Canada's competition watchdog is raising concerns about discontinued cellphone promotions in Western Canada in the wake of the Rogers-Shaw merger that it says had been helpful in bolstering competition. A person uses a cell phone in Ottawa on Monday, July 18, 2022.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
OTTAWA – Certain cellphone plans in Western Canada are not as cheap as they once were prior to the Rogers-Shaw merger, Canada’s competition watchdog says.
Jeanne Pratt, the Competition Bureau’s senior deputy commissioner of mergers and monopolistic practices, says the agency hasn’t seen evidence showing Rogers Communications Inc. is offering comparable pricing for bundled wireless plans offered by Shaw Mobile in Alberta and B.C. before the $26-billion takeover closed last April.
Pratt was testifying at the House of Commons’ industry committee on Monday along with representatives from the CRTC, as MPs study the accessibility and affordability of wireless and broadband services in Canada.
MPs on the committee sounded the alarm in January, when Rogers confirmed prices were going up by an average of $5 for wireless customers not on contract and some Bell Canada customers were also told their wireless bills were set to increase.
The committee has invited the chief executives of Rogers, BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. to testify at an upcoming meeting, however a notice of meeting this Wednesday lists other representatives of the Big 3 carriers who are scheduled to appear as witnesses.
NDP MP Brian Masse tabled a motion Monday to summon the three CEOs to appear if that invitation is not accepted.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 26, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:RCI.B, TSX:BCE, TSX:T)
