Ottawa is once again promising cheaper cellphone and internet bills for Canadians, this time through new competition measures outlined in today’s Budget 2025, shared by Prime Minister Mark Carney and his cabinet.
But after years of similar pledges, it’s unclear whether this latest plan will actually lead to lower prices. The government admits what most Canadians already know: “Canada’s telecom sector has experienced a lack of competition, which has led to higher cellphone bills compared to other countries.”
The document says the new plan aims to “increase competition in the telecom sector to lower costs for Canadians.” Deja vu from last year, everybody?
The budget lays out a series of initiatives that sound familiar—coordinating fibre optic installations during national infrastructure projects, cutting red tape for new cell towers, and releasing more spectrum to help smaller carriers compete.
It also mentions ongoing work with the CRTC to implement “pro-consumer” changes to the Telecommunications Act that could make switching phone or internet providers easier.
These promises build on previous steps, including a 2023 government directive to the CRTC to “make it easier to cancel services, and strengthen the protections Canadians have from unfair business practices, such as paying unlocking fees for their cell phone.”
The budget also references a CRTC study into international roaming charges “to ensure the cell phone fees Canadians pay are fair and affordable.”
While the government presents these measures as part of a plan to make life more affordable, there’s no clear timeline or enforcement mechanism for when consumers might actually see lower prices. The budget offers no new penalties for telecom companies or guarantees of price reductions—instead relying on consultations, studies, and future frameworks.
Canadians have heard similar promises from Ottawa for more than a decade, yet the country still ranks among the most expensive markets in the world for wireless and internet service. Budget 2025 talks a big game on competition, but without concrete action, many will wonder if this latest effort is just another round of political noise in a long, expensive story (like the soaring $78.3 billion deficit, as government spending remains out of control).
Update: More info related to Canadian wireless prices below…
Although Canadian wireless prices have declined—such as a 40% drop for 10 GB and 50 GB plans from 2023 to 2024, per CRTC data—they remain among the world’s highest due to limited competition.
A 2022 analysis by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) underscores this, ranking Canadian mobile plans 2nd to 3rd most expensive in G7 countries plus Australia across usage baskets, often exceeding European prices by 2-4 times after purchasing power parity adjustments. Recent Cable.co.uk data places Canada at $5.72 USD per GB—double the global average—and 26 times France’s $0.28, with North America as the priciest region overall. Without stronger enforcement, costs stay burdensome compared to peers like the UK ($0.62/GB) or Italy ($0.09/GB).
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Mostly sounds like new ways to funnel cash to the big carriers to pay for their network upgrades.
Plans aren’t the problem.
People wanting iPhone 17 pro max when a regular 16 or 17 is more than enough.
People complain about plans but don’t seem to understand they are financing $1800 over 24 months. Yes it’s interest free but people wanting Ferraris instead of chevs, Hondas or whatever is the real problem.
And I’m sorry to say but the ones complaining the most are the ones who can afford to stay in Florida for 6 months a year or go on yearly cruises.
If you want a great budget plan, go with Public, lucky or even chatr. Then move from those prepaid carriers to the mother brand for a pre to post offer which will always waive the connection fee.
If you think smart you will always end up on top.
I've been reading iPhone in Canada for over a decade. Are you guys really trying to imply prices haven't gone down? We have $40 a month plans that would have costed us hundreds years ago. This is some weird partisan bullshit that makes me not want to read this site again. If you think the telecom industry is the same now vs 10 years ago, there's a huge issue with journalistic integrity. The CRTC legislation has dismantled the oligarchy in the best way, we have a new national player (Videotron), we have Telus expanding in the east, and we have a standardized price point for roaming agreements. Really expected you to do better, this is rag level reporting
I’ve noticed a certain bias especially when John Quintet is reporting. And that turns me off whenever he reports something about the government. He thinks everything is the same as it was a decade ago when the Liberal government was elected. Cell phone plans have come down significantly to the point where $40 plan options have 60-80 GB whereas a decade ago they barely had 2.5 GB.
What can we expect from someone who is clearly not a fan of the liberals?
I guess now it's okay for him to report bias rather than fact.
To be fair, I do think the prices went down, but it was not related to anything the government did. Please correct me if I am wrong.
By far the biggest change was the MVNO framework, and that did translate into more competition. There’s no more back room deals, there’s a general purpose wholesale price. For example, Telus in the west has a fibre network, bell can now pay to use it as long as they commit to build their own. Fizz is doing the same, they have “subscriber” areas that roam on the Big 3, with the understanding they’ll build towers. This has empowered companies to bundle services. It’s probably the best single piece of legislation that we’ve seen to drive telecom prices down. The decisions that Vicky Eatrides has made at CRTC is leaps and bounds better than anything we’ve seen from the CRTC previously. There was way too many loopholes in our previous policies, she’s closed them and made it a level playing field.
Well put Ty. This entire article is comparable to a comment on Reddit – with no factual support
Completely agree with this.
The problem we have now is the people “wanting” not needing the iPhone 17 pro max or any of the high end phones just because it’s the new pretty thing. Those people will complain about their bills but yet they are also the ones disappearing to Florida for 6 months of the year 🤡
I'm paying $35 for 120 gb right now.
10 years ago I was paying $90 for 4 GB, and that was a good deal.
John should continue enjoying the legal 420 Canada offers at this point. This is truly laughably inept journalism '[ and I use that term in the loosest sense.