CRTC should have oversight over utility poles: telecoms

Rogers Communications Inc. and Shaw Communications Inc. are both asking the federal government to make it easier for telecoms to access infrastructure such as roads and utility poles as they deploy 5G networks. “As we face the dawn of the 5G era, it is in the best interest of all Canadians to have any regulatory barriers to the deployment of next-generation network infrastructure removed,” Shaw said in its submission to the government’s pre-budget consultations. “One such barrier is the over-complicated regulatory patchwork of rules around access to physical network infrastructure, namely utility poles, which are crucial to the deployment of broadband networks generally, and particularly in rural and remote communities.” The House of Commons finance committee is currently holding consultations related to the 2019 budget. Both companies asked the government to make changes to the Telecommunications Act to give the CRTC regulatory oversight over infrastructure. Rogers said the commission should have authority over access to utility poles and ducts for telecoms, while Shaw asked the government to expand “the CRTC’s jurisdiction to include oversight of access by network operators to infrastructure of all support structure owners, including provincially regulated utilities.” That would include giving the CRTC the power to resolve disputes. Shaw said that access is especially important in rural and remote areas, where it’s cheaper to connect fibre to electrical and utility poles that are already in place instead of burying the cable or building new utility pole lines. Currently, poles are generally run by electrical utilities regulated by the provinces, which Shaw said are “prone to periodic and severe price hikes.” A coalition of internet service providers have spoken out about an Ontario Energy Board (OEB) move to significantly raise the cost of hydro pole installation. Utility boards don’t have a mandate to advance broadband, Shaw said, noting that access to the structures is “the only element of critical telecommunications network operations not currently subject to federal oversight.” Currently, each province “has a different regulatory regime and the uncertainty complicates capital and operational planning when it comes to building and maintaining inter-provincial networks,” it argued. In its submission to the committee, Rogers cited the CRTC’s experience in setting rates, noting it has “developed a balanced rate-setting methodology that allows owners to recover a reasonable portion of the costs.” It also asked the federal government to work with provincial and municipal counterparts to put in place mandated access for municipal rights-of-way and structures. “In order to facilitate the efficient deployment of advanced wireless and wireline networks, all levels of government must work together to ensure telecommunication service providers have access to essential infrastructure including towers, sites, utility poles, ducts and rights-of-way,” Rogers said, adding this includes reasonable access rates. Shaw said it’s an issue that is increasingly important with the advent of 5G, “which will require incredibly intensive investments in digital infrastructure and significantly more attachments to physical infrastructure.” It’s also an issue raised by the House industry committee in a report this spring, which recommended the government take action to ensure smaller providers can access infrastructure such as utility poles to deploy broadband access. In its response, the government said it “recognizes the importance of the efficient use of existing infrastructure such as poles, underground conduits, and rights-of-way” for network deployment, and that facilitating that access “through collaborative efforts by various stakeholders, including provincial and municipal government, presents a significant opportunity to reduce broadband deployment costs.” It offered no specifics about how that could be done beyond saying it is “committed to continuing to encourage collaborative efforts to help reduce broadband deployment costs and help address potential barriers to investment.” — With reporting by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewirereport.ca and editing by Ahmad Hathout at ahathout@thewirereport.ca

CRTC should have oversight over utility poles: telecoms

News | October 3, 2018

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CRTC should have oversight over utility poles: telecoms

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