Broadband labels should apply to all ISPs, CRTC panel is told

If the CRTC implements a standardized labeling system for internet service providers (ISPs), it should impose them on all carriers, no matter the size, several intervenors in a proceeding told the regulator. A commission panel on the issue wrapped up its hearings on Friday, June 13. Brad Callaghan, associate deputy commissioner at the Competition Bureau, told the five-member panel – which is considering forcing telecoms to label their internet products so consumers have a better idea of what they are getting, by way of a standard label similar to the nutrition label found on groceries – that there should be no exceptions to the provisions. Callaghan said all consumers should have the right to look at prices, speeds, and other standards from competing ISPs. “The idea, from our perspective, in terms of potential for competition here, is being able to compare,” he stated. “And so to exclude certain service providers, to us, it just doesn't jibe with the policy rationale in terms of comparability.” Thursday, the Independent Telecommunications Providers Association (ITPA) had suggested that smaller players be exempt from labeling rules. Callaghan said labels are an established part of other sectors in the marketplace. “The label is a good idea and Canadians are already familiar with it,” he said. “Their experience in the food products sector shows that labels are an effective, adaptable tool for conveying complex yet crucial information about goods and services.” Also endorsing the notion of universal label application was the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC). The group was critical of the approach taken by carriers over the four-day hearing. “Big ISPs are trying to convince you–it’s subtle, but the implication is there–that customers are stupid and that they don’t even know what they want in terms of information and that they are very easily overwhelmed,” executive director and general counsel Geoff White argued. The proceeding was initiated by the passage of Bill C-288, looking at internet service quality. White reminded the commissioners that the measure is now law, not just a piece of legislation, and that the CRTC is duty bound to enforce it. PIAC said the new rules should emphasize that consumers can take up problems with their ISPs and if that doesn’t work, proceed to the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS). Outgoing CCTS commissioner Howard Maker appeared in the morning session of the proceeding Friday. He too came out in favour of new labels for internet services. “We believe that broadband labels could help make it easier for Canadians to understand key aspects of their internet service including price, what’s included in their plan, and expected service metrics,” he offered. “Ensuring that those labels form part of the customer's contract will create a written record of what was agreed to and the ISP’s obligations, allowing us to more effectively handle complaints.” The CCTS feels new rules will help it perform its ombudsman’s role more effectively. The only note of dissent heard on the final day was from SSi Canada, a provider of telecom services in the far north. Chief development officer Dean Proctor spoke against the implementation of new rules. “We are concerned with proposals to require all internet service providers to present information about the plans and services they offer in a standard format, such as the grocery store nutrition label model,” he opined. “We fear this will harm innovation, diminish true customer choice, and hamper competition between ISPs, not enhance it.” Consumers are aligned with their ISPs in knowing what they want, Proctor maintained, and ISPs are fulfilling their mandate to their clients. Labels would disrupt this, he suggested. Telecom policy is not a one size fits all proposition, he added, and labeling would be the antithesis of innovation. The CRTC will issue requests for information to witnesses by July 3, with replies due July 30. Intervenors will have until Aug. 20 for final responses. ppark@thewirereport.ca

Broadband labels should apply to all ISPs, CRTC panel is told

Regulatory |
By Paul Park
| June 13, 2025

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Broadband labels should apply to all ISPs, CRTC panel is told

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