CRTC blocks Videotron wholesale internet price hike to protect competition

This decision reinforces the regulatory floor for wholesale pricing, preventing incumbents from forcing smaller competitors onto higher-cost tiers through administrative destandardization. By blocking an 85% price jump for the lowest-speed options, the CRTC is signaling that retail 'speed-matching' rules do not override broader mandates for market competition and consumer affordability. For the streaming ecosystem, this ensures that budget-conscious residential segments remain accessible to independent ISPs who rely on these wholesale inputs. Industry observers should monitor the ongoing Telecom Notice of Consultation 2023-56, which will further define capacity-based billing rates for all major Canadian cable carriers.

The CRTC's decision to block Videotron's destandardization request arrives amid heightened scrutiny of wholesale access pricing across Canada's cable industry. In June 2025, the CRTC issued Telecom Regulatory Policy 2025-180, which established new capacity-based billing rates for aggregated wholesale Internet access services provided by major cable carriers including Cogeco Communications, replacing the previous flat-rate model with usage-based pricing that smaller ISPs argued would increase their costs significantly. That policy framework directly shapes the economics of the speed tiers Videotron sought to destandardize, since the new billing structure determines how much competitors pay for each tier they resell.

Videotron's parent company Quebecor Media has pursued an aggressive retail strategy in Quebec's broadband market, which contextualizes why the CRTC scrutinized the competitive impact of removing low-speed wholesale options. Cogeco Communications reported in its fiscal 2025 second quarter that Canadian telecommunications revenue decreased by 0.9% due to a competitive pricing environment and declining video and wireline phone subscribers, reflecting the broader pressure on cable operators that makes wholesale tier economics increasingly contentious. The regulator's willingness to approve withdrawal of two disaggregated tiers with no active customers while blocking the aggregated tier changes signals a calibrated approach: it permits market-driven exits where no competitive harm exists but intervenes where price increases would foreclose access for smaller players like independent ISPs and ColbaNet.

The broader wholesale access debate in Canada has intensified since the CRTC's 2023 consultation on fibre-to-the-premises access, which remains unresolved. The CRTC launched Telecom Notice of Consultation 2023-56 in August 2023 to examine whether incumbent carriers should be required to provide competitors with access to their fibre networks on wholesale terms, a proceeding that could fundamentally reshape the competitive landscape for independent ISPs. Until that proceeding concludes, aggregated TPIA services on existing cable infrastructure remain the primary wholesale input for smaller providers, making the CRTC's protection of low-speed tiers a stopgap measure that preserves competitive options while the longer-term fibre access question remains open. The outcome will determine whether budget-tier streaming subscribers in Quebec and other markets retain access to independent ISPs that compete on price rather than bundled services. also highlights the ongoing regulatory friction impacting the Canadian media landscape. further complicates the regulatory environment for media providers in the region.