Village Gamer

The Competition Bureau announced today that criminal charges have been laid against five individuals and four Montreal-based companies, involved in the Bureau’s IT Data Direct case, a complex fraudulent telemarketing operation that generated over $172 million in gross sales.

The accused individuals, charged with deceptive telemarketing and misleading representations under the Competition Act, and fraud under the Criminal Code of Canada, are Georges Haligua, a Montreal-area businessman responsible for the complex telemarketing operation, and Amalia Di Falco, senior manager and partner. The other individuals charged are Éric Chenail, Carl Rubat-Du-Mérac, and Lawrence Vitas, senior managers of the companies. The four accused companies are Mega Byte Information Inc., Express Transaction Services Inc., International Business Logistics Inc., and Comexco Management Inc. Read the rest of this entry »

Ottawa could better foster business innovation in Canada by creating a competitive tax system across the entire innovation value chain, according to a report released today by the C.D. Howe Institute. In Rewarding Innovation: Improving Federal Tax Support for Business R&D in Canada, author Mark Parsons says Ottawa should focus its efforts on improving the tax treatment of the fruits of innovation – income from intellectual property and production of new goods and services – while maintaining incentives for investment in research and development. Read the rest of this entry »

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has issued updated guidelines on how it will deal with complaints about Internet service providers (ISPs) slowing down certain types of traffic. The CRTC takes all complaints seriously and has established strict timelines to ensure their timely resolution.

Under a 2009 CRTC policy, ISPs are encouraged to expand and upgrade their networks to address increases in traffic. Should other measures be required to manage traffic, ISPs can apply Internet traffic management practices. These practices, whether economic or technical, manage traffic to prevent or respond to network congestion. In either case, an ISP must be transparent about its use of traffic management practices. Read the rest of this entry »

Telefilm Canada, which chairs the pan-Canadian Oscar selection committee, is proud to announce that the feature film Monsieur Lazhar, directed by Philippe Falardeau, has been submitted as Canada’s choice for consideration as a possible nominee in the Best Foreign Language Film category at the 84^thAcademy Awards, to be held in Hollywood on February 26, 2012. Read the rest of this entry »

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has announced a new framework for large integrated companies that will allow them to innovate and respond to new opportunities in a fast-changing environment. The CRTC is also establishing measures to eliminate the potential for these companies to harm their competitors or restrict consumer choice.

“Given the size of the Canadian market, there are benefits to integrating television programming and distribution services under the same corporate umbrella,” said Konrad von Finckenstein, Q.C., Chairman of the CRTC. “At the same time, we felt that some safeguards were needed to prevent anti-competitive behaviour. In particular, Canadians shouldn’t be forced to buy a mobile device from a specific company or subscribe to its Internet service simply to access their favourite television programs.” Read the rest of this entry »

Video games have a reputation for being frivolous time-wasters that prevent young adults from doing better in school or at work. Summer in Smallywood, a series of video games developed by Untold Entertainment and  The Centre for Skills Development & Training, is helping to dispel this negative reputation by leading the way in game-based learning.

Summer in Smallywood is a free-to-play, online Flash game funded by the Government of Canada’s Office of Literacy and Essential Skills. It is designed to help young adults (ages 15 – 30) enhance their ability to succeed at work. Users play the game as employees of “Smallywood,” an amusement park home to the world’s tiniest rides. The retiring owner, Mr. Small E. Wood, is looking for a replacement who can master three Essential Skills. Read the rest of this entry »

In order to address the current inconsistencies or conflicts between the Canada Media Fund (CMF) program Guidelines and the Terms of Trade Agreement that was reached last April by the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) and private broadcasters Astral Television Networks, Bell Media Inc., Rogers Broadcasting Limited, Shaw Media Inc. and Corus Entertainment Inc., the CMF has adopted changes to its Guidelines for all production programs in the Convergent Stream. Read the rest of this entry »

Thanks to new partnerships with the University of Toronto, fourteen businesses in southern Ontario will have an opportunity to bring innovative products to market and increase their productivity and competitiveness, in areas such as information technology, biomedical sciences, life sciences and engineering. Today, the Honourable Peter Van Loan, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, on behalf of the Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, announced the agreements between the University and local small- and medium-sized businesses. Read the rest of this entry »

If you are a Canadian company ready to do business in the United States, don’t miss this fall’s Western Canada Technology Growth Initiative (TGI) hosted by the Trade Commissioner Service (TCS).

There are two ways to participate to TGI:

• Put your skills to the test and apply to become a competitor. If selected, you’ll receive professional coaching and the chance to pitch your technology to a panel of industry experts.
• Not ready for the spotlight? Register as an attendee to take advantage of insightful presentations and on-demand webinars on topics like marketing, protecting intellectual property and influencing financial decision makers. Read the rest of this entry »

Young women in the Moncton area will have the opportunity to learn about careers and educational possibilities in the trades and technology sector thanks to support from the Government of Canada. Mr. Robert Goguen, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Member of Parliament for Moncton–Riverview–Dieppe, made the announcement today on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development. Read the rest of this entry »