Telecoms in Canada

[AlvinofDiaspar]

Ya, I have seen that map or versions of it before. It's a little dated since Bell has already said they are "reevaluating" the scope of the project 9cool that they get todo that after receiving public money under an existing set of terms). It seems that some areas no longer have enough customers (translate: they've dinked around long enough that customers have given up and gone with other providers, even though they are not considered 'affordable'; i.e. Starlink). Our road is listed as 'in progress', so I guess flagging tape on poles for a couple of years is progress. I looked where our daughter and SIL live and a stranded part in the middle is shown as 'completed'. I'm sure the residents there would be surprised to know that.

In an normal world, you agree to do something, do it, then get paid. Not when governments are involved it seems.

It would be interesting to see the exact terms of the agreement with the government - and whether the payment is stepped to performance.

AoD

 

[Towered]

I recently dumped Rogers and now they're spamming me with calls begging me for business.

 

[Towered]

I recently dumped Rogers and now they're spamming me with calls begging me for business.

*UPDATE*

They just called me again to bug me and follow up on a call from last week - the guy on the phone actually had the nerve to give me a guilt trip that I was difficult to get a hold of the last few days (as if I owe them my availability), and when I said that I had decided to remain with my current service provider, he immediately hung up on me How incredibly rude - for this harrassment and behaviour alone, I would have to be desperate to ever utilize their services again.

**** YOU, ROGERS.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

*UPDATE*

They just called me again to bug me and follow up on a call from last week - the guy on the phone actually had the nerve to give me a guilt trip that I was difficult to get a hold of the last few days (as if I owe them my availability), and when I said that I had decided to remain with my current service provider, he immediately hung up on me How incredibly rude - for this harrassment and behaviour alone, I would have to be desperate to ever utilize their services again.

**** YOU, ROGERS.

Just tell him you can't plausibly be as difficult to get hold of as a customer rep who can actually resolve customer issues without being put through elevator music for a couple of hours.

AoD

 

[gabe]

*UPDATE*

They just called me again to bug me and follow up on a call from last week - the guy on the phone actually had the nerve to give me a guilt trip that I was difficult to get a hold of the last few days (as if I owe them my availability), and when I said that I had decided to remain with my current service provider, he immediately hung up on me How incredibly rude - for this harrassment and behaviour alone, I would have to be desperate to ever utilize their services again.

**** YOU, ROGERS.

If you live in house they will knock at your door with a tablet in hand begging you to go back with them. There is an army of them on my street as type this, no joke! Going to all the non Rogers households. I guess it's that time of year again. I heard a knock at the door about an hour ago, and saw what i assume is some poor temporary foreign worker in this cold wearing a bright red rogers jacket knocking at the door. I answered the door and told him i'm happy with Bell. He said how much is your bill? I said none of your business, i tried to say goodbye and he went on his big monologue about how much better Rogers is. I had to cut him off and say dude i have to go, i'm letting the heat out! lol He left his Rogers business card in my mailbox.

What a pain in the ass these guys are.

 

[lenaitch]

If you live in house they will knock at your door with a tablet in hand begging you to go back with them. There is an army of them on my street as type this, no joke! Going to all the non Rogers households. I guess it's that time of year again. I heard a knock at the door about an hour ago, and saw what i assume is some poor temporary foreign worker in this cold wearing a bright red rogers jacket knocking at the door. I answered the door and told him i'm happy with Bell. He said how much is your bill? I said none of your business, i tried to say goodbye and he went on his big monologue about how much better Rogers is. I had to cut him off and say dude i have to go, i'm letting the heat out! lol He left his Rogers business card in my mailbox.

What a pain in the ass these guys are.

They're all the same. We get at least one, usually two, Bell reps a year. They're looking for sales. Some don't know about the pending (term used loosely) Fibe line, one actually tried to downplay it which I thought was a curious corporate approach. They are trying to sell fixed wireless. The best the nearest tower will give is about 25M which isn't great. They suggest I 'might' be able to get more. Ya, and I might get less.

 

[afransen]

If you live in house they will knock at your door with a tablet in hand begging you to go back with them. There is an army of them on my street as type this, no joke! Going to all the non Rogers households. I guess it's that time of year again. I heard a knock at the door about an hour ago, and saw what i assume is some poor temporary foreign worker in this cold wearing a bright red rogers jacket knocking at the door. I answered the door and told him i'm happy with Bell. He said how much is your bill? I said none of your business, i tried to say goodbye and he went on his big monologue about how much better Rogers is. I had to cut him off and say dude i have to go, i'm letting the heat out! lol He left his Rogers business card in my mailbox.

What a pain in the ass these guys are.

My secret? Never answer the door. It's only ever scammers, real estate agents, and other people who want your money.

 

[Towered]

If you live in house they will knock at your door with a tablet in hand begging you to go back with them. There is an army of them on my street as type this, no joke! Going to all the non Rogers households. I guess it's that time of year again. I heard a knock at the door about an hour ago, and saw what i assume is some poor temporary foreign worker in this cold wearing a bright red rogers jacket knocking at the door. I answered the door and told him i'm happy with Bell. He said how much is your bill? I said none of your business, i tried to say goodbye and he went on his big monologue about how much better Rogers is. I had to cut him off and say dude i have to go, i'm letting the heat out! lol He left his Rogers business card in my mailbox.

What a pain in the ass these guys are.

It's my personal policy not to answer the door unless I'm expecting someone, and not to answer my phone if I don't recognize the number. The only reason they got through to me is because I'm expecting some calls from contractors

 

[JJTheJetPln]

For those unaware, Telus is now offering a "truly unlimited" plan (akin to those from US providers) where there is no data limit/bucket for the month. There is a limit of 50GB for hotspot data use, but the phone data itself does not have any limits.

As a disclaimer - I am not sponsored for, nor am I employed by Telus. I'm just sharing this plan in case anyone is interested.

 

[afransen]

If hotspot is limited, what is an unlimited data plan useful for vs a 100,150,200gb plan? Has to be a very niche use case.

 

[ericmacm]

I’ve been taking a look at the past 4 or so years of changes in the telecom world here in Canada and it’s been crazy transformative if you look at everything that has happened:

• Rogers purchasing Shaw and subsequently now having the biggest and arguably most complete physical network footprint (cell towers and broadband) in Canada.
• Telus acquiring physical internet assets in eastern Canada (Start.ca, Altima, and City Wide) and now offering home internet in Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic Canada through physical assets and as a reseller, finally offering home internet services on both sides of the country.
• Bell now offering home internet in Alberta and BC as a reseller, finally offering home internet services on both sides of the country.
• Quebecor acquiring Freedom and combining it with Videotron coverage, becoming the fourth “big” network and providing coverage across the country, including now in Manitoba as an MVNO.
• Quebecor offering home internet through Freedom as a reseller across the country.
• Launch of MVNO framework which has allowed multiple MVNOs to emerge across the country, including some home internet operators that launched their own mobile services (Cogeco, Execulink, etc).

Despite all of the consolidation, we now have a “Big Four” that can actually compete with each other across the most populated parts of the country (as well as tons of resellers/MVNOs), which is fantastic for competition. I like to think that the changes in plan offerings (greater amounts of data becoming standard, “unlimited” throttle plans becoming standard, home internet plans generally getting faster/cheaper) are a result of this. It wasn’t long ago that you realistically only had 1 or 2 options for mobile/broadband. It also wasn’t long ago that Canada was at the top of the list for cost of mobile/broadband, we are still on the more expensive side but it seems we have slipped down the statistics lists a bit over the last few years. Hopefully this continues as the Big 4 continue to build out their respective physical cell tower and broadband/fibre networks.

 

[gabe]

What a surprise.

Rogers (which now includes Shaw) now gets the most complaints about TV and telecom services, while complaints against Telus are up 78%, says the CCTS in its annual report.

Telecom and TV Complaints Continue to Rise Across Canada: CCTS Annual Report

Billing issues remain top concern for wireless, internet, TV, and phone service customers. Ottawa (January 14, 2026) – The Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS) released its Annual Report today, outlining key consumer complaint data, trends, and emerging issues across...

www.ccts-cprst.ca

 

[AlbertC]

Rogers offers voluntary departure packages to roughly 10,000 employees

Rogers Communications Inc. is offering voluntary departure packages to about 10,000 employees in its workforce as the telecom giant moves to cut costs amid slowing industry growth.

www.ctvnews.ca

Rogers Communications Inc. is offering voluntary departure packages to about 10,000 employees in its workforce as the telecom giant moves to cut costs amid slowing industry growth.

The company confirmed to CTVNews.ca that certain teams across its business units and corporate functions are eligible for the program, which allows employees to opt for a buyout or retirement package.

“We are taking steps to adjust our cost structure to reflect the business realities of the current environment,” a Rogers spokesperson said in a statement. “As part of this, some teams have chosen to offer voluntary departure and retirement programs to give some employees the choice to decide whether they’d like to stay with the company or begin a new chapter.”

Not all employees are included. The company says unionized workers are not eligible, and some groups, including on-air talent and employees working on Sportsnet productions, are excluded. Staff at Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment and the Toronto Blue Jays are also not part of the voluntary buyout program.

Rogers has already signalled a broader pullback in spending, recently cutting its capital expenditure plans by about 30 per cent compared with last year. The company now expects to spend between $2.5 billion and $2.7 billion, down from an earlier forecast of up to $3.5 billion, as it cancels or delays some projects.

 

[christiesplits]

“We are taking steps to adjust our cost structure to reflect the business realities of the current environment,” a Rogers spokesperson said in a statement. “As part of this, some teams have chosen to offer voluntary departure and retirement programs to give some employees the choice to decide whether they’d like to stay with the company or begin a new chapter.”

I suspect the decline in immigration is a driving factor. Hard to sell new phones and plans when there aren't new customers.

 

[ericmacm]

I suspect the decline in immigration is a driving factor. Hard to sell new phones and plans when there aren't new customers.

It isn’t necessarily just immigration. A lot of the pro-consumer steps the CRTC has taken over the last decade (mandating phones be unlocked, establishing competitive reselling rates, allowing MVNOs, and building up Quebecor/Freedom to be a real player) has made the environment significantly more competitive, at the expense of the traditional Big 3. Their attractiveness to investors is also currently low right now due to the state of interest rates - these kinds of companies are traditionally held by dividend investors because they pay a strong dividend. Higher interest rates result in more expensive debt servicing, which eats into the long-term sustainability of that dividend. We have seen all of the Big 3 try and hold onto their high dividends to maintain investor attractiveness, with some going so far as to increase debt to pay the dividends.

We will probably see the telecoms get forced to pivot into expansion into other sectors for make up for the declines in their traditional revenues, in addition to staffing cuts like we see here. We have seen more of this happening already with Bell buying Ziply and expanding into the US PNW states, Rogers doubling down on ownership of sports properties in MLSE (which itself will probably get spun off and publicly traded in 2026-2027), and Telus with its other subsidiaries like Telus Health and Telus Digital.