OTTAWA – The CRTC has denied a bid by Ice Wireless and Iristel to have the regulator issue a cease and desist order on Northwestel from “using the time required to establish critical components of the competitive environment to get a head start on competition.”
In their request to the CRTC sent August 8, 2012, Ice Wireless and Iristel claimed that Northwestel’s modernization plan for its network would only act to subsidize “the monopoly incumbent to provide the same services that are being provided by competitors. This amounts to an undue preference.”
It further urged the CRTC to stop “Northwestel from launching new competitive services and new pricing packages for existing competitive services until the key proceedings required to complete the competitive regulatory framework for Northwestel’s serving territory have been completed.”
But in its decision, the Commission ruled that the applicants did not provide evidence to support their claim that Northwestel delayed the implementation of local competition in its serving territory. The Commission notes that Northwestel filed its proposed tariffs and implemented local number portability in the prescribed regions as required by Telecom Regulatory Policy 2011-771, and therefore complied with the requirements set out in that decision.
The Commission further noted that it has refrained from regulating rates for long distance services and high-speed Internet services because it “has determined that sufficient competition exists in those markets to protect competitors and consumers.” The Commission added that competitors are not restricted from responding to the market in those services by introducing or changing their own service offerings.
It concluded that “In light of the above, the Commission considers that the applicants have not demonstrated that Northwestel’s actions constitute a preference for the company.”
