CANADIAN TELECOM REGULATOR EXPECTED TO BE REVAMPED

Planned review of Canadian telecom regulator Canadian Radio- TV & Telecom Commission (CRTC) will examine whether parts of media and telecom industries can be deregulated and how regulatory process can be streamlined, senior govt. official said. “There used to be neat, tidy compartments between computers and broadcasting and telecommunications. That’s no longer the case. It’s time to take a look at this,” he said.

First review in decade follows federal govt.’s plan to provide favorable environment for Canadian companies competing in global economy, official said. While its scope and whether it will be conducted by an independent commission hasn’t been decided, “it could be quite ambitious,” he said. As result, responsibility for copyright regulation, competition issues and investments could be placed under one umbrella organization and number of commissioners, currently 13, could be reduced, sources said. “There are a lot of people who think the tool kit could be changed,” official said.

Possible CRTC changes come as new FCC Chmn. Powell in U.S. could place pressure on Canada to accept broader U.S. presence in industry, said Mark Quigley, assoc. research dir. for Yankee Group in Canada. “There could be some pressure to have things happen in Canada,” he said, such as raising caps on foreign ownership of telephone companies and other service providers. “I don’t think Canadian companies can expect to have any cooperation overseas if our markets aren’t open at home,” he said. Powell could put issue of foreign investment restrictions in Canadian telecom industry back on bargaining table, agreed Eamon Hoey, pres. of Toronto- based telecom consultants Hoey & Assoc.: “I think it will be a bargaining chip somewhere along the way.”

Timing of review also coincides with changes in CRTC management, officials said. Former Chmn. Francoise Bertrand announced in Dec. she was stepping down, and David Colville, responsible for telecom since 1995, has been named interim chmn. for 6 months. His tenure gives govt. time to undertake review and possibly complete it, official said. “If they're going to go after high-caliber people, they have to be able to tell them what the job is,” he said.

Telecom issues currently before commission may be affected by review, observers said. For example, cable companies are applying for right to own analog specialty channels, which has been prohibited by CRTC in past, officials said.