Good afternoon.
My name is Laura Tribe. I am the executive director of OpenMedia. I'm speaking to you today from Ottawa, as a guest on the traditional unceded territories of the Algonquin nation.
Today, as we discuss the fate of Canada's communication systems, I'd ask you to remember that indigenous peoples from all across the country are still working to access the Internet on their own terms, all while continuing to be amongst the most underserved in terms of Internet access, in many cases underserved by the companies we are here to discuss today.
This is the third time I've spoken before this committee in the past year. At the last two appearances, we discussed the critical need for action to bring affordable connectivity to everyone in Canada, especially during the pandemic. Unfortunately today, instead of talking about the progress we've made since, we're here to talk about a dramatic step backwards in that fight. I'll make it simple: Canadians can't afford this deal. You must oppose the sale of Shaw to Rogers.
You must oppose this deal if you care about affordable Internet access in Canada. You must oppose this deal if you care about bringing more choice and competition into Canada's cellphone markets, if you believe in improving customer service, if you believe in protecting jobs in western Canada, if you believe small and local providers deserve a chance. You must oppose this deal if you believe in bringing adequate connectivity to rural, remote and indigenous communities across Canada.
Big telecom is already too big. Canadians already have too few choices. We simply can't afford a massive step backwards.
Rogers filled its press release of the deal with promises for everything Canada wants: jobs, 5G, and rural, remote and indigenous connectivity. When Bell purchased MTS in 2016, we heard similar promises. We also saw similar results to what we'll see here: Prices went up, people were laid off and competition went down. Promises were broken.
As nice as Rogers' big promises might sound, there is absolutely no way to hold Rogers accountable. There are no guarantees of what will come if this deal is allowed to pass, except one: Canadians will suffer.
Almost 19,000 Canadians have already signed a petition opposing this deal. Stop letting big telecom hold Canadians hostage, desperate for whatever connectivity we can get. It's time to stand up to them, please.
Thank you.