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"Unless decision-makers take action, Canadians will continue to face poor service and punitive high prices, and will continue to fall behind the rest of the industrialized world.” - Steve Anderson, OpenMedia.ca executive director.
Ottawa (11 March 2013) – A recent study released by the non-profit organization OpenMedia.ca shows a majority of Canadian respondents report being forced into accepting poor—often disrespectful—service. The group identifies the lack of choice in the cell phone market as the cause, pointing out that nearly 94 per cent of the market is controlled by three large players: Bell, Telus, and Rogers.
Entitled Time for an Upgrade: Demanding Choice in Canada's Cell Phone Market, the study draws upon Canadians’ realities in outlining recommendations that facilitate more choice and innovation in the cell phone market.
Canadians who participated in the study brought up twelve specific problem areas through their stories which fall into three major themes: disrespectful customer service, restrictive contracts, and price-gouging.
The study finds that 63.45 per cent of Canadians who filed a “Cell Phone Horror Story” included complaints about poor wireless service. A significant 33.09 per cent of people reported they felt trapped in contracts due to excessive and punitive termination fees.
Currently many Canadians are forced to commit to three-year contracts when entering a wireless service agreement, which impose unjustifiable barriers to switching providers. A three year term is very long in terms of the competitive marketplace, the lifetime or technological relevance of mobile handsets, and general life changes.
“The findings of our study clearly show that Canada’s dysfunctional cell phone market is a dead weight on our economy, and is in desperate need of an overhaul,” says OpenMedia.ca executive director Steve Anderson. “Unless decision-makers take action, Canadians will continue to face poor service and punitive high prices, and will continue to fall behind the rest of the industrialized world.”
Many respondents noted that they found Canadian cell phone service to be inadequate compared to other countries, and were appalled at the contrast.
Time for an Upgrade corroborates findings by the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services which has reported a severe increase in the proportion of complaints related to wireless services – from 31 per cent up to 62 per cent — since their first annual report in 2008.
More information:
Entitled Time for an Upgrade: Demanding Choice in Canada's Cell Phone Market
NUPGE: Smart Money - The Real Cost of Communicating
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