Cable / Telecom News

Canadians back incumbent telcos, says telco-sponsored survey



TORONTO – A survey released today done on behalf of Bell Canada, Aliant, Sasktel, Télébec and Telus says that Canadians want their incumbent telephone companies to be free of regulation when it comes to offering voice over Internet protocol telephony.

“Ninety-four percent agree that all VOIP service providers, including established telephone companies like Bell Canada, Aliant, SaskTel, Télébec, and Telus, should be subject to the same regulatory rules (38% believe this strongly),” says Wednesday’s press release on the survey done by Ipsos-Reid.

Furthermore:
• Three-quarters believe traditional telephone companies should be allowed to compete and offer lower prices for VOIP services than their competitors if they want to, without interference from the CRTC;

• Six in ten (62%) agree that forcing only traditional telephone companies to submit their prices for VOIP services in advance to the CRTC and wait for approval is an unfair restriction on their ability to compete; and

• Two-thirds (68%) agree that traditional telephone companies should be free to provide bundles of communications services that include VOIP service without first having to obtain the CRTC’s approval – just as their competitors are able to do.

When it comes to the CRTC’s current policy that prohibits traditional telephone companies from contacting former customers for one year to offer special promotions or to encourage them to switch back, a good majority (64%) are of the opinion that this is a “bad policy” for them as consumers. Seventy-seven percent feel traditional telephone companies should not be prevented from offering VOIP promotions to customers of their competitors.

Seventy-five percent of Canadians agree they would have no hesitation in switching telecommunications suppliers if prices or services are not competitive with others in the market. And eight in ten (78%) agree that as VOIP services begin to come into the market their competitive choices will be enhanced.

Nine in ten Canadians (87%) believe that telecommunications companies play a critical role by enabling advances in business and consumer communications, and that they help to support overall growth in the economy. And nearly the same percentage (94%) agrees Internet technologies are fundamentally changing how Canadians communicate and how business operates.

According to most Canadians (62%) the CRTC, not the individual providers, should be responsible for ensuring that all VOIP service providers offer ‘social’ type services. In contrast, one-third (32%) believes this is a responsibility best left to the individual VOIP service providers themselves, says the release.

For the survey, a representative randomly selected sample of 1,200 adult Canadians were interviewed by telephone from July 15th to July 17th, 2005. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate within ± 2.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what it would have been had the entire adult Canadian population been polled.

Segmenting respondents attitudinally reveals that those respondents who agree that traditional telephone companies should be allowed to offer lower prices than their competitors if they want to are also more likely to agree that forcing only traditional companies to submit their VOIP prices to the CRTC is an unfair competitive restriction.

While doing the survey, respondents were prompted with the information that the CRTC determines which services provided by local telephone companies it will regulate. They were further told that for those services the CRTC regulates, it determines how and where the services can be provided and approves the prices to be charged for those services.

After being prompted with this information, 68% of respondents agreed with the statement that "in order to create greater competition, traditional telephone companies should not be required to obtain the CRTC’s approval to provide bundles of communications services that include VOIP services just as their competitors are able to provide these bundles without CRTC approval" (14% strongly agree). Meanwhile, 30% stated that they disagree with this statement (4% strongly disagree).

Standard demographic analysis reveals that those most likely to agree that they would switch telecommunications suppliers if prices or services are not competitive with others in the market include:

• Younger adults aged 18-34 (83%);

• Men (80% vs. 70% among women); and

• Those with higher levels of education at the post-secondary level (77% vs. 72% among those with high-school education or less).

Further attitudinal analysis also shows that those who agree that traditional telephone companies should be allowed to offer lower prices than their competitors if they want, and those who believe that the CRTC should be responsible for ensuring VOIP social services provision, are also more likely to agree with this statement.

Eight In ten (78%) feel the emergence of VOIP will enhance their competitive choices. The very strong majority (78%) feel that as VOIP services are beginning to come into the market their competitive choices will be enhanced – as this will create more choice. A small, but noteworthy, minority (20%) think the emergence of VOIP will not make any difference for them in terms of their competitive choices.

Nearly all Canadians (94%) agree that the internet technologies are fundamentally changing how Canadians communicate and business operates. Ninety-four percent of Canadians agree that "Internet technologies are fundamentally changing how Canadians communicate and how business operates" (41% strongly agree). Only a very small percentage of Canadians (3%) disagree with this statement.

Those most likely to agree with this statement are those who:

• Reside in Alberta (98%), British Columbia (97%) and Ontario (96%);

• Have higher household income levels of $60,000/year or more; and

• Are subscribers to high-speed Internet service (97 vs. 91% among those that don’t have high-speed service).

A full majority (62%) believe CRTC should be responsible for ensuring providers offer ‘social’ type services – only 32% believe it should be up to individual providers

Canadians were asked to consider the social regulations that should be applied going forward within the emerging VOIP marketplace. Specifically, respondents were asked who they feel should be responsible for ensuring that all VOIP service providers offer ‘social’ type services like 9-1-1 service.

A strong majority (62%) are of the opinion that the CRTC, not the individual providers, should be responsible for ensuring that all VOIP service providers offer ‘social’ type services. In contrast, one-third (32%) believes this is a responsibility best left to the individual VOIP service providers themselves. A further 6% are unsure as to who should have this responsibility.

• Residents in British Columbia (69%), Alberta and Ontario (both at 65%) are the most likely to believe that the CRTC should be responsible for ensuring these social services are offered by VOIP providers – while residents of Quebec (42%) are the most likely to believe the individual providers should be responsible.

• Those who currently subscribe to high-speed Internet service are significantly more likely than those who do not subscribe to believe that the CRTC should assume this responsibility (67% vs. 56%).

• As respondents’ income and education level increases so too does their likelihood to believe the CRTC should be responsible for ensuring these social types of services are provided.