Industry committee dissents from ISED spectrum clawback plans

The House of Commons industry committee has endorsed Xplornet Communications Inc.'s call that the ministry of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) should not claw back any of the 3.5 GHz spectrum from providers that offer fixed-wireless internet in rural areas. The committee recommended that the “federal government put in place means to ensure that when allocating spectrum licenses, the interests of rural areas are considered, which may include … retaining the licenses already allocated for fixed wireless Internet in rural areas.” But the recommendation comes two weeks after the government already issued a decision on the issue, saying it would claw back a variable amount of the spectrum from those companies holding it, foregoing one proposed option of taking back two-thirds of all spectrum holdings across the board. Xplornet, which holds the second largest amount of the 3.5 GHz spectrum behind the BCE Inc.-Rogers Communications Inc. Inukshuk partnership, had lobbied against ISED’s spectrum reallocation, telling the committee that “significant” numbers of its rural customers would lose internet service. The recommendation comes as part of the committee’s report following its hearings into rural wireless digital infrastructure, triggered by the passage of M-208, a motion put forward by Liberal MP William Amos. The NDP filed a dissent from the report, with the industry committee’s sole NDP MP, Innovation critic Brian Masse calling the report a “rush job” in a phone interview. “It’s basically a hollow vessel,” he said. In its dissent, the NDP outlines its own recommendations, among them that the government should use the money raised in its spectrum auctions -- almost $18 billion, mostly but not entirely from wireless -- to invest in rural broadband infrastructure, and to disclose how money raised from spectrum auctions is used. The NDP also reiterated its call on Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains to revise upwards the CRTC’s broadband fund standards from 25 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload to 50 Mbps download and 10 Mbps upload. The spectrum clawback had been a particular focus of Conservative Innovation critic Dan Albas, who said that ISED’s clawback provisions had taken a “hatchet” to rural connectivity. In addition to its recommendations on spectrum in rural areas, the committee endorsed ISED’s initiative to decrease the geographical size of spectrum licensing tiers so that they serve rural areas separately from large urban centres, an idea that had been applauded by smaller wireless internet providers like Cogeco Inc. and SSi Micro Ltd., and opposed by bigger players like BCE Inc., Shaw Communications Inc., and Quebecor Inc. In its recommendations, the committee also says it will commence a brand new study to “consider prospective solutions” to cellular infrastructure capacity during emergencies, after the impact of poor cellular service in rural areas came up repeatedly in hearings in relation to the tornado in Ottawa and flooding across parts of rural Canada in recent months. In a statement, ISED said that in its planning for the upcoming 3.5 GHz auction, the ministry is "consulting on a new set of local geographical service areas for spectrum licensing to support 5G wireless technologies and rural broadband deployment. This will allow services to be tailored to the needs of rural and remote Canadians." The committee met four times on the issue in May and June, and heard from 15 witnesses. — With reporting by Michael Lee-Murphy at mleemurphy@thewirereport.ca and editing by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewirereport.ca

Industry committee dissents from ISED spectrum clawback plans

News | June 18, 2019

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Industry committee dissents from ISED spectrum clawback plans

News | June 18, 2019

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