Complaints, revenues both on the rise
Canada’s broadcast regulator said Wednesday its wants feedback on whether the wireless industry needs national standards to ensure that cellphone and mobile device customers are protected.
“Our practice has been to rely on market forces as long as we are convinced that the interests of consumers will be looked after,” said Leonard Katz, the CRTC’s acting chairman.
“In this case, we are seeking evidence that our intervention is necessary before considering the development of a national wireless code,” Katz said in a news release.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission said it recently received several applications suggesting that a national code be established, including support from wireless provider Rogers Communications Inc.
“We think it’s important for Canadian consumers to have a series of national standards that make it easier for them to do business with service providers,” Rogers said in a statement.
“Canadians want consistency so that they know what to expect no matter what part of the country they live in. Last month, we took the initiative to draft a simplified set of terms of service that would apply to all wireless providers and all wireless consumers across the country. We look forward to moving this forward as an industry,” Rogers said.
The CRTC said it decided not to regulate the wireless sector back in 1994, convinced there was enough competition in the marketplace to provide Canadian consumers with a choice of services.
Canadians can now complain about wireless services to a watchdog agency set up to mediate between consumers and the industry.
The commissioner for complaints to telecommunications services said complaints jumped by 114%a in 2010-11 over the previous year, to more than 8,000 and most were about wireless services and related billing errors and contract disputes.
The agency is an independent, industry-financed body established by the federal government in 2007 to resolve consumer complaints against telecom companies.
Some provinces such as Quebec have put in place legislation that limits cancellation fees and stops companies from automatically renewing cellphone contracts.
Also on Wednesday, the CRTC said that Canada’s broadcast distribution companies increased their revenues to $13.5 billion in fiscal 2011, up a billion dollars from the previous year.
The federal regulator said cable companies reported revenues of $11 billion in 2011, an 8.2% increase year-over-year.
The CRTC said the number of Canadian households that subscribed to a cable company’s basic television service increased by 2.8% to reach 8.5 million.
In 2011, cable companies employed 25,241 people and spent $2 billion on salaries. In comparison, the previous year those companies had 24,074 employees and paid a total of $1.8 billion in salaries.
From 2010 to 2011, revenues for satellite and multipoint distribution system companies increased by 5.8% to $2.5 billion.
