Bell and Telus customers will soon pay more for roaming services. The companies are implementing price hikes to their U.S. and international roaming plans. Changes will also apply to flanker brands Virgin Plus and Koodo.
More details, and a recap of almost everything that happened in Canada’s telecom sector this week, are outlined below.
Business
If you haven’t already heard the news, Netflix has changed its password-sharing rules in Canada. Now, the move is having an impact on Telus’ Stream+ bundle. The company said it’s increasing the cost of its Stream+ bundle by $3 for some. The bundle offers customers access to a variety of streaming platforms, including Netflix.
The telecom company is also increasing the cost of its Easy Roam plans come March 8th. U.S. roaming will see a $2/day increase, and international roaming will increase by $1/day. Roaming prices will also increase for its flanker brand Koodo.
Rogers says its wholesale arrangments with Vidéotron aren’t preferential. As MobileSyrup reported a while back, TekSavvy accused Rogers of offering Vidéotron wholesale services, among other services, at a discounted rate. The company said the move violated the Telecommunications Act and asked the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to investigate.
The CRTC has ordered Rogers to disclose more information regarding its July outage. The request specifically refers to five appendices Rogers marked as confidential when it answered the Commission’s first round of questions.
Xplore is expanding its broadband network by bringing 5G home internet access to rural communities in Manitoba, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland.
The union representing Telus workers will start holding votes on whether or not employees should strike.
Access Communications has made its gigabit internet available to 25 communities across Saskatchewan, including Biggar and Delisle.
Rogers and Microsoft have partnered to preview Microsoft’s Azure Programmable Connectivity to developers.
In what seems to be a never-ending battle between Bell and Vidéotron, the two companies are now feuding over costs related to 911 services.
The Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) has rolled out a new program called Net Good in an effort to address ongoing internet challenges in Canada.
Four projects funded by Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology (SWIFT) have resulted in high-speed internet access for more than 1,000 homes and businesses in Oxford County, Ontario.
The CRTC has approved Tesla Canada’s BITS license request. The approval allows the company to provide various services, including machine-to-machine cellular data service for in-vehicle infotainment access.
Government
The federal government and the Government of Ontario have provided YorkNet with $48 million to fund a high-speed internet project. The funds will benefit nearly 4,000 homes and businesses across 31 communities in Ontario. Bell, Celerity Telecom, K-Net, and Tbaytel have also received project funding.
Deals
Telus customers should check their texts to see if they have a bonus offer waiting for them, as some have received 10GB of extra data at no cost.
Rogers is offering the Galaxy S23 for $0/month when customers trade in eligible Samsung devices. More details are available here.
Koodo and Virgin Plus have bumped their $55/8GB plans to 10GB.
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