OTTAWA – TNW Wireless Inc. is eligible to operate as a wireless carrier in Canada and may begin offering mobile wireless services after it proves that it has complied with all applicable 9-1-1 service obligations, said the CRTC in a decision late Thursday.
The decision also means that TNW now has access to tariffed services for wholesale mobile roaming on Bell’s and Telus’ networks, something that it had asked the CRTC to help it obtain back in July 2017.
However, the decision also found that the company’s proposed iPCS (Internet personal communications system) service does not comply with the Commission’s framework for mandated wholesale roaming, meaning that TNW is not eligible to access wholesale roaming tariffs in relation to the provision of this service at this time. It also addressed whether Bell Mobility and Telus have the right to refuse to provide access to wholesale roaming agreements.
“Finally, concerning the national wireless carriers’ view that they have the right to refuse service based on potential misuse of a tariffed service, the Commission’s regulatory framework does not permit a wholesale wireless service provider to deny access to services offered under a mandated wholesale roaming tariff on the basis of potential or possible misuse of the wholesale roaming agreement by the requesting carrier”, reads the decision. “The wholesale wireless framework does not accord the national wireless carriers any such discretion, because doing so would lead to anti-competitive effects, which would undermine the purpose of the wholesale wireless framework.”
"For over two years, we have been waiting for a decision on our eligibility to operate a global wireless service with access to mandated roaming services, which to date Bell and Telus had refused to provide," said TNW Wireless president Lawry Trevor-Deutsch, in a statement. "We look forward to putting aside any past disputes and being able to execute our business plan and operate our network, which will provide Canada-wide roaming services to our new subscribers."
TD CRTC 2019-56 was released at the same time that the CRTC announced plans for a review of the mobile wireless industry, which could determine further requirements by incumbents to provide access to their national networks outside of traditional roaming services for licensed carriers.
