Bell has asked the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to change rules it says have long favoured cable companies over telecommunications companies when it comes to signing up new subscribers.
Bell's application to the CRTC comes as the company prepares to introduce competitive new IPTV (Internet Protocol TV) services this year in Toronto and Montréal, television markets that are still dominated by traditional cable TV companies.
"Decade-old rules that have ensured a competitive advantage for cable companies need to change, never more so than now as Bell prepares to enhance competition and consumer choice in television in Canada's largest urban markets," George Cope, President and CEO of Bell Canada and BCE, said in a release. "We expect the CRTC to apply regulatory symmetry to cable and telecom companies, either by removing advantages for cablecos in phone services or by applying similar rules to telecom companies offering competitive TV services."
Bell has asked the CRTC to ensure the regulatory environment is symmetrical by:
- Rescinding a 10-year-old rule that allows cable companies to cancel a phone customer's service when they switch providers - customers should either be required to deal first with their existing phone provider before they switch, as is the case when customers change TV providers, or the CRTC should allow TV competitors like Bell to handle the transfer of new TV accounts in the same way cablecos can with their new phone customers.
- Eliminating fees that cable companies can charge telecom companies for access to inside wiring - existing CRTC rules prohibit Bell from charging cablecos any fees for access to its own inside wiring.
Set for initial introduction in Montréal and Toronto later this year, Bell IPTV is an advanced television service operating on Bell's broadband fibre networks and specifically targeted at urban customers. Bell says the IPTV service is a new complement to Bell TV, Canada's largest direct-to-home satellite television service that serves almost 2 million customers across the country and offers more High Definition channels than any other Canadian TV provider.
Favouritism towards "cable companies" was more a favouritism towards Canadian companies to give them competitive advantage against Ma Bell which is/was viewed in Canada as an American giant.