Phone companies want CRTC decision reviewed

OTTAWA -- Canada's big phone companies have filed another appeal with the federal cabinet, this time over the CRTC's recently released ground rules for deregulating local phone service.

The four phone companies - BCE Inc.'s Bell Canada (TSX:BCE) and Aliant Inc. (TSX:AIT), Telus Corp. (TSX:T) and provincially owned SaskTel - said the April 6 policy framework was "out of touch with today's market realities."

The telcos' latest appeal to cabinet comes 10 days after they cheered Industry Minister Maxime Bernier's decision to instruct the CRTC, an independent government commission, to review a year-old policy on voice-over-Internet services.

In both rulings, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission continued to require the incumbent phone companies to face greater regulatory restrictions in providing local services than on smaller companies.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060516/CRTC_phone_060516/20060516?hub=SciTech

I would so much love to get rid of my phone company and their insidious method of preventing communication with them. Just back to letters and an internet connection.