Good news for Internet affordability, as CRTC lowers wholesale broadband Internet rates

Lower barriers for smaller providers means people in Canada may see more choice and lower Internet prices on the horizon

August 15, 2019 — Today the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) addressed the need for more affordable Internet in Canada, as it released the final wholesale rates for broadband Internet services. The decision significantly lowers the final wholesale broadband tariffs from the interim rates set in 2016, making affordable Internet more accessible in Canada. 

Today’s decision will benefit smaller Internet service providers who pay for wholesale access to the infrastructure, and their customers. These new rates mean these providers now face a lower cost barrier to offering their services, and may be seeing a refund for having overpaid over the past three years, as the rates have been set to take effect retroactively to 2016. 

“Today’s decision is a much overdue step towards lowering the bar for smaller ISPs to provide affordable Internet access in Canada. It’s no secret that Canadians have been paying too much for their Internet for way too long, and today’s decision is proof that Big Telecom has been holding the market hostage, gouging smaller providers for years. But these new rates bring us one step closer to seeing more affordable Internet available through a wider choice of providers,” said OpenMedia’s executive director Laura Tribe. “While today’s decision still does not does not address the outstanding need for fibre wholesale rates that Canadians have been waiting to gain access to since the CRTC’s 2015 decision, hopefully this paves the way for more affordable rates to come.”