Today, the CRTC launched a “Proceeding to consider whether the conditions in the Canadian wireless market have changed sufficiently to warrant Commission intervention with respect to retail wireless services“.
The public notice responds to a number of events that have led some parties (representing carriers and consumer) to have the CRTC establish an industry wide committee to develop a national wireless services consumer code.
The CRTC says that it thinks the state of competition in the consumer marketplace needs to be examined first, given that the Commission has forborne from regulating retail mobile services.
The Commission is of the view that before it can consider what form of intervention, if any, may be appropriate with respect to retail wireless services, it must first determine whether there is evidence that Commission intervention in this matter is necessary and appropriate in light of the Commission’s forbearance from regulation of the wireless industry and the Policy Direction.
In other words, the CRTC found that the market was sufficiently competition to have made its forbearance determination, so how can it intervene in developing a code, without first determining that the market is no long as competitive as it was at the time of forbearance? The Policy Direction requirement to “rely on market forces to the maximum extent feasible” would appear to be guiding the CRTC.
Recall that Industry Canada just completed a study of the state of competition in Canadian wireless services, as part of its Policy and Technical Framework for the 700 MHz band.
The CRTC consultation is structured pretty basically: one round of comments (interventions), due in 4 weeks (May 3), followed by a reply due just 11 days later (May 14).
The Commission is seeking comments on whether the conditions for forbearance have changed sufficiently to warrant Commission intervention in the development of a national retail wireless services consumer code. In their interventions, interested persons should provide evidence as to the need for Commission intervention.
Will this CRTC call for comments attract more than what they expected?
We will explore this issue and so much more at The 2012 Canadian Telecom Summit, June 4-6 in Toronto. Have you registered yet?
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