OTTAWA – Did the industry have this decision pegged or what?
Mere minutes after the CRTC’s voice over IP decision was put out, the Canadian Cable Telecommunications Association issued a press release declaring itself pleased by the decision, while Bell Canada wired one out which blasted the decision, saying it will appeal immediately, just like BCE CEO Michael Sabia said here last week.
“I think we’re very happy,” CCTA president Michael Hennessy told www.cartt.ca in Ottawa today upon the decision’s public release. “It’s pretty much what we expected and for the telephone companies, they’re allowed into the market, they’re allowed to file different tariffs. (The CRTC) has a streamlined process so the only thing the Commission is saying is… they’re going to limit anti-competitive behaviour.”
“We’re happy. I think this is a good decision for consumers. Maybe this time around we’re actually going to see competition,” added Hennessy.
Telus senior vice-president of government relations Janet Yale – and Hennessy’s predecessor at the CCTA had a different take.
“We’re extremely disappointed with today’s decision,” she said. “It’s the wrong decision at the wrong time for consumers because it fails to unleash the power of the Internet to the benefit of residential customers… we are the only players in the residential market who are being held back and we just don’t get why there should be a regulated head start for all of the competitors in this marketplace.”
The decision, when measured against Shaw Cable’s launch of VOIP in Calgary and Edmonton versus Telus, “is a huge barrier,” added Yale. “We’re going to have to consider our options very carefully and we will definitely be appealing the decision to the Federal cabinet.”
"The stakes are high for Canadian consumers and businesses in terms of investment in innovation, consumer choice, competition and productivity," added Lawson Hunter, executive vice-president and chief corporate officer, BCE and Bell Canada. "IP is a disruptive technology that is changing the telecom industry and the way it enables the Canadian economy. The Commission has misunderstood this new competitive paradigm in what may turn out to be an historic mistake with significant consequences."
However, not all of the traditional telcos were angry.
“We’re extremely pleased with the decision,” Chris Pierce, executive vice-president government and regulatory affairs for Manitoba Telecom Services.
While MTS is the Manitoba incumbent, it is also a national competitor in the VOIP space with its Allstream division and wanted as much as Canadian MSOs for the decision to go the way it did. For example, MTS/Allstream is helping Mountain Cablevision in Hamilton with its voice over IP product, which is already in the marketplace.
“(The Commission) didn’t accept, really, the misinformation and the specious stuff being put out by Bell Canada, most notably, that it’s somehow an Internet application,” he added.
– Greg O’Brien
