Canadian Independent ISPs Get Access to Incumbent's Fibre Networks

The CRTC ruled on Wednesday that incumbent last-mile Internet providers such as Bell and Rogers must open up their fibre-to-the-premise (FTTP) networks to independents.

Internet and IPTV providers such as Teksavvy and VMedia appeared at the hearings in Gatineau last fall to plead their case, and it appears that once again the CRTC ruled against the incumbents and in favour of consumers and smaller competitors. Read on for additional information on how this will affect Canadian Internet and TV in the future.

Pick-and-Pay With Cheaper Basic TV Is Coming... Next Year

Last Thursday the CRTC released its much anticipated ruling on the bundling of TV channels and minimum subscription pricing. During the "Let's Talk TV" hearings last fall they heard from all of the stakeholders: ordinary citizens, content producers (TV channels, production studios), broadcast distributors (cable and satellite companies), Internet companies, streaming video companies, the cultural community, and special-interest groups.

Most of those who appeared before the commission were in favour of changes to the status quo, but as you can imagine there were a lot of conflicting opinions on what those changes should be. Read on to see how Thursday's announcement will impact your cable or satellite bill over the next few years.

CRTC "Talk TV" Decision #2 - Good For Cord Cutters?

Last Thursday the CRTC announced more changes as a result of the "Talk TV" hearings held last fall. This time around they addressed Canadian content rules, streaming services, and specialty channels. The full CRTC policy paper is available online as is the text of chairman Blais' speech to the Canadian Club of Ottawa in which he covered some of the highlights.

Last week's ruling was important to cord cutters mainly because it clarified how Canadian streaming services fit into the regulatory regime. Read on for details.

Over-The-Air is here to stay... for now.

The first set of CRTC rulings from the "Let's Talk TV" hearings held in Gatineau QC last September were announced on Thursday, and the consumer comes out the winner in all of them. For cord cutters, the most significant ruling was that local TV stations are not allowed to shut down their over-the-air transmitters without significant consequences.

Canadian Government to Push TV Providers Toward Pick & Pay Pricing

One of the promises in the Canadian government's speech from the throne last Wednesday involved unbundling TV channels to give consumers more say in which channels they pay for. The actual wording was this:

"Our Government believes Canadian families should be able to choose the combination of television channels they want. It will require channels to be unbundled, while protecting Canadian jobs."

The text is understandably short on specifics, but most people take this to mean that the government, through the CRTC, will push TV distributors and channel owners to move to a "pick and pay" system where customers can choose individual channels rather than have bundles where it's impossible to avoid paying for channels they don't want. For the TV-viewing public this is a good move, but don't get too excited... it's going to take some time to get there, and it's extremely unlikely that you'll be able to subscribe to the 10-15 channels you watch and nothing else.

Read on for my thoughts on what has to happen and where I think we'll eventually end up.

Zazeen IPTV Begins Commercial Service

In January I wrote about Zazeen's plans for a TV service that uses your Internet connection to deliver the signal - see Zazeen - shaking up the Canadian TV landscape. Since then they've been busy working to clear technical and business-related hurdles, and after 10 long months, they've finally launched.

The service became commercially available on October 1st for Quebec customers, and October 15th for those in Ontario.

Hulu tops 4 million paid subscribers

Acting Hulu CEO Andy Forssell posted some interesting stats to the Hulu blog earlier today. In the first quarter of 2013, Hulu Plus surpassed 4 million subscribers, and their subscription numbers doubled during 2012.

HDTV for free - your grandfather's TV antenna is still useful!

In an earlier article I promised to go into some detail on what we're doing for TV in our household since we cancelled our satellite subscription last spring. We're currently getting our TV from a combination of sources:

• local Ottawa stations that we receive for free via an antenna
• Netflix
• Hulu Plus

In this article I'll go into some detail on the first item - receiving digital TV signals with an antenna, but first you'll have to endure a rant about the annual price increases that finally motivated us to do something about our satellite bill.

Zazeen - shaking up the Canadian TV landscape

Zazeen finally made their IPTV product available for public signup. Though it's still just in its beta-testing stage and likely will be for several more months, it marks the beginning of a new kind of TV distribution system for Canadians. Zazeen's offering is delivered via your home Internet connection rather than a satellite or closed coax/fibre network feed.

Breaking free of Bell & Rogers

A lot of people are surprised when I tell them how much (actually how little) we pay per month to stay entertained and connected with the rest of the world. They know I'm a gadget freak and a heavy user of my cell phone, TV, and Internet connection, so they expect that I'd be paying a lot more than they are for my service. Here's a rundown of our typical monthly expenses: