Canada's Big 3 telecommunications companies say they've already taken action to reduce the cost of international roaming and plan to introduce more options for customers next year.
Bell Canada said it intends to give customers more flexibility when travelling abroad through options "tailored to their usage and travel duration, ultimately lowering their roaming fees," starting in early 2025.
Last month, the CRTC called on Bell, Rogers Communications Inc. and Telus Corp. to detail the "concrete steps" they are taking to respond to concerns about rising cellphone fees that consumers face when travelling outside Canada.
The commission had warned it would launch a formal public proceeding if the companies didn't show "sufficient progress" on the matter.
In their written responses submitted last week, the companies argued against the need for regulatory intervention, saying the international roaming rates they offer are already comparable to, or lower than, those offered by providers in other countries.
"In short, the Canadian market offers a comparable, or in some cases better, range of (international mobile roaming) options for subscribers compared to what is offered to subscribers in other international markets," said Bell's assistant general counsel Philippe Gauvin in the company's Nov. 4 submission.
Further details of Bell's planned new roaming offers were redacted in a copy of the company's submission posted to the CRTC's website.
But Gauvin said those new offers "should fully address any concerns" of the CRTC when it comes to international roaming costs.
"These new options will provide additional flexibility and affordability for Canadian travelers in a highly competitive market, allowing them to continue to lower their roaming fees," he wrote.
Rogers and Telus also said they planned to give customers new roaming options, although specifics were redacted in their submissions as well.
"In 2025, we will take several actions that will further respond to consumers’ interest in different and more flexible options for international roaming," wrote Rogers vice-president of regulatory telecom Howard Slawner.
Rogers charges $12 and $15 for daily U.S. and international roaming, respectively.
Last year, Telus raised the daily cost to roam in the U.S. from $12 to $14, and in other destinations from $15 to $16. Bell hiked daily U.S. roaming from $12 to $13 at the time, and international roaming from $15 to $16.
A previous review by the CRTC — which relied on confidential information from Canadian cellphone companies, along with studies and public information on roaming — found Canadian travellers often face "inflexible" roaming rates regardless of how much they use their cellphones abroad.
One of those studies, conducted by Networks, Economics & Strategy Inc., said Canadian roaming rates were among the middle of the pack compared with Australia, Japan and the U.S. for usage up to three days. However, for usage exceeding three days, Canadian roaming rates "are generally among the highest," the report concluded.
It said carriers in other countries offer various options, including roaming plans that specify maximum usage of voice call minutes, text messages or data — either as a combination or for individual services — over a certain number of days.
In its submission, Telus argued that report was "fatally flawed," saying it relied on incomplete data and incorrect and unclear methodology.
Telus pointed to monthly plans it has launched in the past 18 months that offer international roaming "at highly reduced rates," along with new travel passes that provide access to data and unlimited text messages and voice minutes in the U.S., Europe, Mexico and the Caribbean.
"The launches provide Canadians with more flexibility to choose services tailored to their duration and location of travel," said Telus' submission.
It warned that if the CRTC decides to regulate international roaming rates, Telus "would have to cover those input costs through raising revenues from other services."
Telus chief financial officer Doug French added that regulators and the federal government should consider that overall cellphone and internet costs continue to decline, according to reports from Statistics Canada.
"We will continue to look at our overall pricing model, including roaming, but the decrease in pricing that we've seen over the past 12 to 18 months has been very, very significant," French said in an interview last week.
"A lot of the price points at the moment are a bundled offering for North American roaming or expanded roaming, so I think it's starting to be addressed already within that pricing regime of those bundles."
Slawner said the study commissioned by the CRTC focused on fixed daily rate plans for roaming, but did not sufficiently emphasize the growing adoption of bundled roaming plans — domestic monthly plans that already include international roaming to select countries.
He said such plans offered by Rogers have seen "meaningful adoption" since they first launched in 2018.
"The growth of these plans needs to be recognized as they continue to help drive down roaming costs for consumers," said Slawner.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 11, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:RCI.B, TSX:BCE, TSX:T)
Sammy Hudes, The Canadian Press