With the stroke of a pen, the Federal Cabinet can stand up to Big Telecom and lower Canadian internet bills. Visit paylesstoconnect.ca and demand real action to lower your cost of living.
TekSavvy invites voters to join over 250,000 Canadians who are demanding federal action to make life more affordable - simply by enforcing a 2019 CRTC decision that will lower monthly internet bills.
CHATHAM, ON, Sept. 1, 2021 /CNW/ - TekSavvy Solutions Inc. ("TekSavvy") today invited Canadian voters to visit paylesstoconnect.ca, where they can quickly use an online tool to demand concrete federal action that will lower monthly internet bills. In this election, affordability remains top-of-mind for most voters. Recent polling by Abacus Data shows that 64% of Canadians believe the cost of things you use day-to-day have gotten worse over the past 2 years. In another poll conducted by Leger on behalf of TekSavvy, nearly 80% of Canadians say the cost of their internet service is too high.
According to an election backgrounder released by TekSavvy today, the CRTC's 2019 rate decision confirmed that Canada's largest carriers, such as Bell and Rogers, broke federal rate-setting rules to inflate costs for competitors, which in turn drove up Canadian retail prices. The CRTC set new rates to bring "more affordable prices for consumers" that were expected to take effect this year. However, on May 27th, the CRTC stunned observers when it caved to Big Telecom and arbitrarily reversed its own 2019 rate decision. The reversal is bad news for consumers, as it ensures Canadian internet prices –already among the highest in the world—will continue to rise through the pandemic.
TekSavvy has formally petitioned the Federal Cabinet to overrule the CRTC and lower Canadians' cost of living by enforcing the CRTC's evidence-based 2019 rate decision. "With the stroke of a pen, Cabinet can deliver lower internet prices for Canadians, simply by reinstating the CRTC's pro-consumer 2019 rate decision, which was based on years of process and mountains of evidence" said Andy Kaplan-Myrth, TekSavvy's vice president of Regulatory and Carrier Affairs.
TekSavvy noted there is widespread public support for this clear-cut federal measure that will lower the cost of living for millions of voters. Using paylesstoconnect.ca, over 250,000 Canadians have urged the federal government to support the CRTC's 2019 decision. TekSavvy further highlighted the recent unanimous resolution passed by Ontario's Big City Mayors —comprised of mayors of Ontario's largest cities and collectively representing nearly 70% of Ontario's population—calling "on the Federal Cabinet, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and ISED Minister Francois-Phillippe Champagne to overrule the CRTC's reversal and immediately implement the evidence-based 2019 Rates Order" to deliver lower prices.
About TekSavvy
Based in Chatham, Ontario, TekSavvy is Canada's largest independent telecom service company, serving over 300,000 customers from coast to coast. TekSavvy has been proudly delivering award-winning services and fighting for consumers' rights for more than 20 years. TekSavvy is committed to providing quality competitive choice and closing Canada's digital divide.
SOURCE TekSavvy Solutions Inc.
Trevor Campbell, The iPR Group 647-201-5409, [email protected]
Share this article