CRTC Approves Bell Deferral Account Funds for Broadband but Directs Bell to Use DSL Technology

 

In Telecom Decision CRTC 2010-637 released on Tuesday, 31 Aug 10, the Commission approved the use of $306.3M of Bell Deferral Account money to provide DSL based broadband (high speed) Internet service in the selected service areas. This would appear to nullify the Bell Canada submission to provide the coverage using 3G HSPA technology.

Particulars concerning the implementation schedule and other details are not available to me at this time.

I consider today’s decision a significant move forward and a better technical solution for broadband (high speed) Internet delivery to the users in the selected Deferral Account areas.

While I welcome this decision, it is not unknown for affected parties to initiate appeals that could slow down the implementation process.   

I will post additional information as it becomes available on the ADnet web site and the ADnet blog over the next few days.

The Deferral Account areas in the Algoma District are SSM-Airport (Pointes areas), Wawa, Goulais, Echo Bay and St. Joseph Island.

Wireless Broadband (high speed) Internet Comparison

Wireless Type	Advantage	Disadvantage	Cost *
Satellite Small dish antenna installed on user residence.	1. Universal coverage of Canada 2. In theory easily scalable 3. Can connect to LAN	1. Latency/delay 2. Limited data Speed 3. Inconsistent data Speed 4. Impaired by weather 5. High initial user cost 6. Fair Use Policy limits	MRC: $59.99 Speed: up to 1 Mbps down Activation OTC : $99.00 Annual Licence: $75.00 Hardware: $199.00 (Can be waived)Installation Cost: Varies
Fixed Wireless Small panel or yagi antenna installed on user residence.	1. Relatively inexpensive to install 2. Consistent data speed 3. Medium range initial user cost 4. Can connect to LAN	1. Limited data speed 2. Line-of-sight to base required 3. Subject to terrain masking	MRC: $47.95 Speed: up to 4 Mbps Activation OTC: $75.00 Pop-up Tower (if needed) $300.00
HSPA Data stick or Data hub connected to computer. Can use external antenna for better speeds	1. Greatest data speed 2. Broadband and cellular capable 3. Expensive initial user cost without contract 4. Can connect to LAN	1. Line-of-sight and 5 km to cell tower 2. Expensive if basic data caps are exceeded 3. Subject to terrain masking	MRC: $35.00 – 1 GB $60.00 – 10 GB Speed: up to 7Mbps rural; 21Mbps urban Hardware: Hub: $400.00 Data stick: $175.00
			Taken from ISP websites. Packages and bundles can affect the actual prices a user pays. Does not include taxes or regulatory fees.

Is the CRTC Deferral Account Decision Near?

 

On 27 Aug 10 the CRTC issued a Media Advisory to advise “On August 31, 2010  a media lock-up will be held from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) for the decisions related to the disposal of the funds remaining in Bell Canada, Bell Aliant, Telus and MTS Allstream's deferral accounts. “

I expect the decision will become made public shortly after 4:00 PM on Tuesday, 31 Aug 10. 

I have not any seen leaks at the time of writing on what the decision will be.

As you recall, in January 2010 the Bell Companies proposed that Deferral Account  funds be used to provide broadband connectivity in the designated Deferral Account areas by means of 3G HSPA wireless technology. Extensive discussions and consultations took place over the past several months leading up to Tuesday's anticipated announcement.

The Deferral Account areas in the Algoma District are SSM-Airport (Pointes areas),  Wawa, Goulais, Echo Bay and St. Joseph Island.

Broadband Statistics From the CRTC

The CRTC has released their annual Communications Monitoring Report 2009. The full 213 page (7.10 MB) report covers all aspects of the broadcast and telecommunications industry in Canada and may be downloaded from the CRTC site.   Since most reader will be interested in the part pertaining to the Internet and broadband, I have posted a 10 page PDF extract at the ADnet website under the What’s New column.

The table below from the report is the high level summary. The statistic on average downloads and uploads near the bottom of the table are noteworthy and is far out of line with the total being touted by Bell in their Deferral Account proposal where they cite less than 2 GB per month. It also belies the argument of the proponents of 3G HSPA as the solution to broadband in rural areas as it is greater than the cap provided in the flat rate service shown before. Overage  charges will run up the total bill quickly.

It also has a rate of growth in the 30% range for 2008 to 2009 which is only likely to increase at a greater rate with the introduction of new services such as Netflix. Rogers appears to have admitted as much with their recent cap adjustment although they state there is no direct relationship.  

 

Internet and broadband availability at a glance
	2008	2009	Growth
Revenues ($ billions)	6.2	6.6	6.3%
Internet access and transport
Residential	3.9	4.3	9.9%
Business	1.1	1.1	1.2%
Wholesale	0.2	0.3	21.5%
Other	1.0	1.0	-5.5%
Residential subscribers (millions)	9.8	10.1	2.6%
Residential high-speed access revenues per subscriber per month	$34.06	$36.06	5.9%
Internet access market share (revenue)
Top 5 major ISPs (including affiliates)	76%	76%
Cable operators	48%	50%
ILECs (excluding out-of-territory)	40%	38%
Broadband availability (excluding satellite)
National	95%	95%
Urban	100%	100%
Rural	82%	84%
Penetration:
All speeds	74%	75%
High-speed	69%	72%
Broadband (1.5 Mbps and higher)	52%	62%
Broadband (5 Mbps and higher)	41%	44%
Average Gigabytes downloaded per month per user	9.1	12.0
Average Gigabytes uploaded per month per user	3.2	3.4
Source: CRTC data collection

Batchawana Outages Follow-UP

TBayTel confirmed they had a short term system outage and while the cellular network came back automatically, the Internet hardware needed a hard reset that required the dispatch of a service technician from the Wawa work centre.

They had no comment on  the remote reset action that users reported.

TBayTel is investigating further as why this happened at all and how to detect/respond to these types of troubles better in the future.  

Internet Service Speed Categories

Listed below are the speed categories used by the CRTC and Industry Canada. ADnet will comply with this convention in all documents from this point forward.

Low-speed Internet service includes speeds that are below 128 kilobits per second (128 Kbps).
High-speed Internet service includes speeds at or above 128 kilobits per second (128 Kbps).
Broadband Internet access service includes speeds that are above 1.5 megabits per second (Mbps).

CRTC Asks for Public Input on Internet and Telephone Service

The CRTC issued a call for public input on Canadian telecom services on July 22, 2010. Details of the undertaking and how the public can participate are available on the CRTC website at www.obligationtoserve.publivate.ca 

This consultation will last four weeks, from July 13 until August 10th, 2010.When the consultation is closed, all comments will appear on the CRTC’s website.

The CRTC is asking five base questions:

1. What services should be included as part of your basic telephone services today?

2. In the context of (universal basic wireline telephone access) , what role, if any, should the CRTC play in ensuring that all Canadians have access to broadband Internet service?

3. Do you think that cell phone service can be a substitute for traditional home phone landline service? Explain why or why not.

4. Do you think that wireless services (e.g. WiFi, 3G networks or satellite) can be substitutes for landline services to connect to the Internet? Explain why or why not.

5. For what activities do you use or expect to use your Internet service?

This is your chance to make your views known to the CRTC. You can be sure the industry based special interest groups will be.