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Conservatives would reject mergers impacting competition: O’Toole
telecom | 09/07/2021 5:14 pm EDT
Conservative Party leader Erin O’Toole said during a press conference on cell phone and internet affordability Tuesday that his party would stand against mergers that could...
Telecoms say no need for additional accessibility requirements; advocates disagree
telecom | 09/03/2021 5:28 pm EDT
Canada’s telecommunications companies are recommending that the CRTC refrain from mandating additional accessible plans for Canadians with disabilities and discounts to...
Telecoms support for 3-digit crisis line and transition to ten-digit dialling
telecom | 09/02/2021 5:43 pm EDT
Canada’s big telecommunications companies are in favour of making access...
Redline Communications hires new CEO as it eyes LTE and 5G growth
telecom | 08/19/2021 12:54 pm EDT
Redline Communications Group Inc., a Markham-Ont.-based manufacturer of...
Quebecor calls for swift news media compensation legislation
Media | 08/05/2021 6:14 pm EDT
Quebecor Inc.’s president and CEO is renewing calls for the federal...
Iristel fight against CRA’s wage subsidiary denial survives appeal
telecom | 08/03/2021 5:28 pm EDT
Iristel Inc. will continue to challenge the Canada Revenue Authority’s...
Eyes on Quebecor following 3500 MHz auction
telecom | 07/30/2021 6:25 pm EDT
As the dust settles on the results of the 3,500 MHz auction announced Thursday, much of the initial interest amongst analysts and industry watchers has centered not on the $7.31 billion spent by the so-called big three incumbents -- BCE Inc., Rogers Communications Inc, and...
CRTC seeks more info on how companies comply with Internet Code for people with disabilities
telecom | 07/22/2021 5:25 pm EDT
The CRTC is seeking further information from...
High spectrum costs could be driven by competition for set aside: analyst
telecom | 07/15/2021 6:32 pm EDT
Industry analysts are declining to speculate too much on what caused the...
Cogeco reports rise in Q3 revenue as it eyes a ‘landmark year’ in 2022
telecom | 07/15/2021 5:58 pm EDT
Cogeco Inc. saw a rise in revenue and profit this spring and though CEO...
Shaw reports rise in profits for third quarter
telecom | 07/02/2021 12:53 pm EDT
Shaw Communications Inc. reported a large spike in profit for its third quarter of the year on...
Wireless Code, home Internet, helping with data overage fees: Research
telecom | 06/23/2021 5:06 pm EDT
Fewer Canadians are paying for data overage fees and fewer are complaining...
3500 MHz auction finally launches; valuable mid-band spectrum to come with new deployment requirements
Media | 06/15/2021 6:30 pm EDT
Bidding opened Tuesday morning in what will be a...
Rogers backs Telus in Wireless Review decision challenge
telecom | 06/08/2021 5:50 pm EDT
Rogers Communications Inc. has voiced its support for Telus Corp.'s Federal...
CRTC seeking input on three-digital mental health, suicide, crisis line
telecom | 06/03/2021 4:25 pm EDT
The CRTC is seeking public opinion on wether or not the regulator should establish a national three-digit number for mental health crisis and suicide prevention services in an effort to quicken access...
CRTC chair asserts personal preference for facilities-based competition
telecom | 05/20/2021 5:59 pm EDT
CRTC chair Ian Scott said he believes the commission’s pick of a facilities-based model will result “in more robust and sustained competition,” as it faces criticism...
Telus appeals seamless roaming in CRTC’s wireless review decision
telecom | 05/14/2021 6:54 pm EDT
Telus Corp. is seeking permission to appeal two provisions of the CRTC's April decision flowing from the commission's wireless review. While Telus is not seeking to appeal the central decision of...
Majority of Canadian mobile wireless prices second-highest internationally: ISED report
telecom | 05/04/2021 8:10 pm EDT
The average Canadian mobile wireless prices rank the second highest internationally in four of seven service “baskets,” and remains in the middle-high range for the...
Rogers, Fido customers facing wireless outage
telecom | 04/19/2021 6:06 pm EDT
Rogers Communications Inc. is in the midst of a wireless outage, with reports of service dropping early...
CRTC seeks to penalize Bell for support structure access delays
telecom | 04/16/2021 3:43 pm EDT
The CRTC has floated the idea of penalizing BCE Inc. after Quebecor Inc....
Cogeco revenue up, profit dips
Media | 04/14/2021 5:36 pm EDT
Cogeco Inc. announced another increase in revenue with its second-quarter results Tuesday as it awaits news from the CRTC on its proposed hybrid mobile network operator (HMNO) model as the regulator releases its decision on mandated access for mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) this week.
As the CRTC, the Competition Bureau and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada also consider the proposed acquisition of Shaw Communications Inc. by Rogers Communications Inc., Jetté said Wednesday the acquisition...
Feds investing $14 million in 5G development for oil, gas, and mining sectors
telecom | 04/09/2021 4:58 pm EDT
The federal government is investing $14 million in Redline Communications Group Inc. through its Strategic Innovation Fund for the company to produce “Industrial 5G” products for clients in the...
Large telecoms not in favour of sharing data for NG911
telecom | 04/08/2021 5:22 pm EDT
Several large telecom companies have argued that the CRTC shouldn’t...
Efficiencies defense is a ‘serious’ exercise of discretion: competition comish
telecom | 04/07/2021 7:28 pm EDT
Allowing a merger to proceed on the basis of the...
CRTC extends STIR/SHAKEN deadline again
telecom | 04/07/2021 1:37 pm EDT
The CRTC has once again extended its deadline for telecom providers to enact an anti-call-spoofing protocol known as STIR/SHAKEN, this time into fall 2021. Instead of entirely blocking calls from coming through, the...
Rogers, Shaw execs mum on spectrum at Industry committee
telecom | 03/29/2021 7:40 pm EDT
On the opening day Monday of hearings into Roger's proposed acquisition of...
Concerned about Rogers-Shaw deal: Cogeco’s Jetté
telecom | 03/23/2021 6:08 pm EDT
After surviving a hostile takeover bid by Rogers Communications Inc. in...
Federal court dismisses telecom carriers attempt to get SOCAN royalties back
Media | 03/22/2021 7:03 pm EDT
Rogers Communications Inc., BCE Inc., and Quebecor Inc.’s collective bid to get back millions in royalties they say they paid to the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada...
Rogers, feds announce eastern Ontario wireless expansion project
telecom | 03/19/2021 4:13 pm EDT
The Eastern Ontario Regional Network (EORN), the Province of Ontario, the federal government, and Rogers Communications Inc. Friday announced a $300 million project with the goal of connecting 99 per...
CRTC awards $57 million for transport projects in Que., Ont., and B.C.
telecom | 03/19/2021 3:51 pm EDT
The CRTC is handing out $57.7 million through its Broadband Fund for the construction of thousands of kilometres of network transport infrastructure. The commission announced Friday that seven projects will be getting funding for almost 1,400 kilometres of fibre transport network in northern Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia, targeting 15 rural and remote communities, accounting for some 6,500 households. Most of the money goes to Kativik Regional Government in Quebec --...
Claims administrator to launch Facebook campaign in Rogers class action
telecom | 03/18/2021 5:05 pm EDT
The Quebec Superior Court has granted the group handling claims related to a $26 million class-action lawsuit against Rogers Communications Inc. permission to target thousands more people who may be...
New urgency for MVNO hopefuls following Rogers-Shaw deal
telecom | 03/18/2021 12:09 pm EDT
Monday’s announcement of a deal for Rogers Communications Inc. to acquire...
Tories seek committee hearings on Rogers-Shaw deal
telecom | 03/16/2021 5:20 pm EDT
Shadow minister for jobs and industry Pierre Poilievre announced Tuesday afternoon that the Conservatives...
Regulatory approval of Rogers-Shaw deal will hinge on wireless: Execs, analysts
Media | 03/15/2021 8:30 am EDT
From the perspective of Rogers Communications Inc. CEO Joe Natale,...
Iristel wants court order blocking CRA from offsetting tax returns
telecom | 03/12/2021 6:03 pm EST
Iristel Inc. is once again elevating its fight with the Canada Revenue Agency by asking a federal court for a new order against the CRA as they continue to duke it out over...
Bell partners with car manufacturer for new hotspot project
telecom | 03/11/2021 5:09 pm EST
BCE Inc. has announced a new partnership with Honda Canada inc. to provide in-built Wi-Fi hotspots in newly-manufactured cars. The hotspots, billed as “Bell Connected Car” will be installed in...
Court allows Iristel application for judicial review into wage subsidy denial to stand
telecom | 03/08/2021 6:38 pm EST
A federal court has dismissed the Canada Revenue...
ITPA asks CRTC to compel release of limited customer data for NG911
telecom | 03/05/2021 5:15 pm EST
The Independent Telecommunications Providers Association (ITPA) is asking the CRTC to force large telecom service providers to give the association a list of the wireless service numbers with...
36-month financing plans violate Wireless Code: CRTC
telecom | 03/04/2021 5:26 pm EST
The fees required for a customer to buy out of a 36-month mobile phone financing contract amount to a...
Mitel pushes back on incumbents in STIR/SHAKEN access debate
telecom | 02/18/2021 5:06 pm EST
Mitel Networks Corp. has delivered a blunt reply to incumbents over their approaches to implementing the STIR/SHAKEN anti-fraud-call technology, suggesting that larger companies are seeking...
Include resellers in STIR/SHAKEN: ISCC
telecom | 02/08/2021 3:25 pm EST
The Internet Society’s Canada Chapter (ISCC) has endorsed a call from Mitel Networks Corp. for the CRTC to instruct the agency in charge of implementing the anti-fraud-call protocol known as STIR/SHAKEN to allow resellers to...
Rogers revenues, profit fall due to roaming and overage drops
Media | 01/28/2021 3:08 pm EST
Rogers Communications Inc. announced a seven-per-cent fall in revenues and...
Champagne directed to focus on UBF, rules for online platforms
telecom | 01/18/2021 10:13 am EST
New Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne’s new mandate letter...
Shaw wireline losses are part of a strategy: McAleese
telecom | 01/13/2021 5:47 pm EST
While Shaw Communications Inc. posted a substantial loss in wireline subscribers for the three months ending Nov. 30 of last year, executives encouraged those scrutinizing the numbers to cut the company some slack, and recognize the long-term strategy Shaw is pursuing to...
As he steps down, Bains says telecom affordability ‘won’t go away’
Media | 01/12/2021 7:58 am EST
The affordability-focused initiatives Navdeep Bains put in place will...
2021 will see wireless boost: analyst
telecom | 01/07/2021 5:57 pm EST
The wireless sector will be buoyed in 2021 by the likely end of the competitive skirmishes brought about by the introduction of unlimited data across the industry, according to Canaccord Genuity analyst Aravinda Galappatthige. ...
Public Safety looking at changing emergency alert funding: gov’t docs
telecom | 12/16/2020 3:26 pm EST
Public Safety Canada is considering implementing a “more sustainable...
SSi asks CRTC to mandate third-party access to fibre in the North, new wholesale rates
telecom | 12/09/2020 2:27 pm EST
Northern broadband provider SSi Canada is asking...
Xplornet picks Ericsson for 5G
telecom | 12/08/2020 5:22 pm EST
Xplornet Communications Inc. will use technology from Ericsson AB in its next-generation network, the company said Tuesday. Xplornet will begin rolling out its 5G fixed-wireless network in rural areas this summer, it said in a press release. "Our agreement with Ericsson will provide Xplornet's robust national network with 5G equipment to revolutionize the rural broadband experience across our country,” president and CEO Allison Lenehan said in the release. Xplornet announced last year it would invest $500 million in rural broadband services over five years. Its choice of Ericsson for 5G comes as the federal government is still deciding whether to ban Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. equipment. In the meantime, companies have been opting for other suppliers, with BCE Inc. announcing deals with Ericsson and Nokia Corp., and Telus...
Telecom complaints down 19%, CCTS says
telecom | 11/30/2020 12:50 pm EST
The number of complaints from Canadians about their telecom services fell 19 per cent last year, the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS) said in its annual report Monday. It’s the first time...
INDU report says government should act on fraud calls
telecom | 11/27/2020 4:48 pm EST
The House industry committee is calling on the federal government to review legislation covering fraudulent calls, and for the government and regulators to support industry-based solutions to the issue. The committee put out a...
CNOC, advocates push gov’t to be tougher on affordability
telecom | 11/27/2020 11:38 am EST
The Competitive Network Operators of Canada (CNOC) and advocacy group...
CIB, UBF to collaborate on projects that fall between market cracks
telecom | 11/13/2020 12:08 pm EST
The $2 billion Canadian Infrastructure Bank rural broadband fund will seek...
Telecoms mostly oppose further delays to next-gen 911 network roll-out
telecom | 11/11/2020 1:54 pm EST
In response to a CRTC call for comments, Canadian telecommunications providers have indicated that they generally agree with new deadlines for the rollout of next-generation 911 networks across...
Bell’s Bibic gives a ‘tip of the hat’ on Broadcast Act update
Media | 11/05/2020 6:26 pm EST
BCE Inc. CEO Mirko Bibic praised the updates to the Broadcasting Act...
Wireless no longer a growth market: Shaw’s McAleese
telecom | 10/30/2020 5:35 pm EDT
The lack of pricing "discipline" in the wireless market could have negative...
ISED: flanker brands prices falling, but not yet at 25% drop target
telecom | 10/29/2020 7:04 pm EDT
The federal government released its second quarterly check-in on wireless prices across Canada Thursday morning, as a follow up to the Liberal government’s plan to lower wireless prices 25 per cent...
Rogers Q3 buoyed by wireless adds, sports advertising
Media | 10/22/2020 5:50 pm EDT
Rogers Communications Inc. showed a rebound in its third-quarter earnings report Thursday, with media and wireless revenue roughly back to the levels they were at in 2019 following a second quarter that its CFO described as the "most volatile" the business had seen. ...
Tests show public alerts system differs markedly across devices
telecom | 10/15/2020 5:07 pm EDT
Testing of the National Public Alerting System (NPAS) across mobile devices produced by five major manufacturers showed devices play alerts at variable volumes, while putting a phone in "do not...
Liberals’ wireless price drop unlikely to achieve promised savings: gov’t docs
telecom | 10/15/2020 2:50 pm EDT
The Liberals' election commitment to drop wireless prices 25 per cent will...
Encourage 5G network investment to fight climate change: CWTA
telecom | 10/07/2020 5:48 pm EDT
Telecom industry group Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) released a report Wednesday outlining how deployment of 5G will help Canada meet its climate goals, linking the issue...
Secret shoppers with disabilities less satisfied with telecom options
telecom | 09/29/2020 6:23 pm EDT
One in five potential customers for telecommunications services "perceived...
Back to Parliament: your (pandemic) preview
Media | 09/22/2020 12:43 pm EDT
Given the precarious situation around the now-escalating COVID-19 pandemic, what will actually be included in Wednesday’s speech from the throne, and in the government’s priorities in the following weeks, is more uncertain than ever. With a day to go, even the details of...
Cogeco wireless plans ‘probably part of the equation’ for Rogers: Ouimet
telecom | 09/15/2020 5:09 pm EDT
As Cogeco Inc.’s CFO speculated Tuesday that a bid for his company’s...
Conservatives name new innovation, heritage critics
Media | 09/08/2020 4:36 pm EDT
New Conservative leader Erin O’Toole shuffled his shadow cabinet Tuesday, with new faces appointed to...
Watchdog finds Telus ad on wireless prices misled consumers
telecom | 09/03/2020 4:04 pm EDT
Canada’s advertising standards body has found Telus Corp. made misleading...
ISED launches 3800 MHz consultation
telecom | 08/27/2020 5:31 pm EDT
Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada announced the launch of its consultation process on the 3800 MHz spectrum auction. The band is widely seen as being one of the bands crucial for 5G deployment. The launch...
CRTC suspends disability wireless service consultation after request for hearing
telecom | 08/26/2020 5:08 pm EDT
The CRTC has suspended all deadlines relating to its consultation on wireless plans for people with disabilities until further notice while it considers a request for a virtual public hearing to be...
Gov’t should launch public awareness campaign about COVID-19 fraud: INDU
telecom | 08/20/2020 5:42 pm EDT
As its work was being put on hiatus due to prorogation of the House of Commons, the industry committee sent a letter to Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains saying the federal government must act to...
Quebecor must hand over documents to Competition Bureau: court
telecom | 08/07/2020 10:32 am EDT
A Federal Court of Appeal judge has ruled that Quebecor Inc. must turn over documents to the Competition Bureau, which the bureau argues it needs access to to determine if Videotron has violated...
Bell calls for Competition Bureau report to be struck from wireless review
telecom | 08/06/2020 7:15 pm EDT
BCE Inc. has asked the CRTC to strike a Competition Bureau report...
Bell’s Q2 profit plunges by 64 per cent
telecom | 08/06/2020 3:51 pm EDT
BCE Inc.’s second quarter profit dropped to $294 million, a 64 per cent decrease on a year before, with the company attributing the drop to higher expenses, including $452 million of impairment charges related to some of Bell’s TV and radio properties.
The...
Canadians complaining about wireless less, experiencing fewer unexpected charges: research
telecom | 08/05/2020 3:31 pm EDT
Canadians are complaining less about their wireless service and fewer consumers are receiving unexpected charges in their monthly wireless bill, according to wireless code...
Shaw Mobile’s early gains to come at expense of Rogers, Bell: analyst
telecom | 07/30/2020 2:45 pm EDT
Shaw Communications Inc.’s new wireless brand is likely to initially...
Shaw bundles internet and wireless in new mobile offering
telecom | 07/30/2020 6:00 am EDT
Shaw Communications Inc.’s first Shaw-branded wireless service has...
Half of spectrum licencees opted to use ISED’s COVID flexibility
telecom | 07/29/2020 5:21 pm EDT
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada allowed companies to...
ISED says wireless prices goals still mostly unmet
telecom | 07/28/2020 6:00 pm EDT
Following on the Liberal election campaign promise to lower wireless prices by 25 per cent, the federal government released on Tuesday the first of its quarterly check-ins on wireless prices across the country. The data -- which is based on advertised prices from January to June for post-paid, bring your own device (BYOD), unlimited talk and text 4G/LTE plans in the 2 to 6 GB range -- shows that only 2 GB plans on the three main flanker brands in Quebec are meeting the government's objective. BCE Inc.'s Virgin, Telus Corp.'s Koodo, and Rogers Communications Inc.'s Fido are all offered at...
No need for changes to cellphone, antenna safety standards, gov’t says
telecom | 07/23/2020 4:01 pm EDT
The federal government has responded to a petition calling for Canada to restrict the installation of cellphone towers and antennas around schools and playgrounds, saying such measures are...
Rogers profits down 53% in ‘most volatile’ quarter
Media | 07/22/2020 6:04 pm EDT
Rogers Communications Inc. posted a 17 per cent fall in revenue and a 53...
Cogeco radio feels COVID hit, but overall revenues increase
telecom | 07/16/2020 4:42 pm EDT
In its first quarterly report to include the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Cogeco Inc.’s radio revenues fell by one-third, though its overall revenue beat analyst expectations. In the results...
MVNOs could drop wireless revenues by one-third: report
telecom | 07/15/2020 3:33 pm EDT
A wireless industry-commissioned report is arguing mandating network access by mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) could bring Canadian wireless average revenue per user down 30 to 35 per cent by...
Shaw’s subscriber additions dampened by COVID lockdowns
telecom | 07/10/2020 8:39 pm EDT
Shaw Communications Inc. president Paul McAleese said that while there has...
Telus releases its layoff-authorizing board resolution publicly
telecom | 06/29/2020 5:36 pm EDT
In order to continue paying dividends to the company's shareholders —...
Privacy commissioners investigating Tim Hortons app
telecom | 06/29/2020 5:26 pm EDT
The federal Office of the Privacy Commissioner, as well as the provincial commissioners in Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta, are looking into the collection of geo-location data by a coffee chain app. They said in a press...
Experts say 5G will eventually deliver, but a speed boost for now
telecom | 06/29/2020 2:53 pm EDT
Experts are unanimous in saying Canada’s 5G networks will eventually...
Canada yet to make Huawei decision despite Chinese ‘pressure’
telecom | 06/22/2020 6:30 pm EDT
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has again refused to put a timeframe on when the federal government will decide whether Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. equipment can be used in the...
Bell partners with Western University for 5G research centre
telecom | 06/11/2020 5:08 pm EDT
Western University’s London campus will be transformed into a “living lab” as part of a partnership with BCE Inc. to test applications for the 5G network. Bell will spend $2.7 million on the...
U.S. threatens to re-assess intelligence-sharing over Huawei
telecom | 06/05/2020 1:54 pm EDT
The United States State Department said that if Canada doesn’t ban...
ISED delays 3500 MHz auction by six months
telecom | 06/05/2020 1:45 pm EDT
The 3500 MHz spectrum auction, originally scheduled for December of this year, will now take place in...
Competition Bureau, telecoms MVNO stance unchanged by COVID-19
telecom | 06/03/2020 6:00 pm EDT
The Competition Bureau says its advocacy for a temporary hybrid mobile...
Telus silent on Scotiabank claim it hasn’t ruled out Huawei as 5G vendor
telecom | 06/03/2020 5:53 pm EDT
A day after announcing it would partner with Nokia Corp. and Ericsson AB on its 5G network build, Telus Corp. has not responded to questions about whether that announcement...
Questions remain about Huawei gear as Bell, Telus pick Ericsson, Nokia
telecom | 06/02/2020 6:03 pm EDT
On Tuesday, BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. announced new partnerships with...
PIAC takes paper bills fight to cabinet
telecom | 06/02/2020 4:02 pm EDT
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre has asked the federal government to reverse a March CRTC decision allowing Telus Corp.'s Koodo Mobile flanker brand to stop issuing paper bills to those who request them. In a petition to...
Network performance supports light regulatory touch: Bibic
telecom | 05/27/2020 6:58 pm EDT
The performance of networks in other countries during the COVID-19 crisis...
Roam Mobility shutting down
telecom | 05/27/2020 5:25 pm EDT
Otono Networks Inc.’s Roam Mobility will cease operations on June 30, the company said Wednesday. Roam Mobility previously provided prepaid SIM cards for visitors to the United States and Canada. It shut down the Canadian service in January, though it continued to provide SIM cards and service...
Google exec outlines privacy measures in new contact-tracing API
telecom | 05/22/2020 2:54 pm EDT
Colin McKay, head of public policy and government relations for Canada for...
Telus to share aggregate location data with government researchers
telecom | 05/20/2020 6:09 pm EDT
Telus Corp. said it will begin providing de-identified, aggregate location data to the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) to help combat COVID-19. It said in a...
Complaints to CCTS decrease by 12 per cent
telecom | 05/12/2020 4:25 pm EDT
Consumers lodged 8,621 complaints with the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS) in the six months leading up to Jan. 31, a 12 per cent decrease on the previous year. The decrease, detailed in the...
Telus withdraws guidance, records 19 per cent net income reduction
telecom | 05/07/2020 6:00 pm EDT
Telus Corp.’s net income for the first quarter of 2020 dropped 19 per...
Cogeco to bring back overage fees as of May 1
telecom | 04/30/2020 2:10 pm EDT
Cogeco Inc. will again start charging overage fees to its home internet customers who exceed their data limits as of Friday, with the company instead focusing on other measures it considers to “be more essential” to its customers. It’s the first internet service provider to confirm its suspension of data overage charges will end. A Cogeco spokesperson told The Wire Report that its suspension of data overage charges — introduced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic on Mar. 20 — would end on Thursday as it prioritized other temporary measures. “We have decided to focus...