Liberals joined with the Consumer’s Association of Canada today in calling for the federal government and all parties in the House of Commons to support measures that will increase cell phone and internet competition.

“We have a real competition problem in this country that is reflected in the high prices Canadian consumers pay for service,” said Liberal Consumer Affairs Critic Dan McTeague. “We need some real action with concrete proposals to lower prices and improve cell phone and internet service for urban and rural Canadians.”

In 2008, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) found that out of 30 countries, Canada was the 28th most expensive for average-use cell phone packages. The average monthly cell phone bill in Canada is $43.35 (US), compared to the average of $29.42 for OECD countries.

For broadband internet service, Canada was ranked 28th in terms of speed versus cost, with the average Canadian paying $87.32 a month for high-speed internet, compared to the average of $59.10 for OECD countries.

“The numbers speak for themselves,” said Liberal Industry Critic Marc Garneau. “Canada needs a true digital strategy to get better service and more investment in cell and internet infrastructure.”

On cell phones, the MPs are calling for clear guidelines and timely processes to facilitate cell tower-sharing and roaming agreements between new entrants and incumbents.

“New entrants are still having a hard time getting into the market to provide services to Canadians,” said Mr. McTeague. “The federal government should also re-instate the online cell phone calculator to provide greater transparency for Canadians.”

On internet service, Mr. Garneau said Liberals want a clear set of principles and regulations with regards to net neutrality, consistent with what is being proposed in the U.S.

“The recent CRTC decisions do not go far enough to create a truly competitive and open internet environment in Canada,” he said. “All internet networks, including wireless networks, must treat all lawful content, applications and services in a non-discriminatory manner.”

The MPs said the government should also set specific regulations for wholesale internet service provision and it should look at ways of implementing models from other countries, such as the United Kingdom and Australia, that encourage investment in internet infrastructure.

Background

The Liberal Party is calling on the government and all parties to support measures to increase competition and increase investment into cell phone and Internet infrastructure. Greater competition will lead to lower prices and improve services for urban and rural Canadians.

Key stats for Canada:

• In terms of cost versus speed of Internet connections and annual costs of average-use cell phone packages, Canada ranked 28th out of 30 developed countries measured by the OECD.
• For standardized Internet speeds, Canada’s average broadband monthly price was $26.11 in 2008, more than double the OECD average of $12.81.
• For high-speed broadband Internet service, the average monthly bill in Canada was $87.32 a month in 2008, compared to the average of $59.10 for OECD countries.
• The average monthly cell phone bill for OECD countries is $29.42, compared to $43.35 in Canada.
• According to the International Telecommunications Union, Canada’s wireless penetration rank is 124th in the world.

Specifically, the Liberal Party is calling for:

On cell phones
In 2008, the federal government completed a spectrum auction and took over $1 billion from new cell phone entrants to get competition into the system. More than a year later, these new entrants are still having a hard time getting into the market to provide services to Canadians.

• The federal government should set clear guidelines and timely processes to facilitate cell tower-sharing and roaming agreements between new entrants and incumbents; and
• The federal government should re-establish the public cell phone calculator to provide Canadians with greater transparency in cell phone plans.

On Internet
The federal government should set clear principles and regulations with regards to net neutrality consistent with what is being proposed in the U.S., things like:

• ISPs can not prevent access of users to lawful content, applications and devices
• ISPs must treat all lawful content, applications and services in a non-discriminatory manner; and
• ISPs must disclose all information with regards to network management.
• These net neutrality principles must apply to all Internet networks, including wireless networks.

The federal government should set clear principles and regulations for wholesale Internet service provision to allow more competition into the system, including:

• Enabling new entrants fair and equitable wholesale access to incumbent Internet infrastructure at cost plus reasonable mark-ups;
• Wholesale access pricing should be set transparently; and
• Wholesale access pricing should be set to provide competitive return for investors of Internet infrastructure, while allowing access for new entrants to provide competition.