The CRTC has denied a request from Quebecor’s Videotron that would have driven up prices for Canadians on the cheapest internet plans available from smaller providers.
Videotron applied back in October 2025 to remove four low-speed wholesale tiers it sells to competing ISPs: 5Mbps down, 10Mbps down, 15Mbps down and 20Mbps down. The company argued it no longer offers those speeds to its own retail customers, so it shouldn’t have to keep offering them wholesale either.
Two of those competitors, Bravo Telecom and ColbaNet, pushed back hard. They told the Commission that if Videotron got its way, the cheapest speed tier still available to smaller ISPs would jump in price by 85%. ColbaNet said it uses those low-speed connections for payment terminals in stores, sensor data collection, and residential customers who are financially struggling.
The interveners pointed out that Videotron still provides the 10Mbps tier through the federal Connecting Families Initiative, which offers discounted internet to eligible low-income Canadians, and still sells a “Business Internet 15” package using the 15Mbps speed. Videotron countered that Connecting Families reaches only a small number of people meeting specific income and age criteria.
The CRTC sided with the competitors in its August 20 ruling, saying it found Videotron gave no real justification beyond meeting the technical speed-matching requirement, and said the change would disproportionately hurt competitors in a way that runs counter to affordability goals in the Telecommunications Act.
But there was one small win for Videotron, as the CRTC approved the removal of two tiers, 0-5Mbps and 6-10Mbps, since nobody is currently using them.
Bravo Telecom and ColbaNet argued that Videotron’s flanker brand, Fizz, routinely sets retail prices lower than the wholesale rates independent competitors are forced to pay. The independent providers said this creates an unfair price squeeze that makes it nearly impossible for them to compete. However, the CRTC ruled that complaints about the overall pricing structure fell outside the limits of this specific review.
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