Canada Faces Many of the Same Broadband Issues as the U.S.
The Canadian broadband market is similar to the U.S., with most people having internet service that’s at least 100 Mbps for downloads and 20 Mbps for uploads, experts said during a Broadband Breakfast webinar Wednesday. However, speakers noted that, as in the U.S., Canada still faces a digital divide. Similar to the $42.45 billion BEAD program, Canada is making about $4.4 billion available for broadband under its current fund, they said. The smaller fund reflects, in part, that the population of Canada is 41.3 million, versus 340.1 million in the U.S.
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Ted Woodhead, an Ottawa-based telecom consultant, said a “significant” number of Canadians have service “well in excess” of 100/20 Mbps, with most providers there at the end of their investment cycles in fiber and ahead of ISPs in the U.S. The government’s goal from 2016 is for all Canadians to have at least 50/10 Mbps service by 2030. “I have no doubt … that we’ll meet that objective,” said Woodhead, a former top executive at Rogers Communications.
Canada also has a program to make broadband more affordable for low-income residents, with service available for the U.S. equivalent of about $10 per month for those who qualify, Woodhead said.
Jason Presement, another Canadian consultant, said some parts of Canada, like the U.S., lag behind others, with about 78% of rural areas having 50/10 Mbps service or better, and First Nation areas at only 43%. While about 600,000 homes don’t have service at the 50/10 level, “they’re spread across the landmass of Canada,” he said.
Fiber and high-speed cable are readily available in urban markets, with multiple providers in most areas, Presement said. The take-up rate remains at about 45%, so many are opting not to subscribe, he noted. Outside the cities, fixed-wireless offerings by Rogers, Bell Canada and other providers are available and starting to “gain speed and traction.”
Some parts of Canada have no fiber and few other options, said Amedeo Bernardi, a broadband advocate and founder of Canada’s Rural and Remote Broadband Community. About 85% of Canada’s population lives along the U.S. border, he noted, and the population density is extremely low in other areas.
Bernardi said the fight over tariffs with the U.S. could also have an effect. He cited the decision by Ontario Premier Doug Ford to cancel the province's $100 million deal with SpaceX's Starlink, which would have brought connectivity to unserved and underserved locations in the northern part of the Canadian province (see 2502060004).
“Who is really impacted?” Bernardi asked. “It’s these small, indigenous populations” living in areas that aren’t connected to the rest of Canada by roads. “Unintended consequences” are hurting some of the least populated parts of the nation, he added.
Presement said the government had been focused on closing the digital divide through the use of satellite broadband. “That now is all in doubt.” Canada may have to look to its own version of satellite broadband, he said.