Tag: Québecor Media

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Québecor partially wins piracy case against companies sharing content in hotels

Montreal, QC, Canada – September 4, 2021: Quebecor headquarters in Montreal, QC, Canada. Quebecor Inc. is a Canadian diversified media and telecommunications company.

Telecommunications company Québecor Media has partially won a summary judgement against two Québec City companies.

A summary judgment is a motion brought on by one party to have the case processed without going to trial.

In this case, Québecor argued Konek and Hill Valley worked together to distribute TVA and TVA Sports channels to hotels without obtaining prior rights.

According to a press release, Québecor first became aware of the activity in early 2020 after it learned some of its clients were asked to do business with the above companies.

But Québecor is only “partially successful” in this case, according to Justice Sébastien Grammond, because Hill Valley is considered a retransmitter since February 3rd, 2021, under section 31 of the Copyright Act. This means that they can show TVA stations but not TVA Sports stations.

“Considering that this is only a summary judgment on technical points and that the suit and counter-suit will not go to court before 2023, we do not wish to comment on this unexpected and hasty communication from Quebecor,” Jean-François Rousseau, COO of Konek, said in an email to MobileSyrup.

The court has ruled Québecor will be awarded costs during the second phase of the ruling. It’s not clear when this will be held.

This is the latest piracy case Québecor has been successful with. Last week, Vidéotron, a subsidiary of Québecor, won a lawsuit against TVAddons, along with several other media giants.

Founder Adam Lackman admitted to sharing copyrighted content on TVAddons, a media library app distributing multiple add-ons.

“Québecor takes piracy very seriously and will continue identifying resellers and taking all necessary legal action to protect the rights of subsidiaries actively engaged in creating and redistributing content for the benefit of its cultural workers,” the company says in a statement.

Image credit: Shutterstock

Source: Québecor Media

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Mobile Syrup

Québecor Media reports fourth quarter revenue increase, details on Vidéotron growth in quarterly report

Montreal, QC, Canada – September 4, 2021: Quebecor headquarters in Montreal, QC, Canada. Quebecor Inc. is a Canadian diversified media and telecommunications company.

Québecor Media says it grew its revenue by $37 million in the fourth quarter of 2021.

A majority of this increase came from the media sector ($26.6 million), and $12.2 million came from telecommunications. Sports and entertainment made up the rest.

These are the extent of the details on the fourth quarter, published in the telecom company’s quarterly report.

Looking at 2021 as a whole, the company’s revenue increased by $236.6 million overall.

The company’s flanker brand, Vidéotron, increased revenue for mobile services and equipment by eight percent or just over $73 million through 120,800 new connections.

Revenue for internet access increased by $7 million through 44,000 new subscriptions. Revenue for wireline equipment increased by just over $52 million.

The report highlights a number of new services and investments Vidéotron made, signalling the company’s growth.

In December 2021, Vidéotron acquired 294 blocks of 3500MHz band. Valued at $830 million, more than half of the investment is going to Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta, and British Columbia.

“With this spectrum and with favourable conditions that would ensure the economic viability of mobile virtual network operators, which are now mandated by the CRTC, Vidéotron would be the independent player best-placed to ensure the emergence of real competition across Canada,” Pierre Karl Péladeau, president and CEO of Québecor, said in a statement.

Not mentioned in the report is a subsidiary brand of Vidéotron called Fibrenoire and its acquisition of a 3.5GHz spectrum license in the summer of 2021.

The validity of the purchase is being discussed in federal court as Telus accused Vidéotron of only creating the brand to acquire the 5G license. Earlier this week, lawyers for Telus argued details on proof of active customers, subscriber count, and its retail distribution network wasn’t shared with Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada.

The report from Québecor also touches on the launch of Vrai, a subscription service that focuses on lifestyle and entertainment content. This service is also facing legal trouble, this time through the CRTC.

BCE has an ongoing complaint the service doesn’t follow the rules laid out by the telecom regulatory body. In response, Québecor says BCE’s arguments are false and the complaint should be dismissed. More details are available here.

Image credit: Shutterstock

Source: Québecor Media

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Mobile Syrup

Québecor Media asks CRTC to dismiss BCE’s complaint against Vidéotron’s Vrai service

Québecor Media says Bell Canada Enterprises (BCE) complaint against Vidéotron’s Vrai service is an inaccurate interpretation of the rules, according to documents filed with the Canadian Radio and television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and shared with MobileSyrup.

Québecor Media is the proprietor of Vidéotron. The document filed with the CRTC is in French.

In its application filed with the CRTC, BCE wants Vidéotron to remove its Vrai service. The feature allows users to watch original French productions and launched in August 2021.

BCE claims the feature violates the CRTC’s hybrid video-on-demand (HVOD) order by offering a flawed internet option that presents the service directly to consumers.

BCE says all Canadians should be able to access the service online, and while that is the case, the company argues Vrai’s internet option is more expensive. It costs Canadians $15 a month to purchase the service online. In comparison, BCE says if Vrai’s accessed through a subscription to Vidéotron’s services, the price tag will lower to $7 a month.

Québecor Media’s response

In its filing, Québecor Media argues the service is accessible through QUB, a platform that hosts all of the company’s content. Consumers don’t have to be subscribers of any of its other services or any other company to access the platform.

Québecor Media also argues Bell’s claim that Bell TV subscribers can’t participate in the Vrai service, stating it failed to mention that anyone can access the service through the QUB platform for free. The company says all consumers receive the same content, whether they access the Vrai platform through Vidéotron or the QUB.

Québecor Media says many customers who don’t subscribe to Vidéotron have already subscribed to the service in its free alternative manner.

In its application, BCE states customers who are viewing Vrai online can only access one stream at a time. But BDU subscribers, who can have access to a large number of programming services, can view up to five streams at a time.

Québecor Media says the differences in streams aren’t because one method of distribution is favoured over the other, but because of limitations surrounding the negotiations of content rights. The company argues Bell customers who subscribe to its streaming service Crave through the Fibe TV app will also only get one session at a time.

BCE says customers accessing Vrai without subscribing to Vidéotron can only do so through the app or website and can’t access the service in other formats. Vidéotron subscribers, in comparison, can access through Apple TV and Android TV, BCE says.

Québecor Media puts this claim in the “false” section, stating QUB works with Chromecast and Airplay. The company also says BCE’s claim that subscribers accessing the service online are redirected to subscriptions for Vidéotron’s services is false. It says customers can access Vrai through the applicable options, and one option isn’t favoured over the other.

Québecor Media is asking the CRTC to dismiss BCE’s application. BCE has until February 15th to reply.

Source: CRTC

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Mobile Syrup

Québecor Media asks CRTC to dismiss BCE’s complaint against Vidéotron’s Vrai service

Québecor Media says Bell Canada Enterprises (BCE) complaint against Vidéotron’s Vrai service is an inaccurate interpretation of the rules, according to documents filed with the Canadian Radio and television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and shared with MobileSyrup.

Québecor Media is the proprietor of Vidéotron. The document filed with the CRTC is in French.

In its application filed with the CRTC, BCE wants Vidéotron to remove its Vrai service. The feature allows users to watch original French productions and launched in August 2021.

BCE claims the feature violates the CRTC’s hybrid video-on-demand (HVOD) order by offering a flawed internet option that presents the service directly to consumers.

BCE says all Canadians should be able to access the service online, and while that is the case, the company argues Vrai’s internet option is more expensive. It costs Canadians $15 a month to purchase the service online. In comparison, BCE says if Vrai’s accessed through a subscription to Vidéotron’s services, the price tag will lower to $7 a month.

Québecor Media’s response

In its filing, Québecor Media argues the service is accessible through QUB, a platform that hosts all of the company’s content. Consumers don’t have to be subscribers of any of its other services or any other company to access the platform.

Québecor Media also argues Bell’s claim that Bell TV subscribers can’t participate in the Vrai service, stating it failed to mention that anyone can access the service through the QUB platform for free. The company says all consumers receive the same content, whether they access the Vrai platform through Vidéotron or the QUB.

Québecor Media says many customers who don’t subscribe to Vidéotron have already subscribed to the service in its free alternative manner.

In its application, BCE states customers who are viewing Vrai online can only access one stream at a time. But BDU subscribers, who can have access to a large number of programming services, can view up to five streams at a time.

Québecor Media says the differences in streams aren’t because one method of distribution is favoured over the other, but because of limitations surrounding the negotiations of content rights. The company argues Bell customers who subscribe to its streaming service Crave through the Fibe TV app will also only get one session at a time.

BCE says customers accessing Vrai without subscribing to Vidéotron can only do so through the app or website and can’t access the service in other formats. Vidéotron subscribers, in comparison, can access through Apple TV and Android TV, BCE says.

Québecor Media puts this claim in the “false” section, stating QUB works with Chromecast and Airplay. The company also says BCE’s claim that subscribers accessing the service online are redirected to subscriptions for Vidéotron’s services is false. It says customers can access Vrai through the applicable options, and one option isn’t favoured over the other.

Québecor Media is asking the CRTC to dismiss BCE’s application. BCE has until February 15th to reply.

Source: CRTC