The Federal Court has denied Telus’s request to block Quebecor’s Videotron from purchasing set-aside mid-band 5G licenses in the recent 3,500MHz spectrum auction.
According to Federal Court documents obtained by IT World Canada, the court has denied Telus’ motion because the arguments raised were untenable and do not raise a serious issue. It concluded that there’s no basis for Telus’ assertion that Videotron needed to have physical infrastructure in Western Canada to be eligible for the set-aside licenses.
Moreover, the court has determined that Telus has not shown that it will suffer irreparable harm if the stay is granted. According to the order, the result would have been the same if another regional carrier had won the disputed licences.
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Bell and Telus ask Federal Court to block Videotron’s 5G spectrum purchase
In September, Bell and Telus asked the Federal Court to block Videotron’s purchase of the set-aside 5G licences in Manitoba, Alberta, and British Columbia. Videotron says it’s eligible as it provides over-the-top fibre optic internet to business customers through its affiliate company, Fibrenoire.
But Bell and Telus disagreed. They said that Videotron is ineligible as a bidder since it’s not a facility-based telecom provider that deploys its own hardware, thus violating ISED’s wireless spectrum bidding framework.
While the case hasn’t concluded, Videotron welcomed the court’s decision to refuse the stay.
The case now moves on. The merits of arguments from Bell and Telus will be heard in a future court hearing.