Videotron’s Brouillette asks Liberals to keep 4th player policy for 600 MHz

TORONTO — The Liberal government should continue the previous Conservative government’s push for more competition in the wireless market in the upcoming 600 MHz auction, Manon Brouillette, president and CEO of Quebecor Inc.’s Videotron, said at an industry conference Wednesday. “New entrant competition has had a profound effect on the marketplace. It has forced all players to be creative, to innovate, to be better. We now need to nurture and encourage the competitive spark,” she said in a speech at the Canadian Telecom Summit. The 600 MHz auction “can give us some of the resources to be more at par with the incumbents and continue to challenge the industry,” she added, asking that “the principle of competition and competitive dynamics be affirmed as the main guiding principle for the marketplace.” “Competition has been proven to be in the public interest. We have seen evidence of lower prices, better service, increased investment, increased innovation,” Brouillette said, comparing the lower prices in Quebec to prices in Ontario. Referencing studies predicting a “tsunami” of growth in data usage in coming years — such as Cisco Systems Inc.’s prediction that mobile data traffic will grow six-fold by 2020 — as well the growth of the Internet of Things (IoT), she said all carriers will need more spectrum and bandwidth as a result. If the studies are right, she said, “we are going to need it in short order.” Brouillette said 600 MHz is ultra high-frequency spectrum “with some key characteristics that make it quite attractive,” such as signals that travel further — meaning fewer towers are required — and go through buildings. Videotron has less spectrum under 1 GHz than the incumbents, she added. In an interview following the speech, she noted that the ability of the 600 MHz spectrum to travel further means “you can achieve the same coverage with one-third to one-fifth of the capex investment. So it’s a tremendous asset having sub-1 GHz spectrum.” Brouillette declined to specify what type of measures — such as spectrum set-asides — Videotron would like to see included in the auction. She noted that the government is co-ordinating with the United States in setting up the auction, and there will an opportunity to make such comments once the Canadians government opens a consultation process. “Specifically today, I don’t have any point of view regarding what could be the structure. The only thing I wanted to share with people today and with the government is that there clearly an imbalance in the sub-1 GHz and they have an opportunity with the next auction to re-establish that imbalance,” she said. Brouillette said she hopes to see the current government continue the previous Conservative government’s policies regarding more competition and having a fourth player in every region. The Liberal government hasn’t been particularly vocal about its telecom policy, except for a funding commitment for rural broadband in this year’s budget and the denial of the appeal of a CRTC decision mandating access to fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) networks. In response to a question about what the company’s plans are for the 700 MHz spectrum it bought outside Ontario in 2014 and hasn’t yet deployed, Brouillette said she doesn’t have anything new to add to the company’s previous statements. “It’s a good asset. We’re glad we bought that asset. Now we have to figure out what to do,” whether it’s a sale or the company deploying the spectrum. She noted that since then, Wind has been bought by Shaw Communications Inc., “and we always said that we would never build a network from scratch.” — With reporting by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewirereport.ca and editing by Charelle Evelyn at cevelyn@thewirereport.ca

Videotron’s Brouillette asks Liberals to keep 4th player policy for 600 MHz

News | June 8, 2016

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us

Videotron’s Brouillette asks Liberals to keep 4th player policy for 600 MHz

News | June 8, 2016

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Related Stories

Telus’ arguments for incumbent access to wholesale regime not supported by competitors

CRTC finalizes terms of Uvagut TV distribution

Bell won’t participate in subsidized broadband projects if wholesale access for Big Three continues, signs agreement with CNOC

CRTC announces changes to Broadband Fund

Reuse & Permissions

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us