Vicky Eatrides, Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)
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Introduction
Good morning, and thank you, Grant, for the warm welcome.
Before we begin, I would like to acknowledge that we are gathered today on the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishnaabeg people. Let us take a moment to express our gratitude to the Anishnaabeg people and to honour their Elders.
It is a pleasure to be here with all of you again. I am joined by some of my fellow Commissioners, including the Vice-Chair of Telecommunications, Adam Scott, the Vice-Chair of Broadcasting, Nathalie Théberge, and our regional Commissioners, Bram Abramson, Joanne Levy, Stephanie Paquette, and Nirmala Naidoo. It is wonderful to see so many familiar faces in the room.
As I was preparing for this morning, I looked back to my first keynote here. I stood before many of you and spoke about how we could create the future of communications in Canada - together. I shared stories from across the country that reminded us just how vital communications are in peoples' daily lives - from accessing education and emergency services to staying connected with our culture and our communities. And I highlighted the opportunity before us to take that awareness and to turn it into action.
Now, over two years later, we are living that future. Our work is well underway, and we are seeing real progress.
But as we all know, progress is not a destination. It is a direction. And while we have taken meaningful steps forward, there is more to do.
Taking meaningful steps forward
Let us start with something that Canadians rely on every single day - and that is their Internet and cellphone services.
Canadians have been clear: they want better connectivity, new choice, and more affordable prices. We hear this in public proceedings and stakeholder meetings. We read about it in the media. And many of us in this room hear it firsthand - not just in boardrooms or hearing rooms, but in coffee shops, grocery store lineups, and everyday conversations.
The CRTC has heard the message - and we have taken concrete steps to respond. Let me walk you through how, starting with one of the most pressing priorities, which is better connectivity.
Connecting rural, remote and Indigenous communities
Many of us here today have long had access to high-speed Internet and the latest cellphone technology. But for too many Canadians - especially in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities - that access is still not a reality.
Let me give you an example.
In some parts of Canada, local schools only go up to grade 9 or 10. Take Angelina from the Northwest Territories, whose story was reported in the media. At just 15 years old, she had to leave her family and travel 200 kilometres to Yellowknife to attend high school. Most of us can hardly imagine being that far from home at such a young age.
For students like Angelina, online schooling can be an important alternative - but only if they have access to reliable, high-quality Internet.
These kinds of stories remind us that connectivity is about far more than convenience. It is about opportunity, fairness, and access to essential services - like education. And that is why action was needed.
In 2019, the CRTC launched its Broadband Fund as part of a government-wide effort to help connect rural, remote, and Indigenous communities across Canada.
Since then, we have allocated over $750 million to projects delivering Internet or cellphone services to nearly 50,000 homes in more than 290 communities. These projects are connecting critical institutions like schools, health care facilities, and community centres that people rely on every single day.
The Fund has also helped improve cellphone service along more than 630 kilometres of major roads and supported the construction of over 5,500 kilometres of fibre across the country.
To put that in perspective - 5,500 kilometres is about the distance you would travel driving the Trans-Canada Highway from Moncton all the way to Vancouver. That is a lot of fibre - and a lot of ground covered to keep Canadians connected.
And last December, we introduced changes to make the Broadband Fund even better - streamlining the application process to get projects approved faster and Canadians connected sooner.
Our work on connectivity is not done. New funding decisions are coming soon that will support even more projects in communities across the country.
Promoting competition and investment
The CRTC's work to improve connectivity goes hand-in-hand with our efforts to strengthen competition and make Internet and cellphone services more affordable for Canadians.
As we support projects to connect rural, remote, and Indigenous communities, we are also making key decisions to boost competition and encourage investment in networks.
Let us start with Internet services.
In 2023, the CRTC began reshaping its regulatory framework at a time when wholesale competition was near an all-time low.
We took decisive action to help stabilize the market: lowering certain wholesale rates, granting interim access to fibre, and launching a broader review of our approach.
As a result of that review, the CRTC extended workable access to the large telephone companies' fibre across Canada - opening the door for more competition and giving consumers new choices. At the same time, we supported continued investment, including by allowing large providers a five-year period before they must share new fibre builds - helping to accelerate the rollout of fibre to more Canadians.
And we are already seeing results.
Our data shows that Canadians now have more choice, with over a dozen companies using this new access to launch competitive Internet plans. Thousands of households have subscribed. Several major providers have also signalled their intent to enter new markets under this framework, and we expect even more Canadians to benefit as competition continues to grow.
While these benefits are already being felt, we are in the final stages of setting the wholesale rates that competitors pay. And we will continue to closely track both competition and investment in the Internet service market.
And what do we mean when we say we are "closely tracking" competition and investment?
Simply put, it means we are paying close and continuous attention to how the market is evolving. Watching carefully to ensure that Canadians are getting real benefits: better options, more affordable prices, and access to high-quality Internet that meets their changing needs.
And why does that matter? Because we are prepared to act. If the market is not delivering for Canadians, we are ready to make the necessary adjustments to keep things moving in the right direction.
Our focus is clear: to foster strong, sustainable competition that delivers real value to consumers, while supporting ongoing investment in the networks that connect us all.
And it is not just Internet services we are watching. We are also closely tracking competition and investment in Canada's cellphone market.
As many of you know, we introduced our framework to improve competition, affordability, and choice at a time when the market was not creating enough opportunities for competition.
In 2023, we set the final rules allowing regional cellphone providers to compete as mobile virtual network operators, or MVNOs, while giving them a seven-year window to build their own networks - again, balancing competition with incentives to invest.
Since then, smaller providers have expanded into new regions, giving Canadians more options than before.
I would not say that we have reached the finish line yet, but we have definitely hit an important milestone.
The MVNO framework is one piece of the bigger competitive puzzle. We are closely tracking key indicators like price trends, whether customers are switching to new options, and the level of investment in networks.
Price is an indicator of competition, and we have seen prices for cellular services decline since the framework was put in place.
We are also seeing more Canadians choose new options. Since MVNO access became available, competitors have expanded in 88 communities across seven provinces.
In some of those places, up to 60% of new subscribers have chosen an MVNO service.
We expect this growth to lead to investment, with new network infrastructure being built across the country.
Striking the right balance between encouraging immediate competition and protecting long-term investment incentives is critical. Remember, MVNO access is time-limited until 2030, by which point we expect providers to have fulfilled their network build commitments.
With these frameworks in place, we will continue to track closely, and ask the key questions: are Canadians truly benefitting from competition, with more choice, better prices, and improved service? And are the networks they rely on being built?
Of course, making sure that Canadians have access to high-quality networks and real choice is only one part of the equation.
Protecting and Empowering Canadians
The other part is making sure that Canadians can easily find those choices, switch to the plans that best meet their needs, and are not caught off guard by high bills.
That is where the CRTC's consumer protection codes for Internet, cellphone, and television services come in. These codes were created to give Canadians clear, straightforward information about their rights and what they are agreeing to in their contracts.
Last year, we launched a comprehensive consumer protections action plan, bringing together a series of initiatives designed to strengthen these protections.
So far, we have held 10 public consultations on real-life issues that Canadians face, like service outages, switching plans, and shopping for Internet services.
Just last Friday, we kicked off a new public consultation aimed at helping Canadians resolve complaints about Internet, cellphone, and television services more quickly through the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services, or the CCTS.
Many Canadians do not even know that the CCTS exists to help resolve disputes with their providers. Our research shows that in 2024, only 2% of people with unresolved issues were informed about the CCTS by their provider. That needs to change. And our consultation is a step toward making sure that it does.
We will also be reviewing the consumer codes themselves, with the goal of simplifying and combining them, so that individuals and businesses no longer have to navigate a patchwork of rules.
And while we work to make these rules clearer, we remain equally committed to tackling another ongoing challenge for Canadians: unwanted spam texts, emails, and calls.
We are collaborating closely with industry partners and government agencies to confront this issue head-on. When new spam campaigns arise, we act quickly, not only to respond but to keep the public informed, so everyone can better protect themselves.
And that is just a snapshot of the steps we are taking to protect and empower Canadians. There is much more ahead, and I encourage everyone to stay tuned and stay engaged.
Building on progress
Now, let me turn briefly to broadcasting, where we are in the midst of one of the biggest transformations in the system's history.
Since Parliament passed the Online Streaming Act, we have been tasked with building a modern regulatory framework, and that work is well underway.
Over the past two years, we have launched 16 public consultations and held four major hearings. We have received nearly 1,700 interventions and have heard from over 300 participants during public hearings, including broadcasters, artists, producers, public interest groups, and individual Canadians. Each brings their own unique perspective.
Often, these views are in direct opposition - but that is the nature of a public proceeding. As a quasi-judicial tribunal, our role is to carefully analyze and balance these perspectives in a way that serves the public interest.
And we have already made some key decisions.
We have ensured that online streaming services contribute to supporting areas of immediate need - like French-language programming, Indigenous content, and local news on radio and television - while also giving them some flexibility to direct part of their contributions to support Canadian television content more directly.
And over the summer, we issued decisions specifically to support local news on radio and television, particularly in smaller markets where there are fewer options.
At the same time, we are modernizing long-standing rules for radio stations.
Radio remains a vital part of Canadian life, delivering local news, promoting artists, and supporting community initiatives. Just two weeks ago, we introduced open-ended licences that no longer expire, reducing administrative burden and allowing stations to focus on what matters most: serving their listeners. Meanwhile, the CRTC will continue to ensure compliance through streamlined, regular audits.
And we are not done. More major decisions are coming soon, some within the next few weeks.
Our goal remains clear: to ensure that Canadians have access to their own stories, and to build a broadcasting system that is resilient, adaptable, and ready for the future.
Conclusion
So where do we go from here?
We keep moving forward. We build on the momentum we have created. And we stay focused on what truly matters to Canadians.
We are not finished yet. But we are making real, meaningful progress.
More Canadians now have access to high-speed Internet. There are more choices when it comes to cellphone services. Stronger consumer protections are coming. And our broadcasting system is evolving to better reflect the Canada of today and tomorrow.
Two years ago, I said the best way to predict the future is to create it.
Together, that is exactly what we have been doing.
So let's keep going.
Thank you.
