The decision is a win for the regional players and aims to better establish those telecommunications companies with existing infrastructure — such as Cogeco Inc. or Eastlink Inc. — by letting them build revenues while simultaneously expanding networks.
In a Friday morning note, Drew McReynolds, an analyst at Royal Bank of Canada, said that while regulatory decisions never spell good news for incumbents, the CRTC’s decision is “manageable for national operators while at the same time extending a helping hand to regional wireless operators.”The CRTC’s decision comes following a months-long consultation that began in February last year by the regulator.
The regulator also stopped short of mandating wholesale network rates, and instead, expects incumbents and regional players to negotiate a price, with final offer arbitration available if they cannot come to an agreement.Article content Cormack Securities Inc. analyst David McFadgen, in a Friday note, said he doesn’t expect much of an impact on the large companies, especially because it could take one to three years for agreements to be drawn up between incumbents and regional carriers.