GATINEAU, Que. - The CRTC will no longer require phone companies to collect and report certain data -- including complaints about telemarketing and affordability of telephone services.
Some of the data is no longer relevant and other data is available from other sources, so it makes sense to lighten the telecom companies' load, the federal regulator said Wednesday.
One of the requirements that's being ditched, after June 30, is a semi-annual report on complaints about telemarketing calls.
"These reports are no longer necessary with the existence of the National Do Not Call List (DNCL). All telemarketing complaints are now filed with the National DNCL, who then forwards them to the CRTC."
Likewise, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission says it can monitor affordability of telephone services using data collected by Statistics Canada.
"The CRTC will continue to monitor affordability using alternative sources and may also request data from the companies when necessary," the regulator said Wednesday.
Reports on so-called "modem hijacking" -- which involved the fraudulent use of consumers' dial-up Internet services to make long-distance calls -- are no longer necessary, it said.
"With the shift from dial-up connections (to high-speed Internet), the number of complaints of modem hijacking has decreased significantly. Consequently, the requirement to track complaints is no longer necessary."
It also no longer requires the phone companies to track the impact of competition on the pay-telephone market.
Canada's largest phone companies are BCE Inc.'s Bell Canada (TSX:BCE), Telus Corp. (TSX:T) and Bell Aliant (TSX:BA.UN).
