Canadian telecoms regulator’s latest ruling spells ‘dark period’ for smaller operators

Two recent decisions by Canada's telecom regulator are freezing out competition in the country's highly concentrated industry, critics argue, making it even harder to bring down prices for mobile and internet service.

For years, Canadian consumers have complained about high cellular bills, which rank among the steepest in the world, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal government has threatened to take action if the providers failed to cut bills by 25 per cent.

On Thursday the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) ruled that it would not significantly lower the rates that small companies must pay to access the high-speed broadband networks of larger rivals, including BCE Inc, Telus Corp and Rogers Communications Inc, known as the Big Three.

That followed a CRTC ruling in April when it asked large telecoms firms to offer wholesale wireless access to so-called Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs), smaller outfits that can then resell the capacity at reduced retail prices and pass on the savings to consumers, but with several stipulations that were seen as wins for big companies.

While the two decisions were intended to foster competition, critics say they will only marginalize the smaller players.