WASHINGTON – Stressing he does not know what the CRTC’s voice over IP decision will be, Bell Canada Enterprises CEO Michael Sabia said today that if it reads the way he thinks it will, the company will immediately appeal it to the Federal Cabinet.
Speaking at a media and telecom conference this morning in Washington, Sabia said he believes the Commission will side against the incumbent telephone companies (ILECs) and maintain certain regulatory restrictions on the likes of Bell Canada and Telus when it comes to voice over Internet telephony.
The CRTC’s VOIP decision is due out sometime next week.
The Commission has been of the opinion that ILECs will have to continue to operate as they have in the past, filing tariffs for approval, for example, when it comes to pricing and other changes, with the Commission. Newcomers will not bear that burden and be able to react in the market more quickly.
The CRTC believes this will quicken the pace of competition in the local telephony market, giving new competitors, such as Canadian cable companies an early leg up. While Shaw Cable, Videotron, and smaller outfits like Mountain Cablevision have already launched VOIP earlier this year, both Rogers Cable and Cogeco Cable have large launches planned in 2005.
While the CRTC took the time to examine its policy, rumblings out of Ottawa are loudly saying the Commission will stay the course and maintain regs on the ILECs, much the same way it kept the regulatory shackles on cable companies when satellite TV launched here.
Characterizing this as “the wrong decision,” Sabia added that if the CRTC decision falls this way, “Canada would be the only country in the world that regulates the Internet, other than Singapore. That’s not something Canadians would say with pride.”
“If the decision comes the way I expect,” he added, “certainly as a matter of principle, we will appeal it to the Federal Cabinet.”
Secondly, he added, the company has been getting ready for this and would comply and file tariffs “in order to be able to compete.”
– Greg O’Brien
