Hasta La Gadget!

Ever since Telus dropped its plans to acquire Mobilicity, there have been rumors of other would-be suitors joining the fray. They’re not rumors anymore — Mobilicity has confirmed that it’s in talks with “multiple parties” interested in a takeover. The Canadian carrier isn’t supplying any names, although previous gossip has mentioned Verizon as a possible candidate. There’s no guarantee that Mobilicity will find a buyer and avoid an otherwise uncertain future; even so, we wouldn’t count on the provider remaining independent for much longer.

[Image credit: Andrew Currie, Flickr]

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Verizon

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Via: Reuters

Source: Mobilicity

Bell tried to shake up the Canadian media landscape last year by acquiring Astral Media, but it ran into a CRTC-sized roadblock — regulators didn’t want 25 TV stations moving to one provider. After some big concessions, however, Bell has received approval to buy Astral for $3.2 billion. The revised deal gives Bell control of 12 channels that include The Movie Network, HBO Canada’s owner. Bell is offloading some important TV content to move forward, though. Corus gets several recognizable channels that include the Cartoon Network and Teletoon, while big stations like Disney XD and MusiquePlus are on the auction block. Not that Bell will complain too loudly when the buyout closes on July 5th, mind you. The merger still gives it 35.8 percent of the English Canadian TV market and 22.6 percent of its French Canadian equivalent, or enough to immediately eclipse rivals like Rogers and Quebecor.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Via: Variety

Source: Astral Media

Verizon’s curiosity about entering the Canadian market could represent more than just a brief fascination: Reuters claims that Big Red has made a “tentative” bid for Wind Mobile. While the exact price would depend on what Verizon finds in Wind’s accounting books, the estimated value ranges from $600 million to $800 million. Neither party is commenting on the rumor, although Verizon may still be open to alternative deals — it supposedly approached Mobilicity about a potential acquisition. Verizon will likely need permission from both the Canadian government and Vodafone to make any takeover attempt official, but the reported bidding suggests that the company is willing to brave the gauntlet for some 700MHz spectrum and a presence up North.

Filed under: Wireless, Mobile, Verizon

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Via: Phone Arena

Source: Reuters

Competition in the Canadian cellphone space is on shaky ground when Wind Mobile faces an uncertain future. If The Globe and Mail‘s sources are accurate, however, Wind may get a lifeline from an unexpected source: Verizon. The US carrier has reportedly held “exploratory” talks for a possible takeover of Wind that would help the Canadian firm bid in the upcoming 700MHz auction, improving its chances against local giants Bell, Rogers and Telus. Mobilicity is also a potential acquisition target following Telus’ failed buyout, according to the tipsters. None of the involved parties are commenting at this stage, although Verizon couldn’t just walk into the Canadian market. The provider would have to deal with foreign ownership rules as well as the investment limits of its Vodafone partnership — and neither obstacle is likely to disappear overnight.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Verizon

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Via: MobileSyrup

Source: The Globe and Mail

The CRTC is eager to shake the cobwebs from Canada’s TV regulations, many of which got their start before cable arrived, let alone Netflix or YouTube. Accordingly, it’s planning a round of consultations in the fall that will ask both the public and the industry what rules they want to change. Chairman Jean-Pierre Blais expects the discussion to center around the CRTC’s approach to internet content — some of the old licensing restrictions might not apply when it’s easier to both publish and watch online video. The agency isn’t likely to create a utopia full of cord cutting and à la carte TV subscriptions, but its recent attempts at fixing a broken cellular market give us hope that at least a few broadcasting policies could change for the better.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Via: The Globe and Mail

Source: CRTC