[1]As public favour of the CRTC [1] begins heading for an all-time low with growing complaints about its lack of action in regards to Canadian ISPs, the Commission has reaffirmed its support for the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services [2] (CCTS), an agency that works to resolve disagreements between Canadians and their service providers.
“Following an extensive review, we are satisfied that the CCTS is doing a good job of resolving complaints on behalf of consumers and small businesses,” said Leonard Katz, the CRTC’s Vice-Chairman of Telecommunications. “An independent agency like the CCTS is an essential intermediary in a market where competition is growing by the day and the majority of telecommunications services are no longer regulated.”
As part of its review, the Commission found that the CCTS’ governance structure and mandate remain appropriate, and extended the membership requirement for a period of five years. Moreover, to ensure that a greater number of Canadians are able to benefit from the agency’s complaint-resolution services, all telecommunications service providers must become members of the CCTS. The Commission had previously only required companies with annual revenues over $10 million to join the agency.
The Commission has also asked the agency to include more details in its annual report regarding the types of complaints it receives. This information will enable a better assessment of trends, the agency’s complaint-resolution activities and the effectiveness of public awareness activities.
Consumers and small businesses must first attempt to resolve any disagreements related to an unregulated telecommunications service directly with their service provider. If the matter remains unresolved, they may file a complaint with the CCTS.
[3]A group of leading Ontario digital media companies and venture capital investors will head to New York City next week as part of a delegation organized by MaRS Discovery District [3]. As part of the visit, delegate companies will present at the prestigious OnMedia NYC 2011 conference. OnMedia NYC 2011 is a two-and-a-half day executive gathering held on Jan. 31 – Feb. 2, 2011. The conference features some of the most innovative companies, eminent technologists, influential investors and respected tech journalists in the digital media market. The conference is hosted by Tony Perkins, founder and editor of AlwaysOn, and features keynotes from media personalities such as Mark Cuban, billionaire investor and Internet entrepreneur.
Prior to the OnMedia sessions, MaRS will host an investor luncheon on Jan. 31 featuring CEO presentations from the MaRS delegation. Several Canadian investors will attend from firms such as Blackberry Partners Fund, GrowthWorks, iNovia Capital, MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund, Real Ventures, Rho Ventures, Rogers Ventures and Verdexus. Notable investors from the NYC area will also be in attendance. Following the luncheon, the delegation will visit prominent digital media startups in the Union Square area.
“We are bringing a group of companies focused on digital media innovations that add considerable value for customers in key areas such as marketing, branding, advertising, research and public relations,” said MaRS CEO Ilse Treurnicht. “New York City is a key market where innovators, influencers and investors are shaping the digital media sector on a global scale. With our mission focused on building Ontario’s next generation of innovative companies, MaRS is committed to facilitating targeted investor introductions and business development for high-potential clients in these select markets.”
The companies in the MaRS delegation are bringing innovative technologies and business models to market that focus on everything from optimizing organic search; hyper-local advertising for user generated news; next generation live event sports gaming; advertising supported small business accounting software; and social engagement ranking platforms to measure media influence.
The Ontario companies attending are:
* gShift Labs [4] – search engine optimization
* InGamer Sports [5] – live event social gaming
* OpenFile [6] – user-generated online newspaper
* PostRank [7] – social engagement and influence ratings
* Viafoura [8] – online user engagement
* Wave Accounting [9] – free accounting application for small businesses
[10]Speaking of business assistance, if you are a BC company you need to check out The BCIT Commercialization Assistance Program [11] (CAP), a fund which provides financial assistance to BC SME’s and entrepreneurs. The fund looks to stimulate innovation by increasing access to business and technology expertise.
The Fund can assist your business with the following:
* Acquire business and professional services required to facilitate the commercialization process (IP, development of business plans and market or technology studies)
* Access to technical assistance and facilities (Product design, prototyping, testing, verification, certification and demonstration)
The Fund offers the following amounts:
* Up to $10,000 assistance for business and professional consulting services
* Up to $50,000 assistance for technical assistance and facilities
The deadline to apply is November 20, 2011. Please see The Fund’s information page [11] for complete information.
[12]D-Box Technologies [12] is continuing its trend to take over the US one theatre at a time, announcing today that the company has signed a third agreement with Premiere Cinemas to equip its Orlando, Florida location with 22 D-BOX MFX Seats.
“During the last few months of 2010, we advanced our market share in the eastern U.S. with new theatre partners and are now continuing along that path with the expansion of our cooperation with Premiere Cinemas and adding the Orlando location,” said President and Chief Executive Officer of D-BOX Technologies, Claude McMaster.
“This will be our third theatre with D-BOX,” said Gary Moore, President of Premiere Cinemas. “Known for providing a state-of-the-art entertainment experience, moviegoers who frequent our Texas theatres have provided an overwhelmingly positive response to D-BOX and we anticipate similar results once the innovative motion technology is unveiled in Orlando this February.”
[13]Mobilicity [13] and Facebook today announced that Mobilicity is offering their customers another way to stay connected with a new Facebook mobile application [14] for Java-powered feature phones. Mobilicity is also sponsoring the launch by enabling customers to download and use the application for at least three months from the time of the launch. The length of the offer is at the discretion of the mobile operator.
This new Facebook application provides a better experience for feature phones than other similar applications and mobile sites. It brings the popular features and user experience already deployed on Facebook mobile applications for smartphones to the world’s most popular feature phones, and is optimized for speed and performance on Mobilicity’s network. It includes several new and unique features that enable people to stay connected through Facebook including:
* Viewing photos from your mobile phone
* Synchronizing your local address book contacts with your Facebook friends
* Facebook login to third party services within the application, such as news, sports, games, and weather
The new Facebook application is optimized to use as little data as possible while providing the great user experience mobile applications offer. The application uses less data than other similar applications or mobile sites, enabling it to be much cheaper for people to use when the trial period ends. The new Facebook application is a collaboration between Facebook and Snaptu, whose platform brings leading web services to millions of people around the world on more than 2,500 different types of mobile devices via the Snaptu app.