Canada's VoIP Decision - Competition Rules
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The news came as expected this afternoon - the CRTC will uphold its position, and competitors do not have to fear being squeezed out of the market by the incumbents - at least for now.
So, short term, competitors are the winners - cablecos, ISPs and virtual operators. The incumbents will have to watch the first wave come as competitors rush in and take what they can before incumbents can counter. It will be fascinating to watch, but in the end the consumer should come out ahead with more choice than they've ever had before. I supsect the early going will be about price and cheap telephony, which of course undermines the real value of IP. Once we get past this, things will get interesting, and hopefully more compelling in terms of cools features and apps.
Going to the source, here's the press release issued by the CRTC on the ruling after the lockup this afternoon in Gatineau, which is near Ottawa.
More on this tomorrow. I'll be commenting about the ruling at 8:15 in the morning on ROB TV, our major financial news channel.
So, short term, competitors are the winners - cablecos, ISPs and virtual operators. The incumbents will have to watch the first wave come as competitors rush in and take what they can before incumbents can counter. It will be fascinating to watch, but in the end the consumer should come out ahead with more choice than they've ever had before. I supsect the early going will be about price and cheap telephony, which of course undermines the real value of IP. Once we get past this, things will get interesting, and hopefully more compelling in terms of cools features and apps.
Going to the source, here's the press release issued by the CRTC on the ruling after the lockup this afternoon in Gatineau, which is near Ottawa.
More on this tomorrow. I'll be commenting about the ruling at 8:15 in the morning on ROB TV, our major financial news channel.
