Pollsters say incumbents fighting a losing battle as PM comments on wireless code

Prime Minister Stephen Harper used social media to weigh in on the CRTC’s decision that wireless consumers should be permitted to cancel their contracts after two years. The messages, posted by Harper on his Facebook page Wednesday, should be concerning to the country's three largest telecom companies, which are requesting a court challenge of aspects of the regulator's decision, pollsters said in interviews. “A hundred per cent yes. This is a majority government,” Innovative Research Group pollster and consultant Greg Lyle said when asked whether Harper's posts should worry the incumbents. Lyle, who has worked on federal and provincial electoral campaigns, said in a phone interview that the Prime Minister's Facebook posts—in which he linked to a new Conservative party petition about wireless policy and said Canadians should have the right to cancel wireless contracts after two years without penalties—means the Conservative government is more committed than ever to introducing more competition and changes in Canada's mobile wireless sector. “If you're one of the big three companies, you're going to have to take it on the chin on this one, because there's no stopping it. They would not have gone this far if they weren't going to fulfill this,” Lyle said. Prime Minister Harper put up a poster on his personal Facebook page Wednesday that said “Canadians should be allowed to cancel their cellphone contracts after two years without cancellation fees.” Under the poster, Harper added a message that said: “Sign the petition if you believe Canadians will benefit from more choice and greater competition among wireless providers,” and directed readers to an online petition on the Conservative party website. Harper also posted a separate message in French, repeating the wording of the poster. The Facebook activity happened Wednesday morning, after news media reported that incumbent providers BCE Inc., Telus Corp., and Rogers Communications Inc. filed a motion with the Federal Court of Appeal to challenge the retroactivity of the CRTC's new wireless code, which effectively reduces mobile wireless contracts from three years to two. The CRTC says the code will apply to all contracts as of June 3, 2015, including existing three-year contracts, meaning they could be cancelled early with no cancellation fees or remaining device subsidy payments. The Conservative government has committed to increasing wireless industry competition by ensuring a fourth, competing provider in each region of the country, and says it is acting in the interests of consumers. The Globe and Mail reported last month that American wireless provider Verizon Communications Inc. made a $700 million offer to purchase new entrant Wind Mobile, owned by Globalive Wireless Management Corp., and that it has also approached Mobilicity, operated by Dave Wireless Inc., about a possible purchase. Other potential buyers for Wind include Accelero Capital Holdings, a private equity firm owned by former Orascom Telecom Holding S.A.E. chief executive Naguib Sawiris, who earlier this year partnered with Wind CEO Anthony Lacavera on an offer for the new entrant. The Conservative party, on its website last month, asked visitors to show their support for its policy of preventing the incumbents from “shut down competition by buying up undue amounts of wireless spectrum.” With his posts on Wednesday, Prime Minister Harper attached his name to the party's messaging on the wireless file. “It raises the stakes. It's not just the CRTC or the industry minister making the claim, but Stephen Harper. Just as he said he's going to cut your GST, he's now saying, 'I'm making it easier to cancel your cellphone without a cancellation fee,'” said David Coletto, head of public affairs research firm Abacus Data. “This is the first step. We may see similar things around fees, pricing, competition, all those things that this government is pushing hard on,” Coletto said in a phone interview. On Harper's Facebook page, he linked to a new petition on the Conservative party website, which asks readers for their name, email address and postal code. “Our Conservative government is taking action to reduce your cell phone bill—and we wanted to make sure you have heard about it,” the petition says. “We announced three technical decisions that will help ensure there is greater competition in the wireless sector.” It referred to a decision by Industry Minister Christian Paradis to prevent spectrum licence transfers that result in an “undue concentration” of spectrum in the hands of one provider, as well as the CRTC's new wireless code, which effectively limits wireless contracts to two years and caps data roaming surcharges at $50 per month. “More competition means lower prices and more choices for you and your family. Our government’s strong actions have reduced the average cost of wireless services for Canadians by 18% since 2008,” the petition says, referring to data publicly released Thursday in a report by Wall Communications. “We know Canadians are relying on their wireless devices now more than ever—that’s why we’re putting Canadian consumers first and making sure there is more competition in the market.” The petition adds: “Will you stand with us? Add your name.” Coletto and Lyle said the party will use the information gathered from the petition to support fundraising and get-out-the vote campaigns. “The tactics are smart in today's world. Everyone's trying to turn a marketing relationship into a direct contact relationship,” Lyle said. Coletto said the wireless policy fits with the Harper government's tendency to appeal to voters with “transactional” government policies that offer direct benefits to individuals. “How can government make life a little bit easier for individual, middle class, suburban voters? If you look at this ad, and you look at the language, it's speaking directly to this group,” Coletto said. The incumbents “certainly should be concerned,” he said, adding that this is not a fight they can win in the arena of public opinion. Lyle said policies favouring more competition show the Harper government's populist approach to issues, which has supported its longevity with voters. “They're picking a fight with big business. You would not imagine Mulroney doing that, but it's very true to Reform and the Diefenbaker tradition,” he said. He said the incumbents could better position themselves as willing to play by the rules, though he said there is not much point in responding with ads. “It's not typical for a political party to take on a group of companies, certainly not from the right,” Lyle said. “It just tells you they're in a pretty weak position, and I'd be nervous, if I was a shareholder, about the big three holding onto their market share.” Lyle added that Harper's statements about the decisions of the CRTC, an arm’s-length body, add a layer of political pressure and can have the effect of turning a regulator into a “political football.” The Wall Communications report, commissioned by the CRTC and issued Thursday, said mobile phone service pricing has continued its downward trend over the past five years, falling about five per cent from last year. The Prime Minister's Office did not respond to a request for comment by deadline. —With reporting by Simon Doyle at sdoyle@thewirereport.ca and editing by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewirereport.ca

Pollsters say incumbents fighting a losing battle as PM comments on wireless code

News | July 4, 2013

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Pollsters say incumbents fighting a losing battle as PM comments on wireless code

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