Telus announced Monday it is investing $2 billion over the next five years to expand its broadband services in Ontario and Quebec.
“This investment comes as a result of the CRTC confirmation of the wholesale fibre-to-the-premise (FTTP) framework and serves as a complement to our wholesale fibre access agreements, allowing TELUS to deliver national scale, accelerate network builds and drive investment, competition and affordability in Canada,” a Telus press release reads.
The Vancouver-based telecom said this investment will be part of its annual budget and will be supported by investments from its strategic build partnerships. It added that this investment program comes on top of the $70-billion investment Telus announced earlier this year and builds on the more than $276 billion the telecom has invested since 2000.
With Monday’s announcement, Telus also unveiled its new brand tagline, “We’re always building Canada”, which the company said reflects its commitment to nation-building through infrastructure and technology investments.
“Today’s announcement regarding our TELUS broadband fibre and wireless expansion reinforces our long-standing commitment to sustained, transformative investments that advance economic and social prosperity for all Canadians,” Darren Entwistle, Telus president and CEO, said in the company’s press release. “Against a backdrop of macroeconomic uncertainty, TELUS stands as one of the few companies committing to bold, future-focused infrastructure investments that bolster digital inclusion and bridge digital divides by bringing globally leading connectivity to communities of all sizes.
“Notably, by expanding our world-leading TELUS broadband network in Ontario and Quebec in a synergistic combination with our wholesale fibre access, millions of citizens and businesses will be empowered with the connectivity needed to fully participate in the digital economy, unlocking benefits for generations to come. The $2 billion we are investing in Ontario and Quebec over the next five years transcends traditional connectivity; it is powering new and advanced digital services including, AI-fuelled smart home energy management, next-generation healthcare, affordable security and exciting entertainment solutions — driving innovation across all sectors of the economy and our societies, propelling our productivity and quality of life as a nation,” Entwistle said.
Telus’s announcement of its increased investment in Ontario and Quebec comes as the telecom ramps up its public relations campaign to garner support for the CRTC’s June decision to continue allowing the three largest internet service providers to use the wholesale internet access regime. That decision is now the focus of a joint legal challenge by Cogeco and Eastlink and an anticipated petition to cabinet.
In response to Cogeco and Eastlink’s court application for leave to appeal the CRTC’s decision, Telus late on Friday provided Cartt with a statement from Zainul Mawji, executive vice president and president of Telus consumer solutions.
“The wholesale FTTP decision is meant to support competition, not specific competitors,” Mawji’s statement said. “The CRTC has now ruled six times that TELUS should have access to the wholesale framework. The Court should find no reason to doubt the correctness of the decision made by an expert independent regulator which is based on a robust body of evidence, including multiple submissions from the Competition Bureau, and already showing positive impacts for Canadians.
“TELUS’ entry into Ontario and Quebec has driven internet prices down by 13.7 percent, according to Statistics Canada. More than 400,000 Canadians have signed our petition calling for more choice. TELUS is delivering integrated bundles of internet, wireless, smart home, energy management, health, and security services that offer more value for consumers, while a powerful group of incumbents are lobbying to protect profits, not consumers,” Mawji said.
“Cogeco benefits from regulated access to TELUS’ wireless network while lobbying to block TELUS from accessing fibre in the same region. Cogeco is simply seeking to protect itself from a new entrant competitor.”
As reported by Cartt on Friday, Telus has said Cogeco is riding on Telus’s wireless network to launch its mobile virtual network operator business.
“Blocking TELUS from expanding into Ontario and Quebec contradicts federal-provincial efforts to reduce interprovincial trade barriers and undermines Prime Minister Carney’s vision for a more open, competitive Canada. The CRTC wholesale framework is symmetrical: Bell, Cogeco and others can resell on TELUS’ network in the West. We welcome competition and have increased our infrastructure investments based on the expect ROI from wholesaling,” Mawji continued, in what could be construed as an attempt to outline Telus’s position ahead of the expected petition to cabinet.
“Regulatory certainty and predictability is critical and overturning the independent regulator’s decision harms investments and Canadian consumers. TELUS is committed to investing in Canada’s future. While others have already made decisions to invest in infrastructure outside of Canada or threaten to retrench, we have committed $70 billion to build world-leading connectivity, healthcare, agriculture technology, AI data centres, and community infrastructure across the country because Canadians deserve fair competition, not corporate threats,” Mawji said in her statement Friday, before Telus announced an additional $2-billion investment over the next five years in Ontario and Quebec.
Mawji’s dig about other providers investing in infrastructure outside of Canada appears to include both Cogeco’s U.S. operations and Bell’s shifting capital to the U.S. through its acquisition of Ziply Fiber, based on added context information provided to Cartt by Telus.
Telus said the “entrenched consortium” of Bell, Rogers, Quebecor and Cogeco controls more than 84 per cent of the Ontario and Quebec internet market, whereas Telus holds less than four per cent market share. “These companies, Bell and several cablecos backed by billionaire families, are not fragile players. They are lobbying to protect profits, not consumers,” Telus said.
