BSO Hearing day 8: CRTC already has model to subsidize broadband in rural and remote areas

By Perry Hoffman

Or should we consider broadband like roads or sewers?GATINEAU – If the CRTC is going to implement a subsidy to support the rollout of broadband in rural and remote area, it already has an established approach, the Canadian Cable Systems Alliance told the Commission on Wednesday. It’s called the National Contribution Fund for telephony in high cost service areas.Chris Edwards, vice-president of regulatory affairs at the CCSA (pictured in a CPAC.ca screen cap), noted that this approach would encourage network investment by smaller providers – the companies that serve rural and remote communities. “Such a subsidy model would be efficient...