Two years after Rogers-Shaw, your cell bill is up 18%
The merger was approved in March 2023. We were told it would create a stronger Canadian champion, lower prices through scale, and improve rural coverage.
Two of those three things were untrue from the start. The third is harder to measure, so it gets to live a little longer.
What actually happened
The weighted average monthly cost of a 20GB plan with unlimited national calling:
- March 2023: $54.30
- March 2026: $64.05
That's an 18 percent increase. Inflation over the same period: 7.9 percent.
In other words, your phone bill outpaced inflation by a factor of 2.3.
The promise of Vidéotron-as-fourth-carrier
The deal was approved on the condition that Vidéotron acquire Shaw's Freedom Mobile assets and become a credible national competitor.
Freedom Mobile's national subscriber base, March 2023: 2.07 million.
Freedom Mobile's national subscriber base, March 2026: 2.14 million.
That's not a competitor entering a market. That's a tenant signing the lease their landlord already wrote.
The promised competition arrived. It is being held politely in the corner so as not to disturb the room.
Did you know that of the 78 conditions the CRTC attached to the Rogers-Shaw merger, exactly six have public compliance reports — and the other 72 are tracked only in confidential filings the public will never see?