Manufacturers poised to shake up wireless market with dual-mode handsets

telecom | 12/18/2007 9:11 pm EST

Canada's major wireless operators are keeping mum on how they plan to combat the widespread usage of dual-mode wireless devices that operate on an indoor wireless network while in the home or business and the conventional cellular network while on the go. The emergence of these types of handsets will almost certainly...

VoIP provider association not happy with E911 architecture

telecom | 12/17/2007 7:00 pm EST

The head of the Canadian Association of VoIP Providers (CAVP) John Lange says the nomadic VoIP E911 architecture adopted by the CRTC this month is too complicated and will almost certainly be too expensive to implement. In a December 7 decision, the commission said an ILEC proposed model, based on a modified version of the...

Analysis: AirIQ weathers perfect storm

telecom | 12/17/2007 1:13 pm EST

AirIQ Inc. blames a high Canadian dollar for its recent decision to restructure management and certain operations, but analysts tell Report on Wireless that's only part of the story. While the 23% reduction in staff will save the company $1.3 million annually, such drastic actions are also an aftershock from the sale of its vehicle finance division...

Bell gets interim approval on wholesale local voice tariff

telecom | 12/14/2007 2:44 pm EST

Competitive telecommunications service providers will soon only have to pay wholesale rates to offer local residential telephony using Bell Canada and Bell Aliant's network rather than retail rates.   Filed with the CRTC just last month, the commission moved quickly to provide interim approval of the ILEC's ...

SimulScribe brings consumer unified messaging to Canada

telecom | 12/12/2007 10:15 pm EST

SimulScribe Inc. launched its voicemail-to-text solution today in Canada, bringing unified messaging to the Canadian masses. Available on 95% of Canadian wireline and wireless networks, the service allows consumers to have their voicemail converted to text and then sent to them either in an email or SMS, eliminating the need to check multiple voicemail boxes. Unlike competing services that only offer partial messages for mobile phones, deliver audio files to a single integrated voicemail box, or are carrier specific, New York-based SimulScribe delivers a fully transcribed voicemail regardless of the platform - home phone, work number or mobile - and is available to just about every Canadian consumer. James Siminoff, founder and CEO of SimulScribe, says voicemail as text is all you need as...

Canadians not shopping online for holiday gifts at work: survey

telecom | 12/12/2007 5:10 pm EST

Results from a Business Software Alliance (BSA) survey reveal that Canadians are less likely to shop online at work during the holiday rush than their American counterparts. But retailers will be happy to hear that the number of Canadians who won't do any Internet shopping has decreased dramatically over the past year,...

Mobile boarding passes come to Canada

telecom | 12/11/2007 4:33 pm EST

Air Canada and Lipso Inc.'s national launch  this month of a commercial mobile barcode check-in service has put Canada ahead of many countries in embracing this latest technology. The move comes after a four-month trial the two companies undertook in Montreal in conjunction with the Aéroports de Montreal and the Canadian Air Transport Security...

MTS Allstream still analyzing auction strategies

telecom | 12/10/2007 7:06 pm EST

MTS Allstream Inc. isn't tipping its hand regarding potential auction strategies, despite rules that explicitly allow for the entry of new national wireless competitors. Industry Canada set aside 40 MHz of spectrum for new entrants and mandated roaming and tower sharing in its auction framework released on November 28. Speaking during the...

Sierra Wireless won’t stand still in fight with Qualcomm

telecom | 12/07/2007 8:50 pm EST

Sierra Wireless Inc. brushed aside speculation earlier this week that the company was going to suffer from slower sales as a result of Qualcomm Inc.'s decision to introduce a competing embedded wireless modem. Dave McLennan, CFO at the Vancouver-based outfit, said the entry of Qualcomm with its Gobi product will create...

Rogers’ 2008 plans don’t include price competition, just quality and speed

telecom | 12/06/2007 3:49 pm EST

Rogers Communications Inc. insists it won't do anything different to capture customers in the coming months, despite last month's government announcement allowing new competitors into Canada's wireless industry. And based on the wireless company's performance over the past several quarters, it doesn't...

Telephony proposition riskier for small cablecos: CCSA

telecom | 12/03/2007 8:27 pm EST

Small cable companies' entry into the local telephony market just got riskier, following the CRTC's decision giving incumbent telcos greater pricing flexibility for their bundles in less populated regions of the country. Chris Edwards, VP of corporate and regulatory affairs at the Canadian Cable Systems Alliance...

Yak sets sights on new wireless spectrum; plans to leverage existing base

telecom | 11/30/2007 4:50 pm EST

Yak Communications Corp., best known as a dial-around long distance provider, believes it can become a successful wireless operator by leveraging its existing customer base and offering a "no contracts, no gimmicks" wireless service. Yak and its parent company Globalive Communications Corp. announced on November...

ILECs given ok to roll out bundles in small town Canada

telecom | 11/29/2007 7:28 pm EST

Canada's two largest incumbent telcos appear ready to rollout territory-wide bundles in the wake of a CRTC decision granting greater flexibility to price bundles for customers living in smaller regions. In interviews with Network Letter, representatives from Telus Corp. and Bell Canada say they can now offer customers...

More competitors coming to Canada’s wireless industry

telecom | 11/28/2007 8:15 pm EST

Potential new entrant wireless operators got what they wished for in the upcoming spectrum auction: a set aside of spectrum. Industry Canada set aside 40 MHz of spectrum exclusively for new entrants, but also decided to mandate tower sharing and roaming. With the rules set,  Bell Mobility, Rogers Communications Inc. and Telus Mobility will now turn their attention to sharpening their auction strategies in the coming weeks as they prepare to duke it out for a smaller amount of spectrum than they had hoped.The Big Three, as they have been referred to, along with the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA), waged a high-profile lobbying campaign (www.cwta.ca/wirelesscompetition), trying to convince the government that the industry was already highly competitive and there was...

CRTC overrides appeal in ILEC’s broadband expansion

telecom | 11/28/2007 5:45 pm EST

Canada's telecommunications regulatory body didn't err when it approved certain ILEC deferral account rollout plans despite rendering the decision prior to the close of the proceeding. The CRTC made the determination in Telecom Decision 2007-111 in response to an appeal launched by Barrett Xplore Inc. on August 13. Barrett, a broadband satellite...

ILECs win greater flexibility to bundle services in non-forborne areas

telecom | 11/26/2007 3:12 pm EST

Incumbent telephone companies have gained yet another competitive weapon in their fight with competitive providers: the ability to offer low-priced bundles of services in regulated markets, especially rural and remote parts of the country. The CRTC determines in Telecom Decision 2007-117 that the general tariff bundling...

CCTS still controlled by industry, despite changes: PIAC

telecom | 11/23/2007 9:26 pm EST

Adding another consumer representative to the new telecommunications consumer protection agency hasn't satisfied its main critic. Public Interest Advocacy Centre lawyer John Lawford says the reactionary move by the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services rings hollow because industry will continue to...

RIM taking fixed mobile convergence to the home

telecom | 11/22/2007 5:06 pm EST

Research in Motion Ltd. is enabling households and small office home office (SOHO) operations to take advantage of fixed mobile convergence (FMC) - the melding of fixed line and mobile communications - through its BlackBerry Unite program. BlackBerry Unite is designed to give carriers greater penetration in the household and SOHO by allowing them to...

Network intelligence a requirement in today’s broadband world

telecom | 11/21/2007 7:02 pm EST

The chief executive at Sandvine Inc., a Waterloo ON-based provider of network intelligence products, says people should be careful what they wish for when it comes to network neutrality. "When you think of [network neutrality] from the perspective of service providers, [they are] always going to have the right to reasonably manage their network to make sure they are delivering a high quality of service," Dave Caputo told attendees at Scotia Capital's Telecom and Tech 2008 Conference this week. "You simply can't do that without the network intelligence that we add to the network. Saying ‘be network neutral and go completely with a best efforts [network],' I think people would be very sorry if they got what they wished for in that regard." His comments come...

Decreasing wireless data prices: iPhone or competition

telecom | 11/20/2007 4:12 pm EST

Unlimited mobile Internet browsing and email has made its debut in Canada. With little fanfare, Bell Mobility buried the announcement in a news release announcing the introduction of HTC Corp.'s Touch PDA last week. With a service contract, customers can also get unlimited mobile browsing and email for $7 per month....

Vecima securing additional contracts for WiMAX deployments in Canada

telecom | 11/16/2007 8:04 pm EST

Vecima Networks Inc. will soon be announcing another major WiMAX win in Canada, following an agreement with Cybersurf Corp., announced on October 4. Victoria-based Vecima revealed during its second-quarter financial results conference call that it plans to partner with an as yet to be identified company to deploy a national...

Concord fights back against Shaw on access to property in Vancouver

telecom | 11/16/2007 7:49 pm EST

Heenan Blaikie, lawyers for Concord Pacific Group Inc., have shot back at Shaw Communications Inc. over a Part VII the communications company filed with the CRTC requesting what they describe as a "blanket order" for access to all of Concord's property developments. "Shaw is seeking ‘gold plated'...

Fixed broadband wireless, can it “duplicate” local ILEC networks?

telecom | 11/15/2007 8:40 pm EST

With CRTC deliberations on a new essential facilities and wholesale services regime about a week old, commissioners will be going through all the evidence to determine what an essential facility is and what the appropriate model is for determining whether a facility can be duplicated. Some, primarily the ILECs, argued...

Bridgewater looks to expand product development, sales activities, professional services

telecom | 11/14/2007 8:28 pm EST

Bridgewater Systems Corp. is hoping that an initial public offering (IPO) will give it the financial resources it requires to expand product development activities, sales operations and a professional services or consulting organization (below is a break down of funding allocation for each...

Editorial: Virgin Mobile going “mainstream”

telecom | 11/13/2007 2:49 pm EST

Virgin Mobile Canada's decision to introduce post-paid wireless service contracts next year, while on the surface may seem like the company is selling out its "alternative" approach to the mobile market, should only be seen as a logical step in the evolution of the company. The mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) has attracted more than...

NID not necessary for telephone service

telecom | 11/12/2007 12:13 pm EST

The CRTC has yet to resolve a nearly two-year-old dispute between Bell Canada and Quebecor Media Inc. subsidiary Vidéotron ltée, but it has ruled that the network interconnection device (NID) - a box that connects the home to the telephone network - doesn't need to be installed in all residential premises. Telecom Decision 2007-105 deemed it...

Commissioner Langford blasts colleagues over further rate de-averaging

telecom | 11/12/2007 3:38 am EST

CRTC commissioner Stuart Langford has once again taken issue with rate de-averaging, dissenting on a decision (Telecom Decision 2007-106) that gives the incumbent telephone companies flexibility in pricing pay telephone and business services. Below is his dissenting opinion. Network Letter will have reaction to the ruling...

Bell improving on wireless front

telecom | 11/09/2007 12:19 pm EST

Bell Mobility is still playing catch up with its rivals Telus Corp. and Rogers Communications Inc., but its third-quarter 2007 financial and subscriber results demonstrate the company is making some progress.After several quarters of struggling against competitors, Bell Mobility posted solid subscriber gains in Q3. Its net additions of about 137,000 are on par with those at Telus' wireless arm, but well below the leader of the pack Rogers' wireless operations. Bell's net additions for the quarter are nearly double what the company posted during the entire first-half of 2007, highlighting the need for the company to follow through on a few quarters of solid gains to shake off suggestions it is falling further behind its rivals. Despite Bell's past struggles, it is increasing average revenue per user (ARPU) on both pre-paid and post-paid plans. Pre-paid jumped $3 to $19, while post-paid increased $2 to $68. The company says that increased post-paid per-revenue subscriber revenue was "driven mainly by price increases for...

MTS position smoke and mirrors: Bell

telecom | 11/07/2007 9:04 pm EST

With final arguments in the CRTC's essential facilities and wholesale services regime set for this Friday, Bell Canada urges the commission not fall for the position put forward by MTS Allstream Inc. "It's important not to fall for the MTS smoke and mirrors," Mirko Bibic, chief of regulatory affairs at Bell Canada, tells Network...

CNA consultation comments not to be made public

telecom | 11/06/2007 2:17 pm EST

Law enforcement officials, telecommunications carriers, the general public and other stakeholders are going to have to wait a little longer before they can read what the others had to say in Public Safety Canada's customer name and address (CNA) consultation. Network Letter has learned that the department, which made the consultation public only...

Entwistle sounds off on wireless competition

telecom | 11/05/2007 3:50 pm EST

Telus Corp. chief executive Darren Entwistle has never been shy to lash out at those who criticize the state of competition in the Canadian wireless industry and he didn't hold back during the company's third quarter financial and subscriber results conference call last week. The last question of the call queried the CEO about strategy and...

Rogers and Yahoo extend relationship into mobile arena

telecom | 11/05/2007 1:25 pm EST

Rogers Communications Inc. and Yahoo Inc. have agreed to extend their relationship from the wired broadband world to the mobile space - an agreement expected to improve the mobile Internet experience of millions of users. Under terms of the agreement, Yahoo's Go 2.0 will be available to Rogers' wireless customers...

Partnership to spur greater wireless content adoption: KPMG

telecom | 10/31/2007 6:47 pm EDT

Wireless carriers are going to have to do a better job of forging partnerships with content providers if they hope to spur greater adoption of premium content services. That was one of the main conclusions of a recent KPMG survey, Consumers and Convergence II: The Search for Value, Choice and Convenience in the Digital Age. "From a percentage perspective, most people said no" to paying more for premium content, Kathy Cunningham, industry sector leader for KPMG's communications and media practice, tells Report on Wireless. KPMG measured consumers' willingness to pay more to access services or applications on their mobile devices they currently get for free on their PC. Shaking the "Internet is free" handle will be difficult in the mobile world, and the evidence...

Enterprise competition to diminish without access to essential facilities: MTS

telecom | 10/31/2007 2:36 pm EDT

MTS Allstream Inc. is warning the CRTC that taking the easy way out in the essential facilities proceeding - opting for a simple, and seemingly reasonable, approach advocated by the big ILECs - could have unintended negative consequences on competition in the business market. "I think at the end of the day this is a...

Early stage financing in the communications sector needs fixing

telecom | 10/25/2007 1:14 pm EDT

It's a relationship that's spawned several success stories, delivered innovation to consumers and made many people rich, but the once bright union between venture capitalists and communications companies is on the rocks. And some experts are saying that this marriage needs more than time to heal its wounds....

Price outweighs one bill for consumer telecommunications purchases

telecom | 10/24/2007 7:18 pm EDT

There can be little doubt that bundling telecommunications services in a package with a single bill is a powerful customer retention and attraction tool, but a new survey from KPMG concludes that consumers don't give as much weight to bundles as previously thought.Consumers & Convergence II: The Search for Value,...

CRTC chairman: regulating telecom and broadcasting together is inevitable

Media | 10/24/2007 12:41 pm EDT

In his speech Saturday to the International Institute of Communications Regulators Forum in London, England, CRTC chairman Konrad von Finckenstein outlined all of the responsibilities of the commission and gave his international audience a glimpse at how the regulator is handling the constantly evolving communications...

CWTA objects to request for non-tombstone data

telecom | 10/23/2007 5:28 pm EDT

With the new Parliamentary session underway and the governing Conservative Party of Canada recently introducing a new crime bill, it only seems appropriate to look at comments to Public Safety Canada's, once clandestine customer name and address consultation. In its comments made public last week, the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association...

Mobivox scores VC funding, cheap mobile LD being expanded

telecom | 10/18/2007 1:13 pm EDT

Mobivox is breathing new life to the old adage "talk is cheap", thanks in part to an $11-million investment from several venture capital firms.The Montreal start-up announced last week that it had received venture capital financing from investment firms in Canada, the US, Vietnam and China. The funds, says Mobivox...

Dial around long distance could disappear without essential services

telecom | 10/17/2007 5:55 pm EDT

Yak Communications Inc. has warned the CRTC that its popular long distance dial around service would disappear if the commission determines billing and collection services aren't essential. Stewart Thompson, VP of carrier relations, made the comments at the commission's hearings on essential services and the next...

Incumbent cellcos to experience little impact from new entrant

telecom | 10/15/2007 10:43 am EDT

With an announcement on the spectrum auction rules likely coming from Industry Canada minister Jim Prentice in the next couple of weeks, financial analysts are predicting the potential impact of new competitors on Canada's wireless sector. A new report from Genuity Capital Markets, obtained by Report on Wireless,...

Cross examination slow at essential services hearing

telecom | 10/11/2007 6:26 pm EDT

After two days of CRTC witness testimony on creating a new essential facilities regime, cross examinations haven't yet finished with two witnesses, demonstrating the seriousness of the review and the new regime's potential impacts on competitors, ILECs and other communications services providers. On a number of occasions, commission chair Konrad von Finckenstein has asked lawyers to speed up their questioning. He also reminded cross examiners to stay focused on the issue at hand.The Competition Bureau spent the entire first day and part of the second day on the witness stand trying to ease some concern that its approach to assessing the essentiality of facilities is workable and not overly complicated to implement. However, the bureau spent much of its time explaining a slight...

End-to-end WiMAX solution not lip service from Nortel

telecom | 10/09/2007 11:04 am EDT

The director of wireless product marketing at Nortel Networks Corp. tells Report on Wireless the company's decision to brand its own end-user WiMAX devices isn't lip service to customers. "It's table stakes to offer devices with your infrastructure," says Danny Locklear. "But it is also a method of differentiation for Nortel...

Consumer groups criticize TSPs proposal for complaints commissioner

telecom | 10/05/2007 2:24 pm EDT

Consumer groups have panned the telecommunications service providers' Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS), saying it falls short of what the government called for and won't lead to better consumer protection for telecom services. The comments are part of a CRTC proceeding to determine...

Primus Canada and Mipps expand mobile WiMAX trial to Toronto

telecom | 10/04/2007 11:09 am EDT

Primus Telecommunications Canada Inc. and its subsidiary Mipps Inc. are expanding trials of mobile WiMAX technology to Canada's largest and most lucrative market. The two companies announced last week that they have inked an agreement to work with Motorola Inc. to deploy a test mobile WiMAX system in Toronto. Much like...

Shaw going after Concord again over lack of access

telecom | 10/04/2007 11:09 am EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. continues to have its problems in accessing condo towers in Vancouver. The company alleges in a September 26 Part VII application filed with the CRTC that Concord Pacific Group is refusing it access to the four-tower Spectrum Towers development in Vancouver to offer communications services to residents. Shaw also alleges that...

Von Finckenstein: Can we regulate new media like it’s 1999?

Media | 10/03/2007 2:14 pm EDT

CRTC chairman Konrad von Finckenstein kicked off the commission's New Media Invitational Session Monday by asking the three fundamental questions about the treatment of new media in our regulated broadcasting system: Is it a necessity to regulate commercial broadcasting over new media?; If so, what measures need to be implemented? and; How would one go about implementing them? The CRTC is hoping to answer these questions through its three stage review of new media. Stage one, the research and consultation phase, involved consumer analysis and consultation with over 50 key stakeholders, both in Canada and internationally. Stage two is the invitational session. And stage three...

Mobile entertainment to be significant in three years, WiMAX presents alternative

telecom | 10/01/2007 12:19 pm EDT

Recent research from In-Stat suggests that mobile operators stand to reap the benefits of increased mobile entertainment usage, but their stranglehold on revenue could be loosened by the emergence of alternative carriers using WiMAX and dual-mode handsets. Wireless carriers have benefited greatly from their "walled...

Nortel entering WiMAX device market

telecom | 09/27/2007 3:47 pm EDT

Nortel Networks Corp. is expanding into the crowded WiMAX end-user access device market, billing itself as a one-stop shop for end-to-end WiMAX systems, the Toronto-based company announced September 27. The communications network infrastructure provider plans to make PCMCIA cards, USB dongles and other end-user access devices for laptops as well as...

ILECs dismiss anti-competitive claims in bundling proceeding

telecom | 09/26/2007 5:05 pm EDT

Incumbent telephone companies are telling the CRTC it has no reason to worry that removing the general tariff bundling rules will lead to anticompetitive behaviour such as tying, predation or unjust discrimination. Their comments come as the proceeding looking into the ongoing appropriateness of the general tariff bundling...

Spectrum auction rhetoric flies at Rogers’ Canadian Club speech

telecom | 09/20/2007 11:31 am EDT

Never one to pass on an opportunity to speak out about the communications industry's competitive landscape, Ted Rogers, president and CEO of Rogers Communications Inc., took the podium at the Canadian Club yesterday in Ottawa and lambasted rivals for demanding access to spectrum and other measures to ensure their...

Lawful access consultation, only fact finding mission: Day’s office

telecom | 09/18/2007 11:10 am EDT

The back-peddling continues at Public Safety Canada Minister Stockwell Day's office. This time, though, Day's director of communications Mélisa Leclerc is left answering questions about the reasons for the closed-door consultation on giving law enforcement agencies access to customer name and address...

Auction still on track for early 2008: Industry Canada official

telecom | 09/17/2007 10:30 am EDT

Ever since Maxime Bernier was shuffled out of the Industry Canada portfolio and Jim Prentice was brought in to replace him, speculation has run rampant that the ministerial change would almost certainly delay the upcoming advanced wireless services (AWS) spectrum auction scheduled for early 2008. But an official with the...

Spectrum rights report completed, to be released soon

telecom | 09/14/2007 4:17 pm EDT

The next step in addressing recommendations from the Telecommunications Policy Review Panel could be at hand as Industry Canada has just received a much anticipated report from Martin Cave and Robert Jones - the two gentlemen awarded the contract earlier this summer to conduct the report earlier this summer - regarding market-based exclusive spectrum...

CRTC budget increase proposal gets mixed reaction

telecom | 09/11/2007 6:25 pm EDT

Increased operating pressure on the CRTC has forced it to ask its fee-paying stakeholders to ante up more money, but the proposal to increase its budget by about $18 million over the next two years with a permanent increase of $9 million thereafter was met with mixed reaction this summer. The commission will formally ask the Treasury Board of Canada...

Mobivox enables real savings on wireless long distance charges

telecom | 09/10/2007 11:00 am EDT

Imagine being able to call your client in Rio de Janeiro, partner in San Francisco and supplier in Montreal, from your mobile phone in Toronto, at the same time, without any long distance charges. Sound too good to be true? Not if you're a Mobivox client.The Montreal start-up launched their low cost VoIP service last May, and while President and CEO Stephane Marceau, couldn't provide usage numbers, he says they've been happily "surprised by the use." Mobivox claims that mere hours after launch, its service was being used in 23 countries. It has since been expanded to 29 nations including: France, Hong Kong, the UK, US and Canada.The service, which provides users with a local access number and employs speech recognition technology, can be used on both mobile and land...

Embedded WiMAX not an area for Sierra Wireless

telecom | 09/07/2007 1:29 pm EDT

Sierra Wireless Inc. is expanding into new markets following an acquisition the company closed earlier this summer, but it won't be looking to go head to head with Intel Inc. in the embedded WiMAX space. Company president and CEO Jason Cohenour made the comments at a RBC Capital Markets North American Technology conference last month. He noted that...

Competitors criticize bundling rule changes

telecom | 09/06/2007 12:31 pm EDT

A CRTC proposal to give incumbent telephone companies greater flexibility in bundling services in non-forborne markets is being met with stiff opposition from major communications competitors. The comments are part of a proceeding the commission kicked off in July to look at extending flexible bundling rules to areas of the country that aren't...

CRTC overturns Ethernet and ADSL decisions

telecom | 09/04/2007 6:59 pm EDT

Incumbent telephone companies, Bell Canada, Bell Aliant, Telus Corp. and SaskTel will not have to implement previously mandated changes to some of their Ethernet and ADSL services that are made available to competitors. In Telecom Decision 2007-77, the CRTC overturned a number of decisions it made on January 24 following applications from the telcos....

Convenience of Rogers’ second line service worth it, despite annoyances

telecom | 09/04/2007 12:49 pm EDT

When Rogers Wireless unveiled its second line voice service (SVLS) earlier this month, I jumped at the chance of taking it for a test drive. Considered by Reade Barber, SVLS service and market launch director, to be very popular with the small and medium-sized business community, the service allows users to have two phone...

Barrett continuing fight against deferral account payout

telecom | 08/29/2007 7:25 pm EDT

Barrett Xplore Inc. (BXI) isn't giving up trying to convince the CRTC that it made a mistake when it decided to allow the incumbent telephone companies to use funds in their deferral accounts to subsidize the rollout of broadband services in rural and remote regions of the country. In a Part VII application filed with the commission on August 13, the Woodstock NB-based satellite and wireless broadband provider argues that the CRTC erred when it gave the go ahead in Telecom Decision 2007-50 to ILECs to use their deferral account funds when a decision on the process had yet to be rendered. Decision 2007-50 was issued on July 6 yet comments and reply comments on ILECs broadband expansion plans weren't due until July 31 and August 14, respectively. Although Barrett understands the...

Welcome to Tech Media Reports

Media | 08/27/2007 8:53 pm EDT

New name, new logo, but same timely and comprehensive coverage You may see a new name and a new logo, but it's business as usual under our new moniker Tech Media Reports (http://www.techmediareports.ca/). We think it better reflects our focus on the Canadian telecommunications and broadcasting spheres. Tech Media Reports will continue to...

Delaying auction decision could have lasting effect

telecom | 08/27/2007 4:57 pm EDT

The federal government's new minister of Industry Canada, Jim Prentice, will have some tough decisions to make during his tenure and those decisions will have a lasting impact on the Canadian communications landscape.Perhaps one of the more important decisions to be made in the near term is setting the rules for the upcoming auction of valuable...

Barrett secures rights to 3.5 GHz spectrum from Pathcom

telecom | 08/24/2007 2:56 pm EDT

Barrett Broadband Networks, a Barrett Corp. company, has acquired 37 spectrum licences in the 3.5 GHz band from Alberta-based Pathcom Wireless Inc. The deal not only includes the spectrum licences - the transfer was approved by Industry Canada earlier this month - but Pathcom's subscribers and network in southern...

Rogers launches two line wireless service

telecom | 08/23/2007 4:09 pm EDT

Rogers Wireless wants you to mix business with pleasure, and its new Second Voice Line Service could help customers with two devices shave almost 50% off their monthly wireless expenses. The media and communications conglomerate unveiled the service on Tuesday and is a first in Canada. The service enables Rogers Wireless customers to have two phone...

AMP up regulatory enforcement

telecom | 08/15/2007 7:16 pm EDT

Under the right circumstances, administrative monetary penalties (AMPs) could be a valuable enforcement tool in regulating telemarketing, e-commerce, online communications and spam according to a recent report from the Public Interest Advocacy Centre. "Regulators have found the use of AMPs to be an effective means of curbing socially and...

WiMAX and consumer electronics a good marriage?

telecom | 08/13/2007 1:28 pm EDT

The drive to get in-home-like broadband services on the go could be one of the major drivers of embedding mobile WiMAX into myriad consumer electronics devices, according to Jeff Orr, a senior analyst with research firm Maravedis. "Enabling that home broadband experience [anywhere, anytime] is what had been identified as the killer app for mobile...

Visa eyes mobile phone prize

telecom | 08/10/2007 3:00 pm EDT

The mobile device will play a central role in Visa's mobile payment and commerce strategy, according to the head of products for the credit card company's Canadian operations. Speaking at the 2007 Wireless and Mobile Expo and Conference/ RFID Forum in Toronto last month Michael Bradley, VP products at Visa Canada, explained that in the long...

First of many new CRTC commissioners appointed

Media | 08/09/2007 3:39 pm EDT

With three CRTC commissioner positions currently vacant and six more terms ending within the next 12 months, Minister of Canadian Heritage Bev Oda took the first step towards infusing new blood into the commission by appointing Michel Morin as commissioner today. Morin brings more than 34 years of broadcasting experience to the position. He most...

Will late be better than never for payphone rate petition?

telecom | 08/09/2007 2:13 pm EDT

Somewhat regretful it didn't press the issue of payphone rates further during the price cap proceedings last year, the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) has joined with two other consumer groups to petition the federal cabinet to overturn the CRTC-approved 100% increase in the price of local pay telephone calls and refer the matter back to the commission with directions. "When we got to the discussions about payphone rates, [an increase] didn't seem to be a real option so we didn't spend much time on it," says John Lawford, counsel for PIAC. "We didn't alert all these folks like we usually to and say ‘If you don't show up and put a submission in [with the CRTC] then there's a big risk.' And now in retrospect there was a big risk." That...

Using a Bluetooth device just became a little easier

telecom | 08/08/2007 1:00 pm EDT

Last week, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) announced the official launch of Bluetooth v2.1 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate). The new specification doesn't increase the range at which devices can connect using the protocol or the data transfer speed of 3 Mbps, but it promises to make the user experience easier and more secure."We admit that...

Bundling and market trials first up in Policy Direction action plan

telecom | 08/07/2007 11:32 am EDT

The CRTC has kicked off a review of general tariff bundling rules and requirements for market trials as the first elements to be re-evaluated under the commission's action plan for the implementation of the Policy Direction. The commission released its action plan and the public notice on the bundling and market trial...

Timing of telecom complaints commission and forbearance questioned

telecom | 08/01/2007 5:41 pm EDT

It was a surprise to see forbearance approvals only two days after the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS) began operating, according to one of the signatories on a proposal outlining the consumer protection agency's duties and processes. Vonage Canada VP of business development Joe Parent...

Rogers CEO slams competitors over calls for set-asides

telecom | 07/31/2007 7:21 pm EDT

Ted Rogers, CEO of Rogers Communications Inc., lashed out again at competitors seeking a set-aside in the upcoming spectrum auction during the media and communications conglomerate's 2007 second-quarter conference call earlier today. Rogers did the same during the company's Q1 call earlier this year."In a...

Mobile BWA not dead after all

telecom | 07/30/2007 5:35 pm EDT

The death of the proposed mobile broadband wireless access (BWA) standard 802.20 - a direct competitor to mobile WiMAX or 802.16e - has been greatly exaggerated, and changes in balloting have breathed new life in the standard. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) announced last week that it had made changes to the way the 802.20 Working Group on Mobile Broadband Wireless Access votes during the standard making process. The working group had been marred by its inability to move development of the standard forward. Many accused a small number of entities of controlling the group because previous rules allowed for each member to have a vote. Under new rules, votes will be counted on an entity affiliation basis, meaning no single entity can exert control over the working group.  The stalemate was thought to have killed any hope that the standard would live, but a reorganization in September 2006 gave the group neutral leadership and hope that progress could be made. The change in voting approach is another piece in the...

Competition review panel and scope of process revealed

telecom | 07/27/2007 2:36 pm EDT

The federal government revealed the make up and scope of the Competition Policy Review Panel (CPRP) earlier this month, but some elements of the process are yet to be determined. The CPRP will  be mandated to conduct a review the Competition Act and the Investment Canada Act. The departments of Industry and Finance have...

Do Canuck bucks go as far as greenbacks?

telecom | 07/25/2007 8:16 pm EDT

Do Canadians really pay less than Americans for wireless services? At least two organizations claim the answer is "yes," and rather convincingly. But one group makes an equally compelling case reaching the opposite conclusion. Which side is right? Time to dust off the old adding machine. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and...

DNC rules big improvement for consumers

telecom | 07/24/2007 6:33 pm EDT

Despite concerns that the CRTC's new telemarketing rules leave too many openings for unsolicited telephone calls, the national do-not-call (DNC) list is a big improvement for consumers, according to the Canadian Marketing Association (CMA). Speaking with Network Letter earlier this month, Wally Hill, the CMA's VP of public policy and...

Big Three WSPs vindicated on pricing

telecom | 07/23/2007 1:31 pm EDT

The Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) and its three largest members - Bell Mobility, Rogers Wireless and Telus Mobility - have claimed vindication in their battle with rivals over wireless pricing levels in Canada. The association points to two reports that counter claims Canadian wireless customers pay more for services than their...

SaskTel appeals part of price caps decision

telecom | 07/18/2007 6:27 pm EDT

Saskatchewan's provincial incumbent telephone company is unhappy that the CRTC raised rates in high-cost serving areas (HCSAs) for the purpose of calculating the local telephone service subsidy required for these regions.  The commission altered the HCSA subsidy calculation (also known as contribution) in the price cap ruling, and SaskTel writes...

Public safety band won’t solve all problems

telecom | 07/17/2007 5:00 pm EDT

Despite the promise that the 4.9 GHz band brings to public safety services and applications, it's not the Holy Grail for addressing spectrum shortage concerns or for ushering in new applications.  Michael Martin, senior managing consultant of global business services for IBM Canada Ltd., says the manner in which Industry Canada has decided to...

BT aims to raise Canadian profile

telecom | 07/16/2007 12:28 pm EDT

Ask Stephen Brash, VP of sales and operations at BT Canada Inc., about his company's major challenges, and he won't point a finger at the competitive landscape or emerging technologies from other network operators. He'll point to mind share - and how little of it the global carrier garners in this country."Brand awareness is pretty...

InterDigital perfecting wireless network handover technology

telecom | 07/13/2007 3:05 pm EDT

A group of Canadian engineers in Montreal is developing technology that will allow users with multiple radio devices - those equipped with Wi-Fi, WiMAX and GSM or CDMA - to switch between the various networks seamlessly. US-based InterDigtial Corp., which has a research and development operation in Montreal, is one company...

VanderHeyden talks convergence and competitive landscape: Part II

Media | 07/12/2007 1:23 pm EDT

Nokia-Siemens Networks has been officially operating for a little more than three months, and even though the company is the world's number two telecommunications equipment supplier, it has some lofty goals for North America. Currently Nokia-Siemens occupies the sixth place in terms of suppliers in North America, but according to company CEO Simon Beresford-Wylie the equipment maker wants to attain "a global position in North America." He made the comments last month at the Canadian Telecom Summit in Toronto. During the event, head of Canadian operations Mark VanderHeyden sat down with Report on Wireless and Network Letter editor Perry Hoffman to talk about the...

TBayTel battles KMTS over WSP agreement

telecom | 07/11/2007 10:53 am EDT

TBayTel continues to have troubles with Kenora Municipal Telephones System (KMTS), accusing KMTS of not negotiating in good faith regarding a wireless access service agreement (WSP). Following a May 2007 Part VII seeking wireless number portability implementation from KMTS and Dryden Municipal Telephone System, Thunder Bay's telephone and wireless...

Small CLECs and resellers get regulatory parity

telecom | 07/10/2007 6:55 pm EDT

The CRTC has taken a small step in leveling the playing field between some small competitive local exchange carriers and resellers of local service. In a decision released late last week (Telecom Decision 2007-49), the commission ruled that competitive providers that rely on another exchange carrier for facilities to provide local service are no longer...

Ericsson increases Montreal staff by 200, preps the IMS pitch

telecom | 07/10/2007 5:43 pm EDT

Ericsson Canada Inc. is increasing the headcount by 200 at its Montreal R&D facility in an effort to help the company bring its "full service broadband" initiative to fruition. The total workforce at the facility now tops 1,800. In a presentation to media and analysts in Toronto, the network equipment maker...

Canada to play big part in Nokia-Siemens’ North America efforts: Part I

Media | 07/09/2007 2:00 pm EDT

Nokia-Siemens Networks has a message for its competitors: we're gunning for a much bigger share of the North American market. Speaking at the Canadian Telecom Summit in Toronto last month, Nokia-Siemens CEO Simon Beresford-Wylie said the company "is prepared to step up" and has set some aggressive growth...

Lessons learned from early telehealth deployments

telecom | 07/06/2007 2:46 pm EDT

Since many initiatives in the early days of telehealth didn't survive after financing ran out - a hard lesson that telehealth enthusiasts have learned - its proponents have had to revise their approach to implementing telehealth."We have had many telehealth projects," says Patricia Dwyer, a registered nurse and program manager for telehealth at the Newfoundland Centre for Health Information in St. John's NL. "Most of the projects were supported through research funding. Projects received a set amount of dollars, and dollars were finite. There was a lot of start and stop with projects."Earlier this year, Dwyer delivered the keynote address at Telehealth 2007, a conference organized by the International Association of Science and Technology for Development. In a...

SaskTel changes view for spectrum auction

telecom | 07/05/2007 12:54 pm EDT

SaskTel dramatically changed its position regarding the upcoming advanced wireless services (AWS) spectrum auction because the company realized it might not be able to get additional spectrum through BCE Inc., a company spokesperson confirmed.In an interview with Report on Wireless, SaskTel spokesperson Michelle Englot admitted that the announcement...

Tim Hortons and MasterCard deal highlights momentum of contactless payments in Canada

telecom | 07/03/2007 2:22 pm EDT

Apple fritters and double doubles went high-tech last week. On Friday, Tim Hortons and MasterCard Canada officially launched a partnership that will enable Canadians to not only pay for their iced cappuccinos and dutchies with a MasterCard, but do it without a swipe or signature. Referred to as...

Mobile VoIP taking steps in Canada

telecom | 06/29/2007 12:51 pm EDT

Mobile Voice over IP (VoIP) appears to be gaining some momentum in Canada with the first such deployment of its kind in the country announced in Montreal earlier this month. Montreal-area ISP Radioactif.com in conjunction with telecom equipment installer Nomade Telecom are deploying a Wi-Fi/WiMAX network to cover about 50% of the city and 90% of...

Business telecom rate de-averaging to take centre stage next month

telecom | 06/28/2007 6:24 pm EDT

In about a month, parties to the proceeding on rate de-averaging in the business sector will make their views known, and competitive providers are likely to oppose any move giving the incumbent telephone companies additional pricing flexibility. The CRTC gave ILECs the rate de-averaging green light for residential local...

Mobile advertising appealing to consumers

telecom | 06/27/2007 4:45 pm EDT

Mobile phone users are seeing more ads on their phone and many don't mind having marketers attached to their hips. In fact, incentives-based mobile advertising where users watch or listen to ads in exchange for a gift certificate or free airtime could soon have a larger presence in Canada as Virgin Mobile considers introducing its Sugar Mama program...

Partners, technology and tenants form muni-Wi-Fi triumvirate

telecom | 06/21/2007 5:35 pm EDT

There isn't a one-size-fits-all business model for muni-Wi-Fi networks, but there are a few critical elements that are an absolute requirement. This was the overriding theme at the North American Wireless Cities Summit, held in Vancouver earlier this week. Many speakers talked about the need to identify the key drivers...

Wireline has role to play in muni-broadband

telecom | 06/20/2007 2:45 pm EDT

The municipal broadband network debate has largely focused on wireless because it is easier to deploy and less expensive than wired technologies, but while many cities and their partners still look to wireless first, wireline technologies such as fibre-optics are receiving some attention. Fibre can serve as either the core of the network or as backhaul...

Early days of remote surgery over broadband

telecom | 06/19/2007 1:25 pm EDT

Funding to see the development of wide-scale robotic surgery over broadband connections in Canada is still a very distant reality, but the monitoring of both patients and healthcare professionals over the Internet is on the horizon. As the cost of robots becomes more affordable, remote centres equipped with them that can assist in high-tech surgery may...

Contentious CWTA board meeting in two weeks?

telecom | 06/15/2007 5:45 pm EDT

In about two weeks the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association's (CWTA) board will meet and it could prove to be a little contentious given the wireless industry lobby group's position regarding the upcoming auction of advanced wireless services spectrum. The auction is scheduled to take place early next year. This will also be the first meeting since the association, clearly with the support of the Bell Mobility, Rogers Wireless and Telus Mobility, launched http://www.wirelesscompetition.ca/ - a website proclaiming that the Canadian wireless industry is highly competitive and therefore requires an open auction without any restrictions on the existing national wireless carriers and free of other artificial measures. Not all wireless companies are happy with the CWTA's...