MPs to debate studying cellphone plan hikes as some companies raising prices

A person uses a cellphone in Ottawa on Monday, July 18, 2022. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick)

OTTAWA -

As some MPs gather Thursday to mull a request for a study on cellphone package price increases, telecom industry watchers say it's clear costs are too high despite indications that prices have come down in recent years.

Members of the Standing Committee on Industry and Technology are set to discuss the topic after Rogers Communications Inc. confirmed last week that prices were going up by an average of $5 for wireless customers not on contract.

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Some Bell customers have also posted photos on social media of notices informing them their wireless bills are set to increase, however BCE Inc. has not responded to requests for comment.

Today's meeting was requested by committee members Rick Perkins, Ryan Williams, Brad Vis and Bernard Genereux of the Conservatives and Bloc MP Sebastien Lemire. They wrote in a Jan. 8 letter the looming price hike by Rogers "appears to be the first material impact of Canada's cellphone market becoming less competitive" following Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne's approval of the Rogers-Shaw merger last year.

The Canadian Telecommunications Association has touted data compiled from Statistics Canada's inflation reports showing cellular costs have declined more than 47 per cent over the past five years in contrast to an overall inflation increase of 19 per cent for the same period.

But consumer advocate Mohammed Halabi says some big companies are trying to sell larger plans with more data and bundling options, meaning consumers may see their telecom bills growing, though they're getting more bang for their buck.

 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 11, 2024.