SaskTel filed an application with the Federal Court of Appeal seeking a judicial review of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s (CRTC) decision requiring telecommunications companies to provide wholesale access to fibre networks.
The decision came in August 2024 and expanded on a temporary directive from the CRTC last year. The decision required Bell, SaskTel, and Telus to provide competitors with “workable wholesale access to their fibre networks” by February 13th, 2025.
However, in the application filed on September 12th, SaskTel argued the decision was “inequitable” and “unreasonable.” Specifically, SaskTel alleged the CRTC failed to consider factors like how long it would take the company to recoup its investment in the fibre network.
Elsewhere, SaskTel points out that it’s a crown corporation with a mandate to “provide coverage to all
regions of Saskatchewan, including in rural and Indigenous communications, in an economically sustainable fashion.” Combined with SaskTel’s only offering services in Saskatchewan, the company argues it’s significantly different from other large carriers.
“The case of SaskTel, with its population base of 1.2 million, a serving territory with low population density, and a statutory mandate that requires it to focus on serving the people of Saskatchewan, cannot be equated to that of the other large ILECs, each of which has expanded beyond their traditional serving territories.”
In the preliminary motion, SaskTel also attacked the Cabinet Direction, which mandated that the CRTC provide an aggregated wholesale high-speed access service. However, SaskTel alleges that the direction conflicts with the Telecommunications Act.
SaskTel wants the court to cancel the decision and return it to the CRTC to be reconsidered with additional directives from the court. The court hasn’t yet set a date for the hearing. You can find the full documents below.
Notice of Application – SaskTel – A-284-24 (FC Stamped) by jon on Scribd
Prelim Motion Record – SaskTel – 24-A-33 (FC Stamped) by jon on Scribd
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