WINNIPEG – Xplore Mobile announced today it will be shutting down service as of Aug. 31, 2022, due to regulatory delays.
A letter to customers on the company’s website indicates while it was able to overcome “start up issues of our own making,” competition and the Covid-19 pandemic, it was unable to overcome the “cloud of uncertainty” caused by regulatory delays.
This includes delays around the CRTC’s mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) process, as well as “the high roaming rates that significantly exceed retail prices,” the letter says. (While the CRTC issued a decision on regulating MVNOs last year, it has yet to approve the terms and conditions for the regime filed by Bell, Telus, Rogers and SaskTel.)
“We tried to hold on but the regulatory delays were just too long,” the letter reads.
Noting it “was a difficult decision,” the letter goes on to say the Xplore Mobile team is “proud of being the first in Canada to offer innovative data rollover plans” among other accomplishments.
Today’s announcement does not affect Xplornet Communications, which was acquired by Stonepeak Infrastructure in 2020 in a deal that did not include Xplore Mobile.
Xplore Mobile officially launched in November 2018 after having been created when Xplornet acquired 40 MHz of wireless spectrum in Manitoba from Bell MTS so the Bell/MTS merger could gain approval from the government. As Cartt.ca has previously reported, the deal saw Xplornet gain access to the Bell MTS network for three years.
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Update: Allison Lenehan, president and CEO of Xplornet posted a series of tweets on today’s announcement, which he said were for “truth-seekers” while noting there would be many “self-serving” opinions circulating about the news.
“Like many Canadian businesses in recent years, Xplore Mobile has faced unbelievable challenges, including start up issues, vigorous competition, and a pandemic. And yet, despite the doubters, the amazing team at Xplore Mobile overcame all of them,” Lenehan tweeted, echoing the sentiments of the company’s letter to its customers.
“Thousands upon thousands of Manitobans have entrusted the team for their mobile service; and for others we kept the Big Guys honest,” he said. “To compete with the Big Guys and have a sustainable business in Canadian telecom, you need a level playing field, regulatory certainty – and a little federal encouragement.”
However, not only were the right conditions not in place, but it was also not clear whether they ever would be – “Unfortunately. Xplore Mobile was not designated as the ‘right’ competitor,” said Lenehan, who went on to express gratitude for the local and provincial support Xplore Mobile received and thank Xplore Mobile employees. “You should be very proud of your effort, accomplishments, and impact you had on many lives these past few years. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your service.”
