Canada’s largest independent telecom company is raising the alarm over the interim decision on internet services from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
On Monday, the regulator ordered Bell and Telus, the incumbent phone providers in Ontario and Québec, to allow smaller players in these two provinces access to their fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) networks.
TekSavvy is one of the internet service providers (ISPs) that will be able to access the fibre networks. While the ISP notes the CRTC’s decision offers “prospect” for competitive fibre options, the ruling is “flawed.”
Of particular issue are the wholesale internet rates the incumbents can charge smaller competitors, which TekSavvy says are higher than the retail prices from both national carriers.
“The wholesale rate is just one of several cost inputs that determine competitor pricing,” the company said in a press release, further stating the rates won’t lead to effective competition.
“As it stands, consumers will not benefit from meaningful price relief, despite the large telcos’ decade-long monopoly and Canada’s ongoing cost-of-living crisis,” Andy Kaplan-Myrth, TekSavvy’s vice president of regulatory and carrier affairs, said.
The company’s second issue is the decision’s focus on Ontario and Québec.
“Consumers in other regions are no less deserving of price relief and competitive choices than consumers in Ontario and Québec,” Peter Nowak, TekSavvy’s vice president of insight and engagement, said.
The decision singles competition in these two provinces out, noting ISPs served 47 percent fewer customers at the end of 2022 compared to two years prior. The order is part of a larger review of wholesale internet pricing the commission announced in March.
Over the last couple of years, Telus took over ISPs Start.ca and Altima, Bell acquired Ebox and Distributel, and Cogeco acquired Oxio.
Most recently, Toronto-based ISP Comwave told its customers Wednesday that Rogers is acquiring the company.
TekSavvy, which was also looking for a seller earlier this year, says it’s “not currently for sale.”
Image credit: TekSavvy
