With CRTC’s (Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission) assertion to maintain its supremacy over pricing of VoIP services, VoIP service providers’ inclination to function under a deregulatory regime seems to remain a distant dream in Canada.
A Reuters report says that CRTC has upheld its May 2005 ruling, which enforces the regulatory body to play a major role in the country’s VoIP sector. The ruling considers VoIP to be subjected to the same regulatory framework as traditional phone services. Therefore, fixation of pricing for VoIP services should come under the jurisdiction of CRTC.
Although CRTC thinks of deregulating the VoIP sector or frame laws to empower service providers, there is no unanimous view emerging among the policy makers.
The leading VoIP service providers like Telus and BCE are condemning the decision saying it would be harmful for the service providers as well as for the customers.
Telus explained,
It’s bad for consumers because at the end of the day if we’re regulated and our competitors are not, we can’t put our best offers forward ... and it means competitors don’t have to be as sharp as they would otherwise have to be.
So long as the old rules are in force, Canadians VoIP players will continue to face pricing and competition controls on their rapidly increasing VoIP services.
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