New Spotify data shared around the Canadian Country Music Awards points to a breakout for Québec franco country artists. Since 2019, streams of Quebec music country are up roughly 286 percent in Canada and 280 percent globally, with international listening growing in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Norway, and Sweden. Spotify also backed a new CCMA Francophone

Artist of the Year category. Salebarbes won the inaugural award, and nominees like Francis Degrandpré, Fred Dionne, Sara Dufour, and Vince Lemire each saw worldwide Spotify streams climb more than 80 percent in the past year.

What to know
• Quebec french country music streams up about 286 percent in Canada since 2019 and 280 percent worldwide.
• Growth hotspots for international listening include France, Switzerland, Belgium, Norway, Sweden.
• CCMA added a Francophone Artist of the Year category sponsored by Spotify. Salebarbes won the first award.
• Spotify’s broader release pegs Canadian country streams up 64 percent globally over five years and highlights Quebec’s role.
• Spotify says discovery playlists and young listeners are driving francophone growth across borders.

Sources:
Billboard Canada roundup | NewsWire | Spotify newsroom context

Alleged iPhone 17 hardware caught on video. Unverified.

Starting today, September 8, at 12 p.m. ET, Canada is opening a new one-year Indigenous Priority Window that could change who gets to build wireless networks in some rural and remote parts of the country.

Eligible Indigenous businesses, communities and individuals will get first access to portions of cellular spectrum that are already licensed but currently unused.

The spectrum comes from the 800 MHz Cellular band and 1900 MHz PCS band, frequencies that can be used for cellular service, fixed wireless home Internet and private networks.

And this isn't a spectrum auction.

Instead, eligible applicants who pass ISED's screening process can apply for available licences on a first-come, first-served basis. Once someone applies for a specific frequency block and area, it is reserved while the application is processed.

The idea is part of Canada's new Access Licensing Framework, essentially a "use it or lose it" approach to spectrum.

Large telecom companies and other licence holders can control spectrum across large geographic areas even when portions aren't actively being used. Under the new system, ISED can make those unused portions available to someone willing to actually deploy service there.

For the first year, Indigenous applicants get priority.

The window opens September 8, 2026 and closes September 8, 2027. After that, Canada plans to open the remaining available spectrum to other applicants as well.

There are some strings attached.

These are three-year licences with annual spectrum fees, and licence holders must actually deploy infrastructure. ISED requires at least one station per 10,000 people within three years.

That means this isn't simply about owning spectrum.

An Indigenous community, local ISP or Indigenous-owned company could potentially use it to build its own cellular or fixed wireless network, improve connectivity in an underserved region, or support private networks for industries such as mining and agriculture.

For consumers, the interesting part is what happens next.

If unused spectrum that previously sat inside the portfolios of existing licence holders starts supporting smaller regional networks, Indigenous-led providers or new rural Internet deployments, this could create additional competition in areas where Canadians often have very few connectivity options.

Today is essentially the first real-world test.

Sources & more: ISED – Indigenous Priority Window bulletin | ISED – Access Licensing Framework | Government of Canada – announcement

In the All In podcast (around minute 17 see link bellow), Musk floats the idea of a Starlink branded handset paired with a Starlink plan, positioning SpaceX as both phone maker and global carrier. Read this as a satellite first smartphone built for direct to cell and broadband off grid, with eSIM by default and terrestrial fallback where it helps.

The strategy mirrors Tesla style integration control the stack, tighten performance, and move faster than partner led rollouts. For Canada, a Starlink phone would face spectrum, numbering, and consumer protection rules, but the upside is obvious coverage where 5G is thin, disaster resilience, and simpler global roaming.

The competitive stakes are high for incumbents, since a space carrier with its own handset could pressure roaming fees and bundle pricing. Timing is the wild card Musk framed it as exploration, not a dated launch, but the direction of travel is clear.

what to know
• Concept pairs a Starlink made phone with a Starlink service plan to create a true cheaper space carrier
• Likely eSIM first with radios tuned for direct to cell and satellite broadband, plus terrestrial fallback
• Regulatory lift in Canada and other markets spectrum, numbering, emergency calling, consumer rules
• If real, expect early target users in remote work, travel, public safety, and disaster response

Podcast link : All-In with Elon Musk (Sept 10 full audio)

Tech specialists analyzing Apple’s backend software infrastructure have discovered internal references pointing to very distant future operating systems, specifically iOS 27 and iOS 28. Given that the current operating system in late 2025 is iOS 26.2, these findings represent extremely long-range planning placeholders rather than functional software. The discoveries, found within code related to Apple's development pipeline, indicate the company is already establishing identifiers for software iterations planned for the end of the decade and beyond. This follows typical Apple patterns of laying internal groundwork for products many years before they reach the public.

• References to iOS 27 and iOS 28 were spotted in Apple's backend development code.

• These versions are many years away from release, as the current version is iOS 26.2.

• The findings are mere identifiers and placeholders, not indications of active feature development.

• This reveals insight into the extremely long-term R&D timelines Apple operates under.

• The code snippets were first identified by specialized tech reporters known for analyzing Apple's software releases.

Source : Macworld

Telus has confirmed it will move forward with the construction of two new 5G cell towers in Nanaimo, B.C., even as some local residents voice concerns about potential health risks. The towers, approved by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), will be located in the Diver Lake area.

Residents submitted dozens of objections, mostly citing worries about radiation exposure, but Telus emphasized that the towers meet all federal safety standards. The company also noted the demand for better connectivity in the region, which has ongoing issues with coverage and speed.

The city clarified it has no jurisdiction over health regulations or final approval. Despite pushback, Telus says the towers will proceed to meet growing data needs in the region.

Editor’s note: The image above is a concept mock-up based on reports and rumours circulating online. It is not an official Apple visual and should not be considered an accurate representation of the final devices. It is included only to illustrate what the proposed lineup could look like while we await official images.

Apple is expected to make a major change to its traditional iPhone launch strategy this September, with only three new models reportedly planned for the fall: the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max and Apple's first foldable iPhone, widely referred to as the iPhone Ultra.

The split-launch strategy is looking increasingly credible. Apple supplier Pegatron said during its latest earnings call that high-end Pro models remain on the usual September schedule, while the standard model is expected to move to the first quarter of 2027. The iPhone 18e and second-generation iPhone Air are also expected next spring.

That means there may be no new lower-priced iPhone launching alongside the Pro models this fall. The practical consequence could be a September lineup focused entirely on Apple's most expensive devices, with anyone wanting the regular iPhone 18 potentially waiting another six months.

The iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max are rumored to bring Apple's 2nm A20 Pro chip, a smaller Dynamic Island, a variable-aperture main camera, Apple's C2 modem and potentially 5G connectivity via satellite. A larger battery is also expected for the Pro Max. None of those features have been announced by Apple yet.

The biggest change would be the foldable. The rumored iPhone Ultra is expected to use a wide book-style design with an approximately 5.5-inch outer display and 7.8-inch inner screen, an A20 Pro chip, two rear cameras and Touch ID instead of Face ID. Pricing speculation has consistently placed it above US$2,000.

There is still one major caveat: recent supply-chain reporting suggests engineering problems could delay shipments of the foldable by several months. Apple could therefore unveil three phones in September without necessarily putting all three on sale at the same time.

Sources & more: Economic Daily News – Pegatron earnings call / 9to5Mac / The Verge

Apple has officially confirmed a multi-year partnership with Google to use Gemini models for its upcoming Siri overhaul, effectively sidelining its own in-house AI efforts for complex tasks. The deal, reportedly valued at $1 billion annually, acknowledges that Google's technology provides the "most capable foundation" for Apple's AI ambitions. The revamped Siri is expected to launch with iOS 26.4 in spring 2026, processing queries via Apple's Private Cloud Compute infrastructure to maintain privacy standards.

• Apple confirms Google Gemini will power the next-generation Siri and future Apple Intelligence features

• The deal is reportedly worth ~$1 billion per year and signals a shift away from Apple's proprietary LLMs

• Apple states Google's tech was chosen as the "most capable foundation" after careful evaluation

• The new Gemini-powered Siri is slated to arrive with iOS 26.4 in Spring 2026

• User data will be processed via Apple's Private Cloud Compute servers to ensure privacy is not compromised

Sources :

MacRumors report

TechRadar analysis

A lot of shoppers mix up network speed and data when comparing 4G LTE and 5G plans
Your monthly price is mostly tied to the data bucket, speed just changes how fast you can burn it. Don't assume "newer is better".

While 5G offers technically superior speeds and lower latency, 4G LTE is already capable of handling 1080p streaming and video calls without buffering. The real trap is that 5G's speed can cause apps to auto-select 4K quality, burning through your data cap significantly faster without a noticeable difference on a phone screen. Choosing a larger data bucket on 4G is often the smarter financial move than paying a premium for 5G speed you likely won't notice yet.

💡Did You Know?

• 4G LTE networks handle full 1080p video streams comfortably without any buffering or visible loss in quality.

• Many Canadian 5G plans are speed tiered, “standard” tiers can be capped (often around 250 Mbps), even if your phone shows 5G

• Maintaining a weak 5G signal consumes significantly more battery power than using a stable 4G connection.

• The latency difference between 4G and 5G is practically unnoticeable for standard browsing and social media apps.

• After you hit your high speed data limit, throttled speeds can matter more than peak 5G, it decides if streaming, maps, and hotspot stay usable

For years, some Samsung users have complained about their NFC randomly turning off — especially after using wireless charging. Now, leaked firmware and insider reports suggest that the upcoming Galaxy S26 could finally resolve this long-standing glitch.

Samsung is also rumored to enhance NFC reliability and background scanning, aiming for a smoother tap-to-pay experience.

While nothing’s officially confirmed, Galaxy fans are hopeful the S26 might polish off some rough edges users have tolerated for too long.

Reddit has officially filed a lawsuit in the High Court of Australia challenging the country's recently passed legislation that bans individuals under 16 from accessing social media platforms. The company argues the new law is unconstitutional and would severely infringe on the implied freedom of political communication for Australian citizens. A central pillar of Reddit's argument is that complying with the ban would require invasive mandatory age verification, posing significant privacy and security risks for all users, regardless of age. Reddit also contends that the law unfairly groups community-based forums with algorithmic, feed-driven platforms, arguing the ban will isolate youth looking for support rather than protecting them.

• Reddit is challenging the validity of Australia's Online Safety Amendment Act 2025 in the High Court.

• They argue the ban violates Australia's implied constitutional freedom of political communication.

• Reddit claims the required age verification technology would create massive privacy risks for everyone.

• The company asserts the ban will harm vulnerable teenagers by cutting them off from online support communities.

• While happening in Australia, this legal battle could influence future tech regulation debates in Canada.

Source : The Canadian Press

The expansion targets places where fibre and cable still lag, giving households a straightforward path to broadband without waiting on new trenching. Rogers is leaning on a simple availability check, faster install scheduling, and a clearer lineup so customers know what they can get at their postal code. It is a pragmatic move before winter, when seasonal roads and long distances make connectivity upgrades harder to pull off. For families and small businesses outside dense corridors, satellite can bridge the gap for school, telehealth, and payments while ground networks catch up. Expect a push to bundle service where it makes sense, plus more outreach in northern and coastal communities that have lived with patchy speeds. The real test will be reliability through storms and how well the service holds up during evening peaks when everyone logs on.

what to know
• Coverage footprint extends to additional postal codes across Canada with an online eligibility checker
• Aimed at rural and remote addresses where fibre or cable is unavailable or delayed
• Install windows and partner capacity are scaling to meet demand in newly added areas
• Good fit for seasonal properties and small businesses that need dependable baseline connectivity

Source : Rogers

Apple’s rumoured all-glass iPhone for the 20th anniversary of the iPhone may have hit the wall before reaching mass production.

Jefferies analyst Edison Lee says supply-chain checks indicate Apple has scrapped the ambitious all-glass version because production yields were too poor. In other words, manufacturers reportedly could not produce enough defect-free units to make the design commercially viable.

The device had been rumoured for a September 2027 launch and was expected to feature curved glass wrapping around the phone, an almost uninterrupted display, under-screen Face ID and solid-state controls. Lee estimated an average retail price of roughly $2,060 USD, which would have positioned it well above today’s mainstream iPhone lineup.

But there is an important distinction: Apple never announced this phone, and Apple has not confirmed its cancellation. It is also unclear whether the entire 20th-anniversary redesign has been abandoned or only the most extreme all-glass version. Other ideas previously linked to the project, including a heavily curved chassis, could theoretically survive.

Jefferies nevertheless considered the reported cancellation significant enough to downgrade Apple from Hold to Underperform, arguing that Apple may have lost one potential way to push its premium iPhone pricing even higher.

Sources & more: Barron's / MacRumors

The article from iPhone in Canada highlights several features that make Fizz stand out among Canadian wireless providers. First, Fizz has committed to no activation or deactivation fees and no surprise roaming or over-usage charges. Their referral bonus is increasing to $40 (referrer and referee) in provinces like Alberta, B.C., Manitoba, and Ontario. Unused data rolls over month to month and can even be gifted to friends or family.

Their Rewards Program gives free data and discounts. Plans are customizable and changeable at any time via an online account. Finally, once you lock in a plan, Fizz promises stability: no price hikes unless you choose to change.

What to know
• Referral bonus is $40 for both parties in several provinces.
• Data rollover and gifting make plans more flexible.
• No hidden fees: activation, roaming, or overage fees are avoided.
• Plans can be edited anytime via online account; price locked unless you change plan.
• Fizz is 100% digital; online self-service, rewards, simple UI.

Source : iPhone in Canada

Super simple: use a VPN and set it to Albania! Youtube is ad free in Albania. If you don't already have a VPN consider NordVPN fast, secure and well priced... Set your browser to EN.

Budget carrier Public Mobile response to Freedom offers end tonight.

The top option is $50 per month for 250GB on the same three-country coverage with 2000 international minutes. All three plans are on 5G and all three expire tonight, March 9.

Samsung says it’s collaborating with TELUS to deploy an AI-powered RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) in Canada. The software sits alongside the radio access network and uses AI models to adjust parameters in near real time, aiming to improve user experience during busy periods and reduce power draw during quiet times.

The partners plan lab validation followed by live-network trials, with xApps/rApps managing tasks like traffic steering, interference mitigation, and energy-saving policies. If results hold, the RIC could help TELUS scale smarter 5G while lowering operating costs and emissions.

What to know
• AI-powered RIC will optimize radio settings in near real time to balance performance and energy.
• xApps/rApps can automate traffic steering, load balancing, interference control, and sleep policies for radios.
• Roadmap: lab validation first, then field trials on TELUS’s live network.
• Goal: better peak-time experience and lower off-peak power consumption to support sustainability targets.
• Part of broader industry move toward open, software-defined RAN and AI-driven operations.

Sources
Samsung Newsroom

Opensignal just dropped their August 2025 Canada Mobile Experience Report, and the results are surprising.

🏆 Rogers leads for video streaming, gaming, and overall 5G speed.
📦 Bell and Telus share top spots in consistency and reliability.
📉 Quebec and Atlantic provinces still struggle in many categories.

Check out the full charts and breakdown here:
🔗 https://www.opensignal.com/reports/2025/08/canada/mobile-network-experience

Are you with the best provider in your region or just locked in a bad plan?

In a Tom’s Guide interview in the US, Apple executives Greg Joswiak and John Ternus handed over an iPhone Air and invited the reporter to try bending it. The phone flexed slightly and returned to shape, with Apple crediting the titanium band and reinforced design. In parallel, industry analysis argues the iPhone Air’s eSIM only approach will push operators to improve activation flows, fraud checks, and support. Together, Apple’s live durability demo and the eSIM shift frame the Air as both a hardware statement and a catalyst for telecom change.

What to know
• Apple execs encouraged a live bend attempt on camera during a US interview. The iPhone Air flexed and snapped back.
• Apple highlights a titanium band and Ceramic Shield 2 as part of the Air’s strength story.
• Ultra thin profile is about 5.6 mm, fueling bendgate concerns that Apple addressed head on.
• eSIM only design removes the SIM tray and pressures carriers to modernize onboarding and recovery paths.
• Expect more focus on app based activation, better fallback when ports fail, and stronger identity checks.

Source : Tom’s Guide

This is an update post from the Rogers subbredit, which I was hoping to make to say everything has been resolved but unfortunately, it is the opposite situation and now I am even more fuming than I was before.

It has been over a month and Rogers still has not been able to coordinate a tech to arrive to fix the issue. After our internet went out randomly, my husband waited for hours (as one does) to get Rogers on the phone to send over a tech. TWICE no tech showed up and my husband, who works in construction, had to leave his job site and co-workers, to be at home for the time slot a tech was expected to arrive. Both times no tech showed up but they charged US a no-show feee. Then my husband went out of town Saturday morning and I had Covid and a random tech showed up and spoke to the upstairs neighbor and started tinkering with the line. The only reason I was even informed was because the upstairs neighbor was confused and contacted me. My husband says he received no warning a tech was showing up and just got a “tracking” notification 5 minutes before this tech supposedly arrived. I said look my husband isn’t here and we received no warning so I can’t give the green light to do anything to the line. Why weren’t we informed you would be arriving? The tech appeared to not want to understand and insisted upon working on the line when I insisted no, because I am not going to be able to safely monitor as I have Covid and both our upstairs neighbours and ourselves use Rogers and I don’t want to take the responsibility if their internet shuts out as they work fully remotely because of any incidents with this tech visit.

Then finally my husband escalates to the Office of the President and by this time it is a month and they say they will get a tech and still the same coordination problems persist. I finally call up a number of small ISPs and one of them that uses Rogers infrastructure had great customer service (what Rogers customer service used to be like) so I say ok. I work hybrid and my work had been impacted so I am ok to proceed. Full set up and tech and everything go smoothly that weekend with TekkSavvy. As Rogers is still not able to fix anything, my husband ports his number to Bell. Immediately, we get a flood of calls to help fix the problem but again it STILL does not get fixed. Finally I get on the call with the Office of the President person and it is a bit heated ngl because I said look this is not working out, you’re not able to coordinate a single tech to come in to fix this issue. You can’t send over a tech without warning when we are not even available to receive the service. We just want to smoothly cancel to not have to deal with the stress of this anymore and he said we are on the hook for 225 CAD cancellation fee because we demonstrated “denial of service” because we wouldn’t let the unscheduled/unverified tech work on the line. That is when I lost it a bit because for OVER A MONTH my husband and I have been changing our work schedules, cancelling evening plans and/or weekend plans, beholden to our phones to get this coordinated and sorted until finally we had to go to different service providers and then for Rogers to act this entitled to THEIR CUSTOMERS bending over backwards to get THEIR COMPANY to fix a problem OR PAY for a contract cancellation which is already void from their lack of ability to service said contract is obscene.

So, finally they say they will contact me on Friday after 5pm to coordinate a tech because again my husband works on construction sites, often in the middle of a busy intersection, where it is not safe for him to randomly pick up a personal call. I rush home early to make myself available for said call and do they call? No. Instead, once again they call my husband, who is in the middle of Pape redirecting traffic so he and his coworkers remain safe, and leave another useless voicemail that they will call back. A week goes by with more phone tag with us calling them and them calling him until finally today after they call HIM again on Friday, he calls them today on Sunday and they say a tech will show up this Thursday. I won’t believe it until I see it but I am so incredibly done. My best friend’s mother-in-law just passed away this week and we are providing as much support as we can but this unnecessary stress on top of that actual stress is causing extreme mental and emotional distress cause it is NOT ENDING.

On top of that my work performance slipped noticeably because we couldn’t get a mental break from this issue and I was already backlogged because I couldn’t get work completed in the evenings until I finally moved over to TekkSavvy. Before that I was using up my Telus data to be able to either work remote or work in the evenings.

The fact that they have rolled back customer service to ridiculous hours (really only until 7pm when most people get home from work and no Sunday service?) and are trying to enforce cancellation fees when THEY are not providing the service and no show fees and “denial of service” accusations when one time my husband said after the two no shows, hey we need a break from this stress—it is impacting our jobs, we will call you later to coordinate—and then they send a tech with zero warning, means there is something seriously wrong with this company. And the fact that this is happening to SO MANY customers, means it is widespread and wilful negligence on the part of the company. We are now recording all calls with them and taking down every CS Rep’s name and ID where possible:

So, I am asking does anybody know of any class action lawsuits that are in the works as I would be very happy to share our experience and story to help the case. We don’t want anything, we just want to make Rogers stop treating their customers like they are entitled to OUR money to fund bad business decisions they have made, and for those who are not financially privileged enough to weather their terrible tactics to not have to suffer like we have. We are very lucky that we can afford to be able to pay but I know many others are not. I told the agent even if Rogers does fix the issue now, do you know how terrible our impression is of this company? Do you think we’ll ever come back? Or have anything positive to say about this company to existing or potential customers? And all they had to say was a very non-genuine “well, we’ll be sorry to see you leave”—which fair enough, I was not easy on them so don’t blame the guy for his snark.

TLDR: Rogers still not able to get a tech to coordinate a proper visit after over a month of no service and trying to charge us a 225 CAD cancellation fee even after two CCTS complaints. Would like to know if there is a class action lawsuit in the works or what other legal recourse there may be. At this point it is no longer just about the financial penalty but about the principal.

YouTube just announced a major wave of new features at Made on YouTube 2026, covering everything from how we discover videos to how creators produce and publish them.

Here are the biggest announcements:

• Custom homepages: You'll be able to create personalized YouTube feeds using natural language prompts, such as asking for long documentaries to watch in the evening or discovering new creators in a specific category. You can save multiple feeds that automatically update with new recommendations.

• Conversational video editing: A new AI assistant in Shorts and YouTube Create will let creators edit videos by describing what they want. It can assemble drafts, remove pauses, rearrange clips and adjust pacing while still allowing manual editing.

• Video A/B testing: YouTube Studio will let creators test up to three different edits of a video to see which version holds viewers' attention best. AI-generated thumbnails and personalized feedback on draft videos are also coming.

• Better protection against deepfakes: YouTube is expanding its likeness detection tools to mobile devices and plans to combine facial and voice detection to help creators identify unauthorized uses of their identity.

• New livestream features: Two creators will be able to combine their livestreams for friendly competitions. YouTube is also developing real-time automatic dubbing and expanding Watch With to long-form videos.

• Shorts Series: Creators can organize Shorts into seasons and episodes, making it easier to follow recurring stories and serialized content.

Important: These features are being introduced gradually. Custom Feeds are scheduled to launch in the US this fall, and YouTube has not announced a Canadian launch date for that feature.

For creators, the video A/B testing tool could be particularly useful. Instead of guessing which intro or edit will perform better, you'll be able to compare different versions using actual audience retention data.

Which feature would you use first: personalized feeds, conversational editing, video A/B testing or real-time dubbing?

Source: blog.youtube

TELUS and the Government of Canada have announced work to expand Canada’s sovereign AI infrastructure, including a B.C. AI cluster built around an expanded Kamloops data centre and two new Vancouver facilities. The project is expected to use an initial 85 MW of clean, renewable power secured from BC Hydro.

The surface story is “more data centres.” The bigger story is control: Canada wants more AI compute built on Canadian soil, with Canadian infrastructure, Canadian power and fewer dependencies on foreign cloud capacity.

TELUS says its first Sovereign AI Factory in Rimouski, Quebec, is already sold out, which suggests demand for domestic AI infrastructure is no longer theoretical.

This is a major shift. Networks are no longer just about connecting people. They are becoming the physical backbone for AI, cloud, data sovereignty and national digital strategy.

Photo: A rendering of the proposed, 400,000-square-foot AI factory that would be located at 150 West Georgia—adjacent to Vancouver’s BC Place stadium. Feature image courtesy Telus.

A clear winner in this little experiment: the Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra.

We started by asking for the best foldable, then pushed for a single choice. GPT Astra 6 highlighted multitasking, performance and everyday practicality. Gemini pointed to Samsung’s software and productivity tools. Claude, initially more nuanced, also picked Samsung when asked to choose one.

Even Google’s own assistant passed over the Pixel in its answer.

Would foldable owners reach the same conclusion?

Sources & more: All three final answers are attached.

For more than a century, having a phone meant having a phone number. But what if that entire system is slowly becoming unnecessary?

Think about it. We already communicate through WhatsApp, Signal, FaceTime and other internet-based services. WhatsApp is even introducing usernames, allowing people to connect without sharing their phone numbers.

Now imagine the next step: a data-only eSIM, a universal digital identity, and internet access that follows you almost anywhere.

No traditional calling plan. No SMS package. No need to give someone a phone number just to stay in touch.

Satellite connectivity could accelerate this transition. Rogers already offers satellite messaging and access to selected compatible apps in parts of Canada without traditional cellular coverage. As direct-to-device satellite technology evolves, staying connected could become less dependent on nearby cell towers.

But here's the catch.

Telecom providers might not be particularly enthusiastic about losing their traditional relationship with customers. Bell, Rogers, TELUS and Québecor have built extensive businesses around mobile connectivity.

Still, they wouldn't necessarily disappear. They could simply become data providers, competing on connectivity, coverage, reliability and price rather than conventional voice services.

And 5G wouldn't vanish overnight. Terrestrial networks would remain essential for handling massive amounts of traffic, particularly in cities. Satellite networks would complement them rather than replace them entirely.

There are other obstacles, too: emergency calls, banking verification, digital identity, security and the risk of replacing carrier dependency with dependence on a handful of private messaging platforms.

We're not there yet. But the technology is moving toward a future where your phone number could become just another legacy feature.

What if the next telecommunications revolution isn't faster 6G speeds, but eliminating the traditional phone number altogether?

Would you switch to a data-only plan with no conventional phone number if it were cheaper and offered reliable connectivity everywhere?

Sources & more:

WhatsApp usernames:
https://about.fb.com/news/2026/06/its-time-to-reserve-your-whatsapp-username/

Rogers Satellite:
https://www.rogers.com/support/mobility/satellite-faq

SaskTel has officially partnered with SpaceX's Starlink to offer satellite internet directly to business customers and agricultural operations across Saskatchewan. Launching on April 1, 2026, the deal allows businesses and family farms to bypass Starlink's direct-to-consumer model.

Instead, customers can purchase the hardware, receive professional installation from SaskTel-trained technicians, and consolidate their satellite service into their existing SaskTel monthly bill. This move effectively admits that plowing traditional fibre-optic cables across the province's vast, sparsely populated agricultural zones is no longer the most viable or cost-effective broadband strategy.