UPDATED: Ztar Mobile seeks urgent CRTC order to stop Rogers service cut

A reseller offering prepaid mobile services for retailers such as 7-Eleven and Circle K is urging the CRTC to stop Rogers Communications Inc. from disconnecting its services. Ztar Mobile Canada Inc. is a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that provides white-label wireless services, meaning it enables other companies — mainly convenience stores — to offer their own branded mobile plans. Ztar has purchased its wireless services from Rogers under a reseller agreement since 2006. In an application submitted June 3, but made public by the CRTC on June 6, Ztar states that it has been in a dispute with Rogers over their wholesale deal. Ztar claims Rogers plans to disconnect its services, which it argues would cause primarily low-income and disadvantaged Canadians to lose service. The disconnection date and amount of affected subscribers were redacted from the application. “Rogers’ actions are threatening Ztar’s very existence in the Canadian market, to the detriment of competition and consumer choice,” the company alleges. In addition to interim relief to prevent the “imminent” disconnection, Ztar is requesting final relief from the CRTC to address what it describes as undue preference and disadvantage allegedly imposed by Rogers. The company outlines four areas of concern. Firstly, Ztar alleges the wholesale rates imposed by Rogers were unreasonable and became increasingly uncompetitive since they were first set in 2019. Ztar alleges the wholesale rates, primarily for 3G services, became more expensive than the retail prices offered by Chatr, Rogers’ flanker brand, for plans with comparable or greater data value. Ztar added that it had asked to be provided with 4G LTE plans, alongside Chatr, but Rogers allegedly told Ztar to pay “significant up-front costs.” Ztar claims that Rogers deliberately intended to prevent wholesalers like Ztar from competing with it. The company cites a meeting between Ztar’s CEO and Rogers’ director of wholesale costs, during which the Rogers representative allegedly told Ztar that they “can’t enable wholesale customers to the point that they’re competing with the Rogers brand.” Secondly, Ztar claims Rogers reneged on a contractual offer that it argues was binding. In April 2021, Rogers sent an offer to Ztar which amended their rates. “While still uncompetitive,” wrote Ztar, they “were an improvement on the status quo.” Ztar states it signed and returned the amendment the same day and adjusted its plans accordingly, but Rogers allegedly continued to charge the older 2019 prices until 2024. Rogers later took the position that the amendment was not binding because it had not countersigned its own offer, according to the application – a stance Ztar argues gave Rogers and Chatr a multi-year undue market advantage. The company calculated the amount it was allegedly overcharged between 2021 and 2023 and provided those numbers to the CRTC in confidence. Thirdly, Ztar alleges Rogers “unlawfully terminated its contract” in December 2024 by indicating it would not renew their deal and planned a disconnection. Ztar accuses Rogers of violating contractual obligations of fair dealing and not injuring the other party’s business. Finally, Ztar points to an exclusivity clause in the agreement that allegedly discouraged it from switching providers. Despite securing a new provider around late March 2025, Ztar claims Rogers has adopted an “inflexible position” to “obstruct an orderly transition,” by allegedly refusing a sufficient extension of services and offering only a limited one under specific conditions. Rogers benefits from hindering the transition because after it cuts their service, Ztar alleges, Rogers could reroute calls from disconnected Ztar numbers to a message “soliciting them to subscribe to Rogers’ own services directly.” Ztar argues that without urgent intervention, it faces irreparable harm, including significant damage to its reputation and the potential loss of its subscriber base and business clients. The company is urging the CRTC to force Rogers to maintain service until Aug. 31, once it fully transitions. It also wants the commission to declare that the fees Ztar alleges it was overcharged by Rogers cannot be claimed and to open an investigation into Rogers’ reseller agreements with other MVNOs. Rogers calls the application an example of gamesmanship. “This is simply regulatory gamesmanship. Ztar had months to inform their customers or find a new network partner after we notified them last December," Rogers spokesperson Zac Carreiro said in an email. "At the same time, Ztar has been withholding its overdue payments since last year, violating its service agreement with us. Despite this, we have proposed a short extension so their customers can be properly notified," Carreiro said. phalentm@thewirereport.ca

UPDATED: Ztar Mobile seeks urgent CRTC order to stop Rogers service cut

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By Phalen Tynes-MacDonald
| June 9, 2025

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UPDATED: Ztar Mobile seeks urgent CRTC order to stop Rogers service cut

Telecom | By Phalen Tynes-MacDonald | June 9, 2025

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By Phalen Tynes-MacDonald
| June 9, 2025