NL Short Takes

Vidéotron sued for millions by former staff membersA dozen former managers and staff of Groupe Vidéotron ltée have submitted claims in the Quebec Superior Court, seeking more than $4 million for being dismissed without proper compensation. The individual filings are asking for amounts ranging from $33,288 to $960,309. Vidéotron’s telecom division is currently up for sale. Look scores another reprieve from BCE and TelesystemTroubled broadband carrier Look Communications Inc has reached an agreement with BCE Inc and Telesystem Ltd that will see it stave off bankruptcy for a few more weeks. The two telecom firms will pay Look’s $98 million debt owed to several banks and will become lenders rather than guarantors of Look’s debt. CRTC allows 211 for social service networkIn Decision 2001-475, the CRTC granted the United Way of Canada permission to use 211 as a community services code (NL, June 19/00). The service will begin in Toronto and then roll out to other areas. In other rulings, Telus Québec received partial approval of its contribution requirement and rate in Order 2001-641. In Order 2001-623, the commission approved the primary interexchange carrier/customer account record exchange (PIC/CARE) handbook for la Société d’administrations des tarifs d’accès des télécommunicateurs. Vancouver begins 10-digit dialingLast Saturday subscribers in B.C.’s lower mainland started a permissive dialing period, receiving a recorded message if they forgot to dial 10 digits, although calls are still being completed. Complete 10-digit dialing begins in November. Storm causes outages for MTS subscribers in WinnipegManitoba Telecom Services Inc customers in Winnipeg suffered loss of service due to a rain storm last week. A few thousand subscribers in the Fort Garry and Regent Avenue districts were without phones until the telco restored service, most by the next day. Telus offers satellite data sets with Space ImagingTelus Geomatics, a division of the ecom group of the telco, has formed a strategic alliance with Space Imaging Inc of Thornton CO. The deal will provide Telus customers with commercial satellite imagery through its GIS application. The telco’s Quebec subsidiary has sold its interest in SWAP-T, an electronic card company. Group Telecom reports better revenues for Q3GT Group Telecom Inc announced a 20% boost in its Q3 results, as it brought in $58.4 million. Its EDITDA losses for the same time frame were $20.8 million, down from the $24.8 million reported in the previous quarter. The company says the numbers for data ports, access lines and private lines provisioned all increased. Aliant introduces new business portal on east coastAliant Telecom has launched AliantZinc.ca, a new business portal. The BCE subsidiary will offer news headlines, how-to guides, profiles of industry leaders and an online business consultant. Online ordering of Aliant products and services is also being offered. Cogeco and SNC-Lavalin roll out broadband overseasCogeco Cable Inc has joined forces with SNC-Lavalin International Inc to provide broadband distribution networks globally. The new firm, Cogeco/SNC-Lavalin Broadband International, will offer combined video, telephony and high-speed Internet on wired or wireless grids to customers around the world, except for Canada, the United States and the European Union. Higher costs cause Amtelecom earnings to dip slightly in Q2Increased marketing and support costs to introduce new services hindered the Q2 results of Amtelecom Corp of Aylmer ON. EBITDA was $8.1 million for the first six months of 2001, compared to $8.2 million for the same period last year, while net earnings of 10 cents per share for the half year fell from the 12 cents per share posted in 2000. Sprint Canada inks deal with Copper Mountain NetworksCopper Mountain Networks Inc of Palo Alto CA will provide its DSL concentrators to Sprint Canada as the CLEC rolls out its business Internet service in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal. Sprint acquired the concentrators earlier this year when it bought the assets of Northpoint Canada. Stream gains entry to O& Y buildings across CanadaStream Intelligent Networks Corp has signed a deal with O&Y Enterprise, the property management division of O&Y Properties Inc. Tenants in O&Y buildings across the country will be able to order broadband service from the Toronto network provider. Nortel Networks lights backbone in BritainNortel Networks Corp has lit a terabit-capable optical backbone network for British operator Kingston Communications. Kingston hopes to eventually deploy IP telephony and broadband Internet access on the grid. Information Highway.com signs VoIP deal with MHLInformation Highway.com Inc of Richmond B.C. has signed a deal with Internet appliance telephony firm MHL Communications Inc of Columbia MD. The American company will combine its PhoneBridge product with iHiway’s VoIP network. Qwest suffers from invasion of Code Red wormAmerican telecom giant Qwest is still being plagued by the Code Red computer worm. The malicious code caused disruptions on Qwest’s DSL lines, especially those using older routers. Mediatrix unveils fourth gen IP gatewayMontreal’s Mediatrix Telecom Inc will deploy silicon and software solutions from Broadcom Corp in its IP telephony applications. The first IP telephony gateway has just been released for beta testing. PCNet purchases ISP in British ColumbiaVictoria’s PCNet International Inc has bought IMG Resource Services Inc, an ISP in Penticton B.C. PCNet issued common shares in exchange for the IMG securities. IMG has about 1200 subscribers. ONI Systems opens operations in MontrealONI Systems Corp of San Jose CA has opened a lightwave design centre in Montreal. The optical systems developer will begin operations with 50 workers in Quebec and hopes to double that within two years. The centre will conduct R&D and develop manufacturing test solutions for ONI products. Bell comes to the aid of duffers everywhereAs title sponsor of the Canadian Open golf tournament, Bell Canada is adding to the services provided to spectators. They will be able to receive video email of their participation at promotional events connected with the Open, as well as regular updates at the www.bell.ca/cdnopen web site. Bell is offering a converged package involving Internet, wireless and satellite broadcasts. Skiers don’t go downhill as quickly as telecom stocksTelesystem International Wireless Inc CEO Charles Sirois has joined up with Peter and Bob Sudermann, the owners of the Camp Fortune ski resort near Ottawa, in a bid for eight other ski lodges. The partners are pledging $110 million to buy the assets of Resorts of the Canadian Rockies, which runs ski resorts from B.C. to Quebec. You’d think she’d have seen this one comingAccess Resources Services Inc of Fort Lauderdale FL has been fined US$75,000 for violating Missouri’s no-call law, the Associated Press reports. The firm is best known for its late-night TV advertisements promoting the psychic hot line run by Miss Cleo.

NL Short Takes

News | August 13, 2001

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