive top-line growth. Getting the right handhelds to the right consumers is considered key to its strategy. Rob Bruce began...

Canadian Telecom Summit attracts industry heavyweights to 8th annual event

Media | 05/27/2009 8:45 pm EDT

What started out as essentially as a 10-year reunion for the people who helped bring competition to Canada’s long distance telecommunications market in 1992, the Canadian Telecom Summit has evolved over the past eight years into an annual conference many consider a must-attend event. Taking place from June 15 to 17,...

Ontario needs to do more for wireless and digital sectors: MEIC report

telecom | 05/26/2009 8:48 pm EDT

Ontario has the potential to be a world leader in wireless and mobile, according to a new report from the Mobile Experience Innovation Centre (MEIC). But the government along with key industry and academic stakeholders first have to do a better job of working together to prepare the province for the coming mobile...

Telus convinces CRTC to look into Globalive ownership

telecom | 05/25/2009 8:02 pm EDT

After failing to get Industry Canada to publicly review the ownership structure of Globalive Communications Corp.’s wireless arm, Telus Corp., has convinced the CRTC that it should look into the matter. But the commission will first decide whether the ownership and control review should be public or held behind closed doors. In a ruling last...

Bell prepares for battle in untapped pre-paid/discount wireless market

telecom | 05/21/2009 5:52 pm EDT

When Bell Canada purchased the remaining 50% of Virgin Mobile Canada it didn’t already own and locked up an agreement to use the Virgin brand for the foreseeable future, it reaffirmed that president and CEO George Cope is serious about winning in the pre-paid and broader discount wireless market. Cope has said on...

Bell Canada downsizes and realigns university research program

Media | 05/20/2009 3:42 pm EDT

Bell Canada’s 11-year-old Bell University Laboratories (BUL) program has been cancelled and replaced by a smaller fund that targets skills development and telecom technologies more likely to generate a return on investment. The new Bell Innovation Fund (BIF) has been implemented in Quebec and negotiations are ongoing...

Church and Aircell are part of Canada’s in-flight broadband plans

telecom | 05/19/2009 5:25 pm EDT

Canadian wireless industry veteran Joe Church, US-based in-flight Internet provider Aircell LLC and a failed bidder in the AWS spectrum auction are among a group of three organizations vying for the right to offer in-flight broadband services to domestic air travelers. Documents published by Industry Canada earlier this...

Commentary: Just deliver the packets – and ban DPI too

telecom | 05/15/2009 3:05 pm EDT

“Neither rain, nor snow, nor heat, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” So wrote Herodotus of the fifth-century-BCE packet delivery service used by Xerxes, king of the Persians. This famous passage is inscribed on the general post office in...

Analysis: Government faced with difficult decision on access to ILEC facilities

telecom | 05/14/2009 7:32 pm EDT

The fate of broadband competition in the Canada is now in the hands of the federal government. Its job comes after Cabinet was handed three appeals: one from MTS Allstream Inc. contesting the appropriateness of a CRTC decision not to mandate Ethernet as an essential service, and two others from Bell Canada and Telus Corp. arguing the CRTC erred in ordering the ILECs to give ISP resellers access to the same high-speed Internet services (speed matching) as they offer their own retail customers. While the appeals are distinct and question the merits of two separate CRTC decisions, they are related. One is focused entirely on the business market and the others (Bell and Telus) look at the...

RIM news fuels speculation that BlackBerry will push advertising

telecom | 05/13/2009 4:24 pm EDT

Research in Motion Ltd.’s recent news blitz has left technology and financial analysts smiling, with predictions that the company will maintain its grip on the enterprise market while still being able to leverage its new platform in the consumer space, and perhaps even push advertising. “They have the first,...

Administrative fines better than criminal prosecution to combat spammers: Industry Canada ADM

telecom | 05/11/2009 5:54 pm EDT

Canada’s top anti-spam bureaucrat says a Senate bill proposing to give ISPs the power to cut off spammers is on the right track, but it needs proper enforcement mechanisms to be effective. Helen McDonald, assistant deputy minister for spectrum, information technologies and...

“Conspiracy of silence” surrounds Canadian Skype’s absence from iPhone

telecom | 05/08/2009 5:08 pm EDT

It was big news last month that Skype would not be available for the iPhone in Canada, then the story disappeared into sea of complacency – something one analyst refers to as “a conspiracy of silence”. “I think that all the parties that are involved – Rogers...

CRTC’s denial to include Ethernet as an essential service flawed: SeaBoard

telecom | 05/07/2009 6:38 pm EDT

“The commission is wrong. Two decades of progress, two decades of a communications services renaissance, two decades of public benefit from a competitive communications environment are in jeopardy,” concludes a report by The SeaBoard Group. The telecom consultancy’s harsh words are in response to the...

Wireless operators oppose Industry Canada’s higher rate for LMCS spectrum

telecom | 05/06/2009 5:52 pm EDT

Spectrum licence renewal fees for local multipoint communications systems (LMCS) spectrum are too high, wireless network operators have told Industry Canada. They point to the failure of licensees to use the spectrum in any significant way and the $172 million paid for the bandwidth in the 1999 spectrum auction as evidence the proposed rate isn’t appropriate. Industry Canada had set the renewal fee at $0.003205 per 100 MHz, but suspended its application for another five years. The department now wants to apply this fee to unassigned LMCS spectrum. Bell Mobility says Canada’s spectrum regulator should set the licence renewal fee at a level that would cover the cost of...

Wireless industry pans government proposals to give away key backhaul spectrum

Media | 05/04/2009 7:11 pm EDT

Proposals from Industry Canada to give additional satellite frequencies to direct-to-home (DTH) television services and to allocate more bandwidth for tactical systems are being criticized by the wireless industry. The Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) tells the department that giving portions of...

Senate anti-spam bill would give ISPs policing power over spam

telecom | 05/04/2009 6:17 pm EDT

Internet providers should be able to police spam, according to a senator who has introduced anti-spam legislation in the upper chamber. It’s the second anti-spam bill to hit Parliament in less than a week. Liberal Senator Yoine Goldstein tabled his anti-spam legislation on February 3 and appeared before the...

Radialpoint buys Casero, and Bell becomes the sandbox

telecom | 05/01/2009 11:55 am EDT

Montreal-headquartered Radialpoint has acquired Toronto’s Casero Inc., tying its ISP-delivered services and support with Casero’s content storage and sharing technologies. Since the companies share BCE Inc. as a customer, what does this mean for Canadian ISPs? “There were tight synergies between Radialpoint and Casero,” Singu...

Wireless data buoys Rogers slipping voice revenue

telecom | 04/29/2009 7:13 pm EDT

Revenue from wireless data services nearly offset the decline in voice revenue for Rogers Communications Inc.’s wireless arm in the first quarter, enabling average revenue per user (ARPU) to remain flat. Speaking during the company’s Q1 2009 financial and subscribers results conference call, Rogers president and CEO Nadir Mohamed said the...

MTS Allstream and two unknowns among bidders for in-flight Internet spectrum

telecom | 04/29/2009 2:20 pm EDT

Three companies have laid down deposits of just over $1 million to compete in Industry Canada’s latest auction of air-to-ground (ATG) spectrum. The bandwidth would be used to provide broadband Internet on domestic flights. MTS Allstream Inc., Sky Surf Canada Communications Inc. and Wair Inc. are the three companies...

Atria Networks making stronger push in enterprise space

telecom | 04/27/2009 7:57 pm EDT

Utility telecom provider Atria Networks LP is considering adding telephony to its service portfolio in a bid to further diversify its customer base, company executives told a gathering in Ottawa last week. Steve McCartney, president and CEO of Atria, says the company has an established track record of providing...

Phishing expeditions to become illegal under new anti-spam law

telecom | 04/27/2009 6:39 pm EDT

The federal government tabled anti-spam legislation in the House of Commons last Friday, proposing to make it illegal for organizations to send unwanted commercial email and conduct phishing expeditions. But Bill C-27 goes even further by proposing to repeal the controversial Do-Not-Call telemarketing law. The 70-page...

Without Canadian consumer pull, femtocells wait on push from US carriers

telecom | 04/24/2009 6:06 pm EDT

As analysts downgrade their roll-out projections for femtocells and Canadian wireless providers remain mum on their plans, the localized cellphone base station technology will remain in the wings – that is, until a massive order from a US carrier brings the unit price down. “Last year we were forecasting that...

Mobile VoIP provider Zer01 set to make splash in US, possibly coming to Canada

telecom | 04/23/2009 7:01 pm EDT

A no strings attached, unlimited mobile voice and data service from Zer01 Communications is set to hit the US airwaves with a commercial launch on July 1, and there could be plans for the company to offer its service north of the 49th parallel. Zer01’s parent company Unified Technologies Group Inc. developed a new technology that brings the power of voice over IP to the mobile world. In a nutshell, its Veritable Mobile Convergence (VMC) technology allows smart phone users to make voice calls or transmit data by bypassing carrier circuit-switched channels by sending voice communications through a VoIP system and onto a virtual private network that accesses the Internet. The company...

Wireless-only households to double in three years

telecom | 04/22/2009 12:33 pm EDT

Canadian consumers will increasingly cut the cord over the next three years as price competition in the wireless sector heats up after the new wireless entrants launch services, according to a report from Convergence Consulting Group Ltd. Released earlier this month, The Battle for the North American (Canada & US) Couch Potato: Bundling,...

Delaying competitor access to towers and networks now tougher under new Industry Canada rules

telecom | 04/20/2009 4:36 pm EDT

Industry Canada is toughening up its licence conditions for incumbent wireless carriers – a move that should make it easier for new entrants to negotiate antenna tower sharing and roaming agreements with the Big Three wireless operators. After numerous complaints from new entrants, the...

Shaw’s delay on wireless makes sense: industry analyst

telecom | 04/20/2009 4:00 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc.’s decision to delay investing in wireless this fiscal year seems to have puzzled some financial analysts, but one industry researcher says the move is a prudent one. During Shaw’s second quarter financial and subscriber results conference call earlier this month, the financial...

Analysts ponder what an independent Skype will mean for Canada

telecom | 04/20/2009 11:21 am EDT

Analysts say an independent Skype could make significant noise in the market, even in Canada, where the full suite of Skype services aren’t yet available. Comments come after a busy month during which TeleGeography Research described Skype as the world’s largest long-distance phone company and its owner, eBay...

Telus says CRTC didn’t need to rush in DND case, seeks leave to appeal

telecom | 04/16/2009 5:57 pm EDT

Telus Corp. says the CRTC made critical errors in rendering two decisions related to the Bell Canada versus Public Works and Government Services (PWGSC) contract dispute and is seeking leave to appeal the two decisions to the Federal Court of Appeal. The company launched its leave application last month. Ted Woodhead, VP of telecom policy and regulatory matters at Telus, says the commission should have slowed the process down and taken a measured approach to the dispute rather than rushing to a solution. “It strikes me, from what I can see, that they really didn’t concern themselves too much with any of the evidence that was submitted or any of the pleadings,” Woodhead...

MTS counsels Bell and Telus on easy way to avoid wholesale traffic shaping

telecom | 04/14/2009 6:58 pm EDT

Bell Canada, Bell Aliant and Telus Corp. could save themselves the headache and cost of having to manage the Internet traffic of their wholesale ISP customers if they adopted a pricing scheme that resembles MTS Allstream Inc.’s, the company tells the CRTC in a filing last week. According to the MTS submission, the...

Industry Canada launches spectrum auction framework consultation

telecom | 04/13/2009 6:02 pm EDT

The creation of a new tier for licensing, allowing spectrum auctions for orbital slots and sticking with 10-year licence terms are key aspects of a new consultation on Industry Canada’s new spectrum policy framework. Released April 8, the consultation is also looking at such matters as the ongoing requirement for...

Senate committee begins study of emerging issues in communications

telecom | 04/09/2009 7:42 pm EDT

The Standing Senate Committee on Transport and Communications kicked off its study of emerging communications issues last week with Senators grilling Industry Canada officials on everything from wireless rates to spectrum licence fees and the government’s proposed broadband deployment program. The Conservatives had...

Telus Mobility gets hammered in Q1

telecom | 04/09/2009 5:28 pm EDT

Telus Mobility has taken the unusual step of releasing some key wireless metrics ahead of its May 7 first-quarter subscriber and financial-results conference call and the picture isn’t pretty. The company saw net subscriber additions drop by 46% year over year, increasing its overall subscriber base by just 48,000 customers compared to 88,000...

Cogeco Data Services pushes network and customer focus as competitive advantage

telecom | 04/08/2009 7:21 pm EDT

Cogeco Cable Inc. recently unveiled the new look and feel for its enterprise division, but the newly branded Cogeco Data Services will stick to its knitting by leveraging its network and customer focus as key tools to secure more customers in the enterprise space. Created last year following the $200-million acquisition...

Cogeco seeing uptick in Wi-Fi traffic

telecom | 04/08/2009 7:18 pm EDT

Cogeco Data Services, the former Toronto Hydro Telecom, is seeing more traffic on its Toronto Wi-Fi network, One Zone, since inking roaming agreements with iPass and Boingo. But is it enough to justify a network expansion? “We’re seeing a huge benefit from that kind of an arrangement,” Ian Collins, president of the enterprise...

It’s time Canada considered a national digital strategy: NFB and CRTC chairs

Media | 04/06/2009 1:29 pm EDT

As other middle power countries like Britain, France and New Zealand gear up to create national digital strategies, there are calls in Canada for the federal government and industry leaders to create a similar strategy here – one that encompasses everything from broadband infrastructure to content creation and...

Bridgewater riding high on surge in mobile data traffic

telecom | 04/03/2009 2:27 pm EDT

Bridgewater Systems Corp.’s focus on mobile data management is paying off with the company announcing two major deals at the CTIA wireless convention in Las Vegas. Ottawa-based Bridgewater inked deals with Iusacell in Mexico and another with US-based mobile service provider Cricket Communications. “Demand in...

Consumers will pay price for higher licence fees, Rogers warns government

telecom | 04/02/2009 7:32 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. is warning Industry Canada that consumers will see a jump in their monthly bills if it decides to increase wireless carrier licence fees. Speaking with Report on Wireless this week, Ken Engelhart, senior VP of regulatory affairs at Rogers, says the last time the department addressed licence fees, it was more about harmonizing the old site licence arrangement with new spectrum licences. “This time it sounds to me like it’s more about raising them,” he says of the licence fees. “All those charges will get passed onto consumers and wireless is an enabler for the economy so I don’t think you want to do that.” Last month,...

Independent ISPs decry Bell’s wholesale usage-based billing proposal

telecom | 04/02/2009 6:58 pm EDT

A group of independent Internet providers is calling on the CRTC to stop Bell Canada and Bell Aliant from introducing usage-based billing (UBB) for its wholesale customers. Accelerated Communications, AOL Canada, Cybersurf Corp., Execulink Telecom, EGATE Networks, MNSi, Telnet Communications, Yak Communications and the...

CRA changes could impact company research tax credit claims

Media | 04/02/2009 3:30 pm EDT

Canada’s biggest telecom players – including BCE Inc., Telus Corp. and Bell Aliant – as well as smaller ICT and digital media companies will face some stringent new reporting rules when applying for research tax credits this year, warns Canada’s largest technology association. Some companies will be...

New wireless entrants frustrated by incumbent tactics

telecom | 03/31/2009 9:05 pm EDT

Anthony Lacavera, chairman and CEO of Globalive Communications Corp., is not surprised by incumbent tower/site-sharing and roaming agreement delays. But other new entrants – among them DAVE Wireless and Richtelecom – are more outspoken in their frustration. “The incumbents have substantial franchises to protect,” Lacavera...

ABI and IDC analysts debate significance of Wi-Fi in driving smartphone sales

telecom | 03/30/2009 5:29 pm EDT

Smartphone shipments are expected to outpace that of traditional cell phones over the next couple of years, according to two analysts, but they don’t agree that devices integrated with Wi-Fi are one of the key drivers for smartphone growth. ABI Research analyst Michael Morgan says Wi-Fi is quickly becoming table...

Industry Canada opts for Vickery auction of air-to-ground spectrum

telecom | 03/30/2009 5:09 pm EDT

Industry Canada has rejected calls to use the traditional spectrum auction method for air-to-ground spectrum and will instead use its proposed sealed-bid, second-price auction process, known as Vickery. The spectrum in question will be used to offer high-speed Internet on domestic flights. Aircell, a provider of Internet service on airplanes in the US, criticized Industry Canada’s plan as “unproven”, saying it should stick to its knitting of using a simultaneous multiple round ascending (SMRA) auction format. Bell Mobility also criticized the department over the auction policy, saying since there is no evidence to suggest that demand for this bandwidth exceeds supply...

Industry Canada to impose renewal fee on PCS licensees

telecom | 03/26/2009 7:40 pm EDT

Cellular and PCS carriers Bell Mobility, Rogers Wireless, Telus Mobility and the other regional wireless service providers will be on the hook for more money when it comes time to renew their spectrum licences, according to Industry Canada. What’s unknown, however, is whether the department will charge fees that cover...

Consumers expected to jump at Public Mobile’s $40 flat rate plan: SeaBoard Group

telecom | 03/25/2009 5:05 pm EDT

A new report from telecom consultancy the SeaBoard Group says that Public Mobile’s $40 per month unlimited voice and text plan is going to fair well against the Big Three’s flanker brands. However, Public Mobile won’t be the only one offering a low priced alternative for cost-conscious customers. Public...

Bell not giving up push for proceeding on cable plant unbundling

telecom | 03/23/2009 8:06 pm EDT

Bell Canada is pushing the CRTC to treat telco and cableco networks the same when it comes to making the networks available to ISP competitors. In its latest move, Bell wants the CRTC to hold the two telecom proceedings concurrently to ensure cable operators are not given an unfair regulatory advantage. The move comes...

Bell, Rogers, Telus and CWTA defend short code program

telecom | 03/23/2009 6:07 pm EDT

Canada’s big three wireless operators, along with their industry lobby group, shot back at the Union des consommateurs over allegations that the country’s short code program is charging consumers who don’t subscribe excessive rates. They also oppose any attempts by the CRTC to create a regulatory framework...

Industry Canada kicks off process to give more flexibility to MCS/MDS licensees

telecom | 03/19/2009 8:07 pm EDT

Looking to provide greater flexibility for fixed wireless Internet (MCS) and wireless cable TV (MDS) providers, Industry Canada has initiated a consultation that could result in the introduction of additional high-speed mobile services. The department wants to transition current licensees in the 2500-2696 MHz band to...

Canadian ICT firms among select few prospering in tough times

telecom | 03/19/2009 5:26 pm EDT

As economic woes continue to affect many industrial sectors, little attention has been paid to those information and communications technology (ICT) companies that are bucking the trend. How are they doing it? For the first quarter ended December 31, 2008, Canadian technology services firm Calian had revenues of $55.1...

Primus Canada sees upside to bankruptcy of US parent

telecom | 03/18/2009 8:10 pm EDT

Primus Telecommunications Group Inc. and its three holding companies filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US earlier this week, but the move spells good news for the company’s Canadian arm. According to Primus Telecommunications Canada president Ted Chislett, the company will be able to re-invest more of its profits in local...

MTS says CRTC missed the boat on Ethernet and ADSL; takes fight to Federal Cabinet

telecom | 03/16/2009 7:53 pm EDT

MTS Allstream Inc. insists the CRTC’s decision to deregulate both the retail and wholesale sides of incumbents’ businesses is wrong, and that its new rules won’t lead to greater investment by competitors in telecom facilities. The company is hoping that the federal government will intervene and overturn...

Expect slower network investments if speed matching not overturned, Bell warns

telecom | 03/16/2009 6:47 pm EDT

Bell Canada says it could cutback investments in next-generation networks (NGNs) in cities across Canada unless the federal government overturns and rescinds two recent CRTC decisions on speed matching. The incumbent telco says that the original speed matching decision and a subsequent order on the matter undermine Bell’s investment strategy. “Although the companies are under tremendous pressure to build networks that can compete with cable providers, the business case for investments in 2009-2012 in certain cities will no longer be viable under the CRTC’s ruling which in effect will dictate the rates and commercial terms under which the new fibre network will be...

Canadian call centres share strategies for weathering recession

telecom | 03/16/2009 2:50 pm EDT

Nancy Tichbon, vice president of customer care at Virgin Mobile Canada, a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) piggy-backing on Bell Canada’s network, may be one of the few contact centre managers in the country wearing a smile this recession season – although how long before it turns into...

Bell and MTS file Cabinet appeals on network sharing

telecom | 03/12/2009 6:32 pm EDT

If the federal government isn’t already busy enough trying to mend the economy, it will now have to try and fix problems in the telecommunications industry after Bell Canada and MTS Allstream petitioned Cabinet to look into two somewhat related network sharing matters. Bell is appealing speed matching provisions as set out in a December 11,...

Péladeau says Internet business “slightly profitable”, but still supports three strikes policy

Media | 03/12/2009 5:09 pm EDT

Quebecor Media Inc.’s Internet business is still making money but that could change if the CRTC decides to impose a levy to support the creation of Canadian content online. Quebecor’s chief executive Pierre-Karl Péladeau made the comments yesterday during an appearance...

Rogers Communications denies limiting access to content on wireless portal

Media | 03/10/2009 7:38 pm EDT

The head of regulatory affairs at Rogers Communications Inc. slammed Pelmorex Media Inc. for saying his company makes it difficult for consumers to view a broad variety of wireless content on its devices. Ken Engelhart, senior VP of regulatory affairs at the media and communications giant, said what Pelmorex and others are...

Economic downturn slows Iristel’s entry into wireless arena

telecom | 03/10/2009 11:51 am EDT

Turbulent economic times are affecting the pace at which new wireless competitors rollout their networks, according to one industry executive who wants to enter the wireless market as a reseller. Samer Bishay, president and CEO of Iristel Inc., a competitive local exchange carrier and voice over IP technology provider, tells Report on Wireless that the downturn has almost halted the company’s plans to enter the wireless market as a mobile virtual network operator (MNVO). Suggesting that new spectrum winners could be 18 months behind initial launch schedules, he says Iristel is just biding its time until the market stabilizes. Getting into wireless is still “on the radar”, but everyone is approaching the market in a more reserved manner, including Iristel....

New funding, educational frameworks needed to create mobile industry powerhouse: MEIC report

Media | 03/09/2009 7:38 pm EDT

Governments need to work more closely with banks, venture capitalists and multinational companies to create a bigger funding pipeline for Ontario’s nascent mobile industry, and collaborate with post-secondary institutions to develop a mobile workforce strategy, recommends a new draft...

Cybersurf calls on CRTC to unbundle cable company networks

telecom | 03/09/2009 6:15 pm EDT

Despite an agreement to sell nearly all key telecommunications assets, Cybersurf Corp. is pushing the CRTC to force cable companies to share their networks with competitors much in the same way that telcos do. The company filed a Part VII earlier this month, requesting the commission expand an ongoing proceeding to...

Bell shuttering wholesale local telephony offering

telecom | 03/06/2009 8:48 pm EST

The wholesale telephony business wasn’t what it was cracked up to be, according to Bell Canada and Bell Aliant as the companies ask CRTC to destandardize its wholesale local service and features (WLSF) service. Noting the service no longer meets “business objectives”, Bell et al. say in an application that they will continue to...

Iristel inks deal with MTS for inexpensive network backhaul system

telecom | 03/05/2009 8:00 pm EST

With telcos around the world looking for ways to cut operating costs during what may turn out to be a protracted economic downturn, Toronto-based Iristel Inc. has developed a solution that will enable Canadian incumbents and competitive providers to backhaul their wholesale international traffic more cost effectively....

Bell purchase of The Source leaves tech analysts scratching their heads

telecom | 03/05/2009 4:21 pm EST

Bell Canada’s announcement that it is buying electronics retailer The Source out of bankruptcy has received a mixed response: the financial community generally likes the deal, but technology analysts are underwhelmed. “It seems to be a good idea,” says John Henderson, an analyst with Scotia Capital....

CRTC doesn’t understand ramifications of deregulated enterprise market: MTS

telecom | 03/02/2009 6:52 pm EST

The CRTC’s decision to close the books on a second appeal of Centrex deregulation demonstrates that it misunderstands the impact of giving incumbent telcos too much pricing flexibility in the enterprise market, according to MTS Allstream Inc. In an interview with Network Letter, MTS’chief corporate officer...

Cell phone recall exposes grey area in Canada’s health policy

telecom | 02/27/2009 7:46 pm EST

A noted expert on the impact of cell phone radiation on humans says that LG Electronics Canada’s recent recall of the LG 150 raises questions about how governments certify and enforce standards for radio frequency exposure. LG announced on January 27 that the LG 150 no longer complied with Industry Canada’s...

Regulation would hurt nascent mobile video market: CWTA

Media | 02/26/2009 8:46 pm EST

The Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association argued before the CRTC this week that imposing a levy on wireless operators to support the development of Canadian content online is nothing more than a cash grab. Bernard Lord, president and CEO of the CWTA, told commissioners mobile broadcasting and video services...

MTS calls Bell’s customer switching application unfriendly to customers

telecom | 02/25/2009 9:59 pm EST

MTS Allstream Inc. has weighed into the debate on Bell Canada and Bell Aliant’s application to force customers wanting to switch local and local distance services to call the departing provider. Chris Peirce, MTS’ chief corporate officer, characterizes the proposed rule change as not being customer friendly. In an interview with Network Letter, Peirce questions Bell’s proposal that customers should contact their current service provider just to tell them they are switching to another, particularly when customers are required to do so in other industries. He cites the banking industry as an example. People don’t really want to notify their current bank that they are...

GPS-enablement will prove resilient in 2009

telecom | 02/24/2009 5:24 pm EST

New data from the Nielsen Company and ABI Research suggest that GPS-enabled handsets will weather the downturn well. Adoption will be driven by advanced chipsets, niche industry applications and, on the consumer side, a young demographic enamoured with location-based services. “GPS enablement is spreading across smartphones – there is...

Bell wants customers to cancel service, not competitors

telecom | 02/23/2009 9:23 pm EST

A Bell Canada and Bell Aliant application requesting consumers be the ones charged with cancelling local and long distance service when switching to another provider is being panned by its largest competitor in Ontario. Rogers Communications Inc. says this is nothing more than a tactic by Bell to work less to win back...

UTC touts Canada as model for allocating spectrum to utilities

telecom | 02/23/2009 6:28 pm EST

The US Utilities Telecom Council (UTC) is urging the Federal Communications Commission to take a page out of Industry Canada’s playbook when it comes to addressing the spectrum needs of utilities. In a report released last month, UTC calls on the FCC to harmonize its spectrum allocation in the 1800-1830 MHz band...

Voice ARPU down for Big Three, but Bell and Telus perform better on wireless data

telecom | 02/19/2009 8:21 pm EST

The erosion of wireless voice revenue is now touching all of Canada's big three national wireless operators with Bell Mobility, Rogers Wireless and Telus Mobility all reporting declines in the voice portion of average revenue per user (ARPU). Bell reported a $1 decrease in post paid ARPU in the quarter compared to a...

NRC shutting down software, info security and acoustic sensing groups

telecom | 02/19/2009 6:38 pm EST

The National Research Council will phase out three of its Ottawa-based telecommunications research groups over the next year, and consider privatizing its national science library, according to a memo sent to staff this morning from NRC president Dr. Pierre Coulombe. The cost-cutting measures, which include the elimination of about 16 positions at the three research groups, is expected to save the NRC $27.7 million over the next three years. The belt-tightening is part of Ottawa's strategic review process which selects different government departments and agencies each year to come up with proposals to trim spending by 5%. In some cases, the savings are redirected back to the...

Smarter electrical grids coming to Canada: Deloitte

telecom | 02/17/2009 7:21 pm EST

Just as telecommunications networks in Canada are no longer dumb pipes, the country's electrical grid could transform itself into a smart grid by leveraging Canadian expertise in networking, says a leading analyst with Deloitte. And Duncan Stewart, director of Canadian research, says utilities are beginning to buy into the benefits. Speaking in...

More Bell stores coming to a corner near you: Cope

telecom | 02/13/2009 7:49 pm EST

Facing financial analysts for the first time in about two years, Bell Canada chief executive George Cope outlined the company's plan to perform better on the wireless front. The company plans to leverage its brands, expand its retail presence and push harder on data devices and services. Cope said Bell Mobility has been moving in the right...

SMEs talk about benefits of ICT usage

telecom | 02/13/2009 12:13 pm EST

Adoption of information and communications technologies (ICT) can give small businesses the edge they need to stay in the black during the economic downtown. This was the message from a roundtable of experts who were in Toronto earlier this month to talk about the benefits of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) leveraging ICT.   Online...

The Weather Network and Fido share secrets to successful location-based advertising

Media | 02/12/2009 6:00 pm EST

Location-based services (LBS) have been have plagued by device fragmentation, privacy concerns and screen sizes too small for optimal map views. But that isn't stopping companies like The Weather Network and Fido from tapping into the potential of SMS to build customer loyalty and new revenue streams, delegates learned at...

Internet traffic management likely to become more invasive: report

Media | 02/11/2009 8:49 pm EST

Internet traffic management could soon become more acute as some vendors adopt tougher inspection capabilities to overcome the limitations of deep packet inspection (DPI) technology, a new report released this week by the CRTC suggests. The report, prepared by Heavy Reading, is part of the commission's proceeding...

New Mobivox customer adds value to voice

telecom | 02/11/2009 7:48 pm EST

Talk-Out, a new breed of low-cost mobile provider making headway in Canada and the United States, has inked an agreement to use Mobivox's voice-activated platform for its business and consumer services. The deal fills out Montreal-based Talk-Out's services, which are supposed to be launched here in Canada this week and in the US next month....

Bell develops tool to help healthcare organizations comply with privacy legislation

telecom | 02/10/2009 1:29 pm EST

Bell Canada has developed a web-based tool set that enables healthcare-related organizations to upgrade their network and backend systems to maintain compliance with privacy legislation. Working with Agiliance, the system acts as an expert, guiding clients through the compliance process for projects, services and systems....

Bell and Telus resist CRTC order to share higher broadband speeds with competitors

telecom | 02/09/2009 7:48 pm EST

Bell Canada's call for a full public proceeding on defining next-generation networks (NGNs) and the terms of competitors' access to them is nothing more than a tactic to delay giving competitors access to higher-speed Internet services, CyberSurf Corp. and MTS Allstream Inc. have charged. The two companies tell the...

Fixed WiMAX expected to weather “Buy American” bill and gloomy analyst predictions

telecom | 02/09/2009 3:02 pm EST

It may not be all doom and gloom for Canada's fixed WiMAX vendors, despite Nortel's decision to wind-down its mobile WiMAX business, grim predictions from analysts and concerns about "Buy American" legislation. At least three Canadian vendors continue to be optimistic. Nortel Network's decision to shutter its mobile WiMAX business and end its joint venture with Dallas, TX-headquartered Alvarion Ltd. came as no surprise. WiMAXCounts Quarterly Report from Maravedis, a Montreal-based telecom tracking firm, has raised the alarm on mobile WiMAX, claiming that deployments will be hit by the economic downturn as subscription rates and service revenues lose pace, and that WiMAX...

Let extended Ku-band be used for satellite TV: Telesat and Ciel

telecom | 02/06/2009 6:09 pm EST

Telesat Canada and Ciel Satellite Group plan to tell Industry Canada that it should allow the extended Ku-band to be used for direct-to-home (DTH) satellite TV services. Telesat's VP of North American sales Paul Bush tells Report on Wireless the extended Ku-band is ideally suited for DTH because it's right next door to...

Ontario to launch electronics waste recycling program

telecom | 02/05/2009 6:15 pm EST

The Ontario government will launch the first phase of its Waste Electronics and Electrical Equipment (WEEE) recycling program this spring, but some observers says the initiative will do little to encourage manufacturers to be "e-green." Ontario's Waste Diversion Act is currently being revamped to include extended producer...

Bell Canada is satisfied with CRTC ruling on DND contract

telecom | 02/05/2009 4:56 pm EST

Despite not getting more money out of the Canadian government for the Department of National Defence's continued use of its network, Bell Canada says that it's satisfied with the end result and plans to accept the deal. While the company couldn't talk specifics because of confidential provisions, Mirko Bibic, Bell's...

Ciel blocking access to Canadian orbital resources, charges Telesat

telecom | 02/04/2009 10:15 pm EST

Telesat Canada and Ciel Satellite Group appear headed for another showdown for control of Canadian direct-to-home (DTH) satellite bandwidth, but Telesat contends that Ciel's interest is nothing more than an attempt to block access. In an interview with Report on Wireless, Telesat's VP of North American sales Paul...

CRTC sets rules for Phase II E911 implementation

telecom | 02/02/2009 8:30 pm EST

Wireless carriers have one year to implement the technologies necessary to offer enhanced 911 location capabilities and will have to pay their own way, the CRTC ruled today. New entrant wireless carriers will also have to offer this new level of enhanced 911 services when they launch. Telecom Decision 2009-40 notes that while the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association had pushed for public money to rollout the technology upgrades, wireless operators will be on the hook for their own costs. Wireless carriers will be required to offer Phase II E911 services by February 1, 2010 in regions where wireline E911 is available. Reports surfaced late last year that the wireless companies wanted taxpayer money for the network upgrades. The articles also suggested that the technology is...

CRTC settles DND’s ongoing use of Bell’s network

telecom | 02/02/2009 5:40 pm EST

After several months of trying to reach an arrangement regarding the Department of National Defence's sensitive connectivity requirements, the CRTC put the matter to rest late last week with an offer from Bell Canada winning the day. The decision comes after Bell and Public Works and Government Services Canada appeared before the commission in a...

US privacy petition could be good news for Canadian users of mobile devices

Media | 02/02/2009 12:47 am EST

Canadians traveling to the United States, or visiting a U.S. website, will be affected by a petition to the Washington DC-based Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to get tough on mobile marketers and consumer privacy, some experts say. And while consumer protection laws are more stringent here in Canada, a Montreal lawyer...

ICT sector gets boost in federal budget

telecom | 01/29/2009 8:24 pm EST

Broadband and healthcare technology got some good news in the federal budget this week, and according to one industry association, the moves should help stimulate growth in the broader information and communications technologies (ICT) sector. In particular, the Conservative Party committed $225 million over three years "to Industry Canada...

New Google tool will help users measure net throttling

telecom | 01/29/2009 7:32 pm EST

Not sure if your Internet carrier is throttling your bandwidth connection? Google is working with the global research community to develop tools that will help. On Wednesday, the California-based company announced the released of Measurement Lab (M-lab), a research initiative that is developing tools that allow...

Tory budget fails to address venture capital gap: ITAC

Media | 01/29/2009 6:36 pm EST

While the Conservative Party's budget recognized the importance of the knowledge economy by investing in some information and communications technologies (ICT) sectors - such as broadband and electronic health records - it missed the boat on stimulating venture capital investment in early stage companies. For years...

Kitchener, Stratford unveil details of new digital media research corridor

Media | 01/29/2009 3:00 am EST

Digital media companies will soon be able to kick the tires of new technologies and collaborate with researchers when the two hubs of a Corridor for Advancing Canadian Digital Media (CACDM) open later this year. The centres in Kitchener and Stratford ON will offer a full suite of services and collaborative opportunities...

Analysts disagree on extent of ICT slowdown

telecom | 01/27/2009 6:45 pm EST

IDC Canada, Forrester Research, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) may disagree on the extent of the information and communication technology (ICT) slowdown, but all concur that hardware and semiconductors are getting hit hardest. For example, IDC believes that ICT...

Quebec consumers group wants user policy for short codes

telecom | 01/26/2009 7:56 pm EST

Quebec consumer advocacy group, Union des consommateurs, wants the country's wireless service providers to adopt a user policy for short codes after receiving complaints from consumers about unwanted charges on their bills. The group is asking the CRTC to intervene. The consumers' association notes in a Part VII...

CRTC tells Bell and PWGSC to reach to DND contract arrangement

telecom | 01/26/2009 5:21 pm EST

The CRTC warned both Bell Canada and Public Works Government Services Canada that if they don't reach an agreement on the Department of National Defence's network impasse by January 27, it will impose one. Commission chair Konrad von Finckenstein made the statement in his closing remarks to the public hearing, held last week. "If you do not settle it one of you is going to lose everything because the effect of our judgment will be that it will be one or the other bookend," he told both parties, referring to the respective offers on the table. "You know what they are, I don't have to mention the figures publicly because it would be betraying confidential, but you know them full well down to the dollar," von Finckenstein added. The January 22 hearing,...