OTTAWA TO ALLOW PHONE, CABLE COMPANIES TO COMPETE
By Adnews Staff
The federal government has given the green light to cable and phone companies to offer their services to consumers by using each other's media. Under the policy announced this week, Canadians would be able to make phone calls through cable television providers and watch TV programs supplied by telephone companies. Under the deal, telephone companies will have to meet the same standards as broadcasters, including Canadian content requirements, and they will have to contribute to a fund to increase Canadian program production. Cable companies have to use the same standards as phone companies in that they must make their facilities available for lease, resale or sharing by third parties if they provide telecommunications services. Consumers will be able to use telephone and cable wires in their homes to obtain services from any supplier. Whether the companies will decide to exploit this new development is uncertain, however. There are potential technical barriers that would have to be resolved as well as some regulatory ones, such as the inability of phone companies to apply for broadcast licences.