Quebecor bought VMedia, the latest independent competitor to get Katamaried

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The independent Internet service industry is in crisis in Canada because of anti-competition decisions by the regulator (@CRTCeng) and the government's lack of action and urgency. The latest evidence: incumbent Quebecor has acquired competitor @VMedia. 🧵 twitter.com/CarttCa/status/1552411512110817282

1. VMedia was a wholesale-based ISP (now a flanker), similar in many ways (but not as awesome ;-) as TekSavvy, and many other independent competitors. They were also a disruptive and innovative force in TV services, dragging licensed TV kicking and screaming onto the Internet.

2. Now they're the latest victim of the CRTC's failure to support a functioning wholesale industry. I say *failure*; whether it's been an active campaign against competitors or just bad regulation, telecom giants are now Katamari-like absorbing their competition.

3. Recall that earlier this year, Bell acquired the largest independent competitor in Quebec, EBOX, which had most of its subscribers on cable (on Quebecor's platform). cultmtl.com/2022/03/bell-big-telco-acquisition-of-longueuil-indie-internet-provider-ebox-sets-a-worrisome-precedent/

4. That article says it was the first time a big telco bought an independent competitor, but that's not even true: In 2020, Telus acquired "ABC" @abccomm, a key competitor in BC and apparently still a member of the competitive association BCBA. abccommunications.com/my-abc/telus-acquisition-faq

5. Look, yes, in a way, Quebecor's acquisition of VMedia, together with its proposed purchase of some of Shaw's mobile business, is an *interesting* development. The prospect of a huge hybrid facilities+wholesale business is new, and the bundling it enables is interesting. BUT… twitter.com/bramabramson/status/1552434130708987904

6. …but, this acquisition is not a step toward stronger competition. It is the same pattern of consolidation that's played out for years, where large powerful telecoms buy up smaller competitors and innovators, keeping market power within a shrinking class of giant companies.

7. This market failure is a direct result of two longstanding regulatory failures: Inflated wholesale rates, and the lack of competitive access to fibre (FTTP). Here's pre-acquisition VMedia complaining about inflated rates last year: toronto.com/news/business/independent-isps-prepare-to-raise-prices/article_c1fb1002-3378-528e-83d5-21c57bd67f6e.html

8. Correcting this requires strong, urgent action. @FP_Champagne's new Policy Direction is *something*, but it isn't enough, not even with a new CRTC Chair. That's why TekSavvy is calling for ISED to give the CRTC timelines to lower wholesale rates and to make FTTP competitive.

9. Stay tuned for more about TekSavvy's submission to ISED about the Policy Direction. /fin