The GNWT needs to play a stronger role in fostering competition in the Northern telecommunications market, industry players told a government committee on Monday.

The Standing Committee on Economic Development and Environment heard from three presidents of NWT internet service companies who described a tight business environment that favours Northwestel over smaller companies.

KatloTech Communications

Lyle Fabian, president of KatloTech Communications, outlined to the committee the plans of his Yellowknife-based company to build internet networks in more Indigenous communities and help open up the North to more internet service providers (ISPs).

KatloTech has over the last 11 years helped construct the fibre-optic network of the Katlodeeche First Nation, brought online the fibre optic network of the Gahcho Ku茅 mine and deployed the broadband network for Ndilo and Dettah, among other  projects.

SA国际影视传媒淲e want to help enhance competitiveness and bring our services to the Mackenzie Valley Fibre Link (MVFL),SA国际影视传媒� Fabian said. SA国际影视传媒淥ur work will help Indigenous communities own their own networks. We lease infrastructure to ISPs at a fraction of the costs.SA国际影视传媒�

Some of the company's projects have benefitted from grants through the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor), but Fabian said the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) needs to pay more attention to investing in community-based broadband projects.

SA国际影视传媒淲e need the CRTC to understand that Indigenous-led projects are the key to solving the last-mile digital divide,SA国际影视传媒� he said, referring to the installation of wiring and infrastructure that connects end users with internet networks. SA国际影视传媒�(Communities) need to gain better access to their own broadband networks. Community governmentsSA国际影视传媒� would benefit by gaining access to a First Nations-owned networks. (Government) committees need to look at healthy competition in the North.

SA国际影视传媒淲e shouldn't allow continuous players to gain massive advantage over smaller ISPs operating in the North. Northwestel received a grant to increase fibre optic communication in Inuvik, but they hired Valard Construction from the south to build the network. Why didnSA国际影视传媒檛 they hire locally? Why didnSA国际影视传媒檛 they hire New North Networks in Inuvik? They have the ability to hang fibre in the community.SA国际影视传媒�

SSi Canada

Jeff Philipp, president and co-founder of SSi Canada, pulled no punches in his presentation to the committee, accusing Northwestel of SA国际影视传媒渘akedly crushingSA国际影视传媒� competition in the telecommunications field of the North.

In November, SSi filed an intervention with the CRTC over NorthwestelSA国际影视传媒檚 application for unlimited internet services in the North.

SA国际影视传媒淲e need a fair playing field and an end to single-source suppliers,SA国际影视传媒� Philipp said. SA国际影视传媒淲ork with multiple suppliers. Consumers benefit when there's competition in wholesale too. Northwestel has a monopoly on the fibre backbone in the NWT and Yukon.SA国际影视传媒�

Philipp explained that on Monday, SSi filed two applications with the CRTC. One urges the regulatory body to fix the SA国际影视传媒渦njust discriminationSA国际影视传媒� built into NorthwestelSA国际影视传媒檚 new unlimited internet packages.

SA国际影视传媒淭he CRTC must make sure that all customers benefit from the recent broadband fund contribution of $62 million. By not lowering wholesale rates, they (Northwestel) blatantly discriminate against customers who are also their competitorsSA国际影视传媒� including SSi, Iristel, Global Storm, KatloTech, New North Networks and others, Philipp said.

SSi's second application calls on the CRTC to require Northwestel to offer third-party internet access (TPIA) to its competitors. TPIA is based on a that seeks to regulate wholesale internet services from large carriers by requiring them to make services available for resale.

Philipp said Northwestel is the only phone and cable company in Canada not required to offer TPIA to competitors.

SA国际影视传媒淭his is long overdue and it has been supported by the GNWT as a necessary measure for years now. We just need the commission to actually hear us. Both filings ask the commission to act urgently, not to wait two years or longer to first complete a review of the regulatory framework of Northwestel. Residents of the NWT and Yukon shouldnSA国际影视传媒檛 be denied benefits available to Canadians elsewhere,SA国际影视传媒� Philipp said.

In terms of the GNWT's role in fostering competition, the SSi president said he would "love to see requests for proposals for the governmentSA国际影视传媒檚 internet connectivity requirements in communities. If you broke it out then people in each community could improve their business by having that contract.SA国际影视传媒�

In one of his final comments to the committee, Philipp contrasted the premium prices that Northerners pay for commodities with internet prices.

SA国际影视传媒淲hatSA国际影视传媒檚 fair access? In the NWT, we fight for fair premiums on things like food, gas and alcohol. But nobody seems to care when the wholesale price for broadband is hundreds of per cent higher than it is in Ottawa,SA国际影视传媒� he said.

New North Networks

The third presenter, Tom Zubko, president of New North Networks in Inuvik, said a major issue with competition in the North is that the GNWT hasnSA国际影视传媒檛 properly supported locally-owned businesses to shepherd competition.

SA国际影视传媒淩ight now we only have platitudes with little chance of real change,SA国际影视传媒� he said.

Rates for wholesale bandwidth reveal a historic mismatch between what Northwestel used to charge and what the GNWT currently charges for New North Networks to tap into the MVFL.

Zubko said his company now pays 1/100th of what it used to pay Northwestel for the current bandwidth.

SA国际影视传媒淭hatSA国际影视传媒檚 probably the most important fact ISA国际影视传媒檝e heard today,SA国际影视传媒� replied Yellowknife North MLA Rylund Johnson. SA国际影视传媒淣orthwestelSA国际影视传媒檚 wholesale rate is completely unjustified.SA国际影视传媒�

Pressed for specifics on how the GNWT, as a telecommunications purchaser, might allow more competition, Zubko said one possibility is the GNWT could buy its internet services from more than one company.

SA国际影视传媒淏ut even further, GNWT spends millions of dollars and talks about developing Northern companies. It would be fair that if you really do believe in those ideas and goals that you should be dictating to the bureaucracy that they should spend more on local companies rather than on a Bell Canada corporation,SA国际影视传媒� he said.

NorthwestelSA国际影视传媒檚 parent company is BCE, formerly known as Bell Canada.

A Northwestel representative didn't attend Monday's committee meeting, though the committee is trying to schedule a time for Northwestel to speak with them, said Glen Rutland, deputy clerk of the legislative assembly.

Sandy Kalgutkar, deputy minister of finance, said affordability of internet services will be a priority area when the GNWT prepares its comments for a regulatory framework on telecommunications in January.