Telus, Eastlink provide opposing perspectives on wholesale regulation

GATINEAU, Que. — The CRTC on Tuesday got opposing opinions on the need for wholesale wireless market regulation from two wireless carriers with very different perspectives.

Incumbent carrier Telus Corp. argued that too much regulation will deter a healthy climate for investment in Canada's wireless market, while regional carrier Eastlink said the current lack of regulation is stifling competition.

Wireless revenue growth slowed last year: CRTC

Revenue from wireless services in Canada was up just less than four per cent in 2013, marking a slowdown from growth that had exceeded six per cent for three straight years, according to data released by the CRTC on Thursday.

BlackBerry launches Passport, new app

BlackBerry Ltd. launched a new smartphone, the Passport, on Wednesday, as well as an app that brings content from BlackBerry smartphones to computers and tablets.

The Passport, revealed at a launch event in Toronto that featured hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, is aimed at professional users, the company said in a press release, has a physical keyboard, as well as a 4.5-inch touchscreen shaped like a square and is roughly the size of a Canadian passport.

Telus, Mojio promise connected-car solution this year

Telus Corp. and technology maker Mojio Inc. announced on Tuesday they will team up to provide a connected-car service in Canada before the end of this year.

In a joint press release, the companies said the service will use Telus' national wireless network to connect to the Internet and employ a cellular device from Vancouver-based Mojio that connects to vehicle's onboard diagnostic port, which is on most cars manufactured since 1996.

Regulators want investment-focused wireless industry: Natale

Telus Corp. CEO Joe Natale said Thursday he cannot predict what decisions will result from the upcoming CRTC hearings on the wireless wholesale market, though he feels Canadian regulators are likely to maintain a system that encourages investment in mobile networks.

"I really don't believe that our government and our regulator wants to step away from an investment-oriented ... approach to the wireless business," he said during a CIBC investor conference in Montreal.

Telus releases transparency report

Telus Corp. released its first transparency report on Thursday that said the carrier received more than 100,000 requests for private information from government organizations in 2013.

Bell top payer, PIAC top recipient of CRTC cost awards so far in 2014

The CRTC this year has ordered telecommunications companies to pay more than $230,000 to various organizations participating in different telecommunications proceedings, of which BCE Inc. and its affiliates have been assigned more than half the costs and for which the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) has been the biggest recipient.

A compilation by The Wire Report, based on information from the CRTC's website, showed that the commission has awarded $233,472.90 in costs so far in 2014.

Telus buys prescription software

Telus Corp. announced Wednesday it is buying the rights to electronic prescription software from Quebec-based ZoomMed Inc.

The ZRx Prescriber software from ZoomMed  allows doctors to write prescriptions and look up insurance information electronically using a mobile device, and the platform will now be a part of the Telus’s growing healthcare division, according to a news release from the telecom company.

Bell says rural broadband commitment fulfilled

BCE Inc. says it has held up its end of a 2006 deal with the CRTC by hooking up 112 rural communities to broadband Internet by Aug. 29.

“Bell completed broadband service rollouts to all 112 communities in our deferral account-funded broadband program by Aug. 29, as planned,” company spokeswoman Jacqueline Michelis said in an email.

Paper billing issue small potatoes for telecom sector: analysts

Much has been made this week about the practice of levying extra fees for the privilege of getting a physical bill for telecommunications services, and some industry watchers are downplaying the issue's importance.

Telus introduces device-management system for companies

Telus Corp. on Wednesday announced a new device-management system for businesses, which it said is geared toward the growing trend of BYOD (bring your own device) among organizations.

The service is called MDM Made Easy, Telus said in a press release. Using technology and services from Vox Mobile and AirWatch LLC, it's a cloud-based device-management system that doesn't involve any on-premise hardware.

CRTC awards PIAC costs in paper bill proceeding

The CRTC has ordered 10 different telecommunications companies to pay $22,135.06 in costs incurred by the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) during its paper bill proceeding.

Devicescape helps carriers tap into public WiFi resources

Devicescape Software Inc. is a California-based company that is trying to sell wireless carriers on the potential of using the multitude of free WiFi hotspots in existence to their benefit.

The company's product causes smartphones to automatically link to freely offered WiFi networks, without the user having to perform the manual tasks that are typically required to connect to hotspots.

DiversityCanada granted fraction of costs claimed in CRTC proceeding

Wireless code effects include higher prices, slow customer growth: analysts

More than eight months after its implementation and more than a year after it was announced, effects of CRTC's wireless code include higher prices and slower growth in mobile-service subscribers, say analysts.

"The most obvious overall effect is it's raised consumer prices by $5 per month," Canaccord Genuity telecom analyst Dvai Ghose said in a phone interview.

Pay-per-view could stick around or go the way of the VHS

In 1985, a Los Angeles Times article explained that U.S. TV providers were planning to compete with “the burgeoning home-video business” that had “savaged” them by launching national pay-per-view (PPV) networks, which the Times explained was a “relatively new technology” allowing viewers to order programs much in the same way as “they buy movie theater tickets--or as they rent videocassettes.”

Telus profits up on wireless, wireline subscriber growth

Telus Corp. profits rose by nearly a third from the same period last year on growth in its wireless and wireline divisions, the Vancouver-based telecom company reported on Thursday.

The company posted net income of $381 million in the second quarter of 2014, up from $286 million a year earlier.

CRTC asking new questions on mobile-TV and wireless data throttling

The CRTC has issued new interrogatories in its proceeding looking at an undue preference complaint about mobile-TV services, asking BCE Inc., Rogers Communications Inc. and Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron about their throttling of customers’ wireless service.

CRTC releases figures on wireless wholesale caps

On Wednesday the CRTC released average domestic retail prices for wireless carriers as part of its ongoing examination of the wholesale wireless market in Canada.

One year later, could the wireless wars re-ignite?

Last summer, a conflict between the federal government and Canada’s three biggest wireless carriers, centering over rules around the 700 MHz spectrum auction and the prospect of a large U.S. carrier entering the Canadian market, reached a fever pitch.

TV providers divided on set-top ratings system

Canada’s biggest television providers are divided over the future of audience measurement via the next generation of set-top boxes.

As part of their submissions in the CRTC’s ongoing Let’s Talk TV consultation, BCE Inc., Rogers Communications Inc., Telus Corp., Quebecor Inc. and Shaw Communications Inc. all weighed in on the creation of a new audience measurement system based on set-top box (STB) data.

IoT spending to almost quadruple by 2018: report

Spending on Internet of Things (IoT) technology in Canada in 2018 will be almost four times what it was last year, according to a new report from International Data Corp.

The report, commissioned by Telus Corp., said spending on IoT will be about $21 billion in 2018 compared to $5.6 billion in 2013, Telus said in a press release issued Tuesday.

CRTC approves Telus pay-per-view service

The CRTC has approved a licence application by Telus Corp. to operate a pay-per-view service, the commission said Monday.

A letter from Telus to the CRTC to support the application in October last year said the pay-per-view service would be for subscribers of its Optik TV service. It said it had been contracting SaskTel to provide pay-per-view services and, due to growth in its Optik service, it wanted to do this itself.

Mobilicity less attractive than Wind for Quebecor: analyst

New-entrant wireless carrier Mobilicity is in a holding pattern after the collapse of a buyout deal with Telus Corp. that could harm its chances of being rescued from bankruptcy protection, according to Macquarie Capital Markets analyst Greg MacDonald.

MacDonald said in a phone interview Wednesday that Videotron owner Quebecor Inc. now appears to be the only serious bidder for the company and that Mobilicity’s continuing losses and a slide in subscriber numbers leave it in a poor negotiating position. 

Regulatory uncertainty could hurt innovation: experts

TORONTO — Ongoing interventions by Industry Canada, the Competition Bureau and the CRTC into Canada’s wireless industry are likely to harm future investments by telecom companies, Brookings Institute economist Robert Crandall told an audience at the Canadian Telecom Summit on Monday.

Crandall was one of four presenters at a panel on competition in telecom, in which few kind words were spoken about the government’s attempts to encourage wireless competition.

BlackBerry to support financial transactions for wireless incumbents

BlackBerry Ltd. said Thursday it has reached a three-year deal with a consortium comprised of Canada's three incumbent wireless providers to support financial transactions conducted through smartphones.

BlackBerry and EnStream LP, which is a joint venture run by BCE Inc., Telus Corp. and Rogers Communications Inc., did not disclose financial details of the agreement.

Telecom Act allows retroactive code application, says government

The Telecommunications Act gives the CRTC the authority to apply its wireless code in such a way that it nullifies existing customer contracts, the federal government said in a new court filing defending parts of the code against a challenge by wireless carriers.

CRTC warns companies as rural broadband deadline looms

This week the CRTC warned three companies — Telus Corp., BCE Inc. and Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. — about missing a late-August deadline for expanding broadband service to rural communities.

The deadline is part of a 2006 agreement on the use of money set aside from the companies’ telephone operations as independent local exchange carriers (ILECs) between 2002 and 2006 at the behest of the CRTC.

Telus to invest $130M in Manitoba

Telus Corp. said Wednesday it is investing $130 million to upgrade its infrastructure in Manitoba between now and 2016.

Spotlight on Quebecor after Telus reportedly ends Mobilicity bid

Analysts speculated Wednesday about the possibility of Quebecor Inc. stepping up to purchase Mobilicity following a report that Telus Corp. has withdrawn its offer.

Capping wholesale roaming rates at retail level not enough: study

While the federal government’s current plan for limiting wholesale roaming rates charged within the wireless industry is a “step in the right direction,” a new study from the SeaBoard Group said the move does not go far enough.

Telus earnings up on wireless, Internet subscriptions

Telus Corp. on Thursday reported higher earnings for the first quarter of 2014, driven by subscriber growth for its wireless and high-speed Internet offerings.

The company reported $377 million in profit on revenues of nearly $2.9 billion, up from earnings of $362 million on revenues of $2.76 billion in the same period last year.

Telus to invest $1.3B in Quebec through 2016

Telus Corp. said Tuesday it will invest more than $1.3 billion in new infrastructure and facilities across Quebec between now and 2016.

It said in a press release that it would invest $640 million across the province as part of the final year of a three-year plan launched in 2012. Telus said it would spend another $700 million in 2015 and 2016 to build infrastructure.

Telus to invest $2.8B in B.C. over 3 years

Telus Corp. said Monday it will invest $2.8 billion in infrastructure in British Columbia, much of it designed to improve Internet and wireless coverage across the province, between now and 2016.

It said in a press release that it would spend $1.2 billion across the province in 2014 as part of the final year of a three-year plan launched in 2012 and would be spending another $1.6 billion in 2015 and 2016.

Mobilicity debt holders could sue government: Ghose

A financial market analyst covering the telecommunications sector says the federal government could cause harm to those with a stake in Mobilicity, and possibly even face a lawsuit, if it continues to thwart attempts by Telus Corp. to purchase the startup wireless carrier.

Telus-Mobilicity deal to test government powers: expert

The $350-million bid by Telus Corp. for Mobilicity could set up a test of Industry Canada’s regulatory power over the sale of wireless spectrum and competition within the wireless industry, according to one expert.

Telecom industry looking for growth in health care

The announcement this week by BlackBerry Ltd. that it would invest in a U.S.-based health-care technology company is the latest effort by a company in Canada’s wireless sector to look to the health-care market in an attempt to find new sources of revenue outside the maturing wireless market.

Telus looking to fill 360 jobs

Telus Corp. said on Twitter Tuesday it is hiring for 360 jobs.

Rising wireless prices mean lower subscription growth: analyst

Many Canadians are being turned off by the higher wireless prices rolled out by the incumbents over the past nine months, according to Scotiabank analyst Jeff Fan.

In a research note Monday, Fan said he was downgrading expectations for Telus Corp. and Rogers Communications Inc. to the sector average, from outperform, because of a mature and satured wireless market and “the market's inability to absorb higher wireless prices.”

Telus turns internal transformation into consulting business

Telus Corp. is branching out into management consulting.

On Wednesday, the company announced the launch of Telus Transformation Office, an operation in which the company said it will apply lessons learned from a seven-year corporate makeover to helping other organizations with employee engagement and overall performance.

Daniel Pontefract, who holds the title of “chief envisioner” at Telus, and was previously its head of learning and collaboration, said in a phone interview on Wednesday the company wants to share what it has learned.

Darren Entwistle leaves Telus ‘in good hands’

The man who led Telus Corp.’s evolution from a Western Canada-focused home-phone services provider to what one analyst called “arguably the most successful wireless carrier in North America” is stepping down as CEO.

The company said in a press release Monday that Darren Entwistle will leave his post as president and CEO of Telus on May 8, the date of Telus’ annual general meeting, and be replaced by Joe Natale, who is currently chief commercial officer and executive vice-president.

Public Mobile name not going anywhere: Telus

The Public Mobile brand will remain active for the foreseeable future despite a move to abandon the network its customers are using, a Telus Corp. spokesman said Friday.

“The brand continues and the name continues,” said Telus’ Shawn Hall in a phone interview. “The rate plans, largely, continue as they have been. What really is changing is the network. And customers will, once they make the transition, immediately start enjoying a national network with much faster data speeds.”

Telus expands LTE network in Ontario, New Brunswick

Telus Corp. said Tuesday it has extended its LTE network to new communities in Ontario and New Brunswick.

It said in separate news releases that customers in Bradford, Ont., and Bathurst, N.B., would now be able to enjoy data speeds for downloads and uploads that are two to three times faster than the previous technology .

It said its LTE network now covers more than 30 million people, or about 85 per cent of Canada’s population.

Telus remote broadband changes tweaked by CRTC

The CRTC approved a move by Telus Corp. on Friday to replace five of the communities for which the carrier had promised to bring high-speed broadband, while denying its application to include a sixth community.

Telus, which is mandated by the CRTC to provide broadband access to rural and remote communities, can now remove four communities that the carrier claimed have no permanent residents and one it said was a duplicate from its list of broadband rollouts.

Competition Bureau OKs Telus purchase of Public Mobile

The Competition Bureau said it would not block Telus Corp.’s proposed deal to buy Public Mobile Inc.

The bureau said in a release Friday it had determined “the proposed transaction is unlikely to substantially lessen or prevent competition in the sale of mobile wireless telecommunications services in southern Ontario and Greater Montreal,” where Public Mobile operates.

It issued a “no action letter,” which confirms the bureau will not challenge the deal under the Competition Act.

Spectrum caps a ‘reasonable’ exercise of minister’s powers: government

Industry Canada’s decision to limit incumbent wireless providers’ access to the best airwaves in the upcoming 700 MHz auction was a “pure policy decision” and should not be subject to judicial review, government lawyers argued in documents filed in Federal Court this week.

Telcos should invest in think-tanks to help influence policy debates, Hunter says

Canada’s telecom companies should find new ways to invest in shaping public policy since they can no longer donate to political parties directly, said Lawson Hunter, counsel at Stikeman Elliott and a former head of the federal Competition Bureau.

Unfettered access to 700 MHz necessary to meet spectrum crunch, Telus tells court

Telus Corp. continues to challenge the federal industry minister's power to impose caps in January's 700 MHz spectrum auction, arguing in court documents that there is no “viable alternative” to using the coveted wireless frequencies to ease wireless network congestion.

Mobilicity still working on Telus deal as government indicates a denial

Mobilicity’s management will continue to ask the federal government to approve a proposed deal to sell the company to Telus Corp. after the Tory government indicated last week that it would block the deal, sources familiar with the matter said.

With new roaming plans, customers still vulnerable to extra charges: PIAC

Some of the incumbents' new and cheaper roaming plans offer small data packages that smartphone users will quickly exceed, incurring extra charges, said John Lawford, executive director of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre.

Del Mastro does not speak for Tories: Moore