Canadian Internet Society advocates for overhaul of CRTC

The Canadian Internet Society (TCIS) is calling for a massive overhaul of the CRTC in a white paper released on March 9. The 17-page report says the commission has not kept pace with the transformation of society by the internet. It is the most recent of a series of background studies on the digital economy by the group. “As an institution, the CRTC has failed to develop the technical, economic, and policy expertise necessary to fully understand the internet and how it transforms the legacy industries it was established to regulate,” the white paper states. “It does not operate efficiently, transparently, or in a timely manner–essential attributes in rapidly evolving internet-enabled markets.” TCIS recommends reducing the number of commissioners from 13 to nine: a chair, two vice-chairs, three commissioners dedicated to broadcasting and three for telecom. The telecom representatives should have a background in engineering, economics, competition policy, law or IP network management, the group suggests. Len St-Aubin, an Ottawa telecom consultant who took part in the discussions leading to the white paper, says there is no need to have as many commissioners as the body currently does. “The concept of regionally resident commissioners is one of the reasons why the commission ended up being as large as it is,” he tells The Wire Report. “And we thought moving towards a commission that certainly has regional representation but is centred in one place where the commission and staff and commissioners can have better focus on the national perspective and national policies.” The document also proposes to set separate responsibilities for broadcasting and telecom, with staff reporting to the appropriate vice-chair. Administrative duties could be handled by public servants serving both divisions, while radio spectrum management should be transferred from the Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) to the commission, the white paper continues, including running spectrum auctions. “There is overlap between the two agencies,” St-Aubin explains. “Certainly, it makes sense for the government to retain the overall responsibility for radio spectrum management, but that part of radio spectrum management that deals with telecommunication and allocation of spectrum for broadcasting…, we felt it made sense to have all of that within the purview of one independent agency, which is the case in other jurisdictions.” According to St-Aubin, companies too often have to submit material to both ISED and the CRTC, delaying approval of deployment, and he cites examples of Canadian ownership reviews and tower sharing. “It’s a matter of better governance, really,” he offers. The Online Streaming Act, which is administered by the CRTC, should be reviewed every five years, TCIS maintains. The first such review should be done before the mandate of this government expires in three years, it added. The regulator’s budget should be increased so it may conduct research into technological, economic, and policy issues that will augment decision-making. Currently, CRTC decisions can be appealed to the cabinet, acting as the governor in council. Cabinet should not have the right to change decisions, the document recommends, only to send them back for review by the regulator. That being said, judicial appeals would continue and public interest participation in the budget of the commission should be publicly funded, TCIS suggests. St-Aubin believes the government should restrict itself to policy development and leave regulation to the experts at the regulator. Policy and regulatory response have not always been forward-looking, the document offers. Finding a balance between promoting competition and encouraging the deployment of broadband networks by incumbents has been a challenge, it continues, and internet service providers (ISPs) have been caught in the crosshairs. “The result has been ongoing, endless debates among the parties, including ISPs, in fractious regulatory proceedings, and the demise of many new entrant competitors,” the society writes. “Incumbent, former-monopoly carriers retain significant market share across Canada.” In broadcasting, the commission has switched from a hands-off approach to a stricter regulatory model, of which the TCIS disapproves. “Global streamers such as Netflix, Disney, (Amazon.com Inc.’s) Prime, (Alphabet Inc.’s) YouTube, and many smaller players will be subject to outdated broadcasting regulation, Canadian content contributions, and commitments,” the paper avers. “The Online Streaming Act enables a level of regulation far more intrusive than is necessary to achieve reasonable outcomes.” Some of the recommendations by the society follow up on earlier proposals from the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel of 2020 and the Telecommunications Policy Review Panel of 2006. St-Aubin noted that many of the same issues arise over the decades. The CRTC is reviewing the white paper and will have a response later this week, it told The Wire Report. ppark@thewirereport.ca

Canadian Internet Society advocates for overhaul of CRTC

Regulatory |
By Paul Park
|March 9, 2026

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