CRTC sets national broadband target, dodges subsidy fund for deployment

The CRTC released a new national broadband target Tuesday, saying all Canadians should have access to 5 Mbps Internet or faster by 2015. But the commission is not establishing a fund to subsidize broadband deployment. The target came Tuesday in a decision resulting from last October’s proceeding on access to basic telecommunications services. Meeting the target will depend on a combination of private investments, targeted government funding and public-private partnerships, the CRTC said. “In the Commission’s view, market forces and targeted government funding will continue to drive the rollout and improvement of broadband Internet access services in rural and remote areas,” the CRTC decision said. The plan will give service providers flexibility to choose technologies in response to consumer demands. “In light of the foregoing, the Commission concludes that it would not be appropriate at this time to establish a funding mechanism to subsidize the deployment of broadband Internet access services. The Commission will review the matter of funding mechanisms should market gaps persist,” the CRTC said. Consumer group the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) said gaps in Canada’s broadband access will endure and that the commission didn’t go far enough to promote rural broadband expansion. “If there is no rural broadband now, there will not be any more thanks to this decision,” PIAC counsel John Lawford said in a press release. “You're on your own Canada—see you at the bottom of the OECD broadband lists,” Lawford added in a reference to a broadband data released last month from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The data ranked Canada 28 out of 33 countries on average monthly broadband pricing. In a release, the CRTC said advances in wireless technology and the launch of new satellite broadband services would provide connections in rural areas at better rates and speeds than what are currently available. More than 80 per cent of Canadian households now have connections at the CRTC’s targeted speed of 5 Mbps download, the commission said, while 95 per cent of households have download speeds of at least 1.5 Mbps. Tuesday’s CRTC decision will also impact telephone service. The commission will reduce subsidies to companies operating in rural areas over the next three years, allowing them to raise rates to a maximum of $30 per month to offset the loss in subsidies, the CRTC said. PIAC said the CRTC’s removal of basic service objectives in urban and suburban areas means customers will no longer receive basic service elements such as phone books. “If this is a roadmap to the future, the CRTC is holding it upside-down,” Lawford said. news@thewirereport.ca

CRTC sets national broadband target, dodges subsidy fund for deployment

News | 05/04/2011 12:02 am EDT

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Reuse & Permissions

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us