Bell CEO Mirko Bibic agrees with his great rival Pierre Karl Péladeau on one point: competition from large digital platforms like Netflix is “unfair.” The agreement with the CEO of Quebecor, however, stops there: allowing resellers to have access to Bell’s fiber optic network, as he was recently ordered, “endangers the expansion”, according to him, of the Canadian telecommunications giant.
Mr. Bibic made these remarks to an audience of some 420 business people gathered at the Palais des congrès during an event organized by the Canadian Club of Montreal. He initially described “extremely difficult conditions” for the Canadian telecommunications sector, particularly for Bell, which announced the loss of 1,300 jobs last June.
“Broadcasting is at a crossroads,” Bibic said. No one is spared from the turmoil. And I have to sound the alarm. » Bell Media’s revenues decreased by $130 million this year, compared to 2019. “Last year, we lost $40 million in our news services. So we had to make some tough decisions. »
In particular, he described at length the investments, in content and networks, that Bell has increased to face the competition; 4 billion have been invested in the network in Quebec, advertising sales methods have been modernized and its Crave platform has more than 11,500 hours of French-speaking content.
This is not enough to compete with the large American platforms, which have no obligation to invest in Canadian content, argued Mr. Bibic.
“We simply cannot compete with foreign broadcasters due to the limitations of the current system […]. Several federal governments and the CRTC did not react with the same agility to the arrival of the Internet. And the entire ecosystem is now in danger. » The Trudeau government’s recent legislative proposals are “a step in the right direction,” he believes, “but it’s not moving fast enough.”
Before the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), which is currently holding public hearings in Gatineau, Bell is first asking for relief from the obligations of traditional broadcasters. We also want American producers and foreign platforms to be obliged to collaborate with Canadian companies.
“It’s harder than ever to have access to American content, because the major sports leagues and major studios are asking for higher prices, or outright refusing to sell their content to Canadian broadcasters,” he said. Increasingly, American studios and networks are selling their shows directly to the Canadian population. »
Mr. Bibic also requested a contribution from these platforms to Canadian production funds, with a part that would be devoted to news.
The danger for Bell, however, does not only come from abroad, he said. He attacked the CRTC’s most recent decision to force Bell to open its fiber optic network to resellers.
“In recent months, we have deployed our pure fiber network in Trois-Pistoles, Saint-Côme, Lac-Beauport and dozens of other communities across the province,” he illustrated. The CRTC’s decision “compromises the business model for future investments,” he denounces. This will jeopardize the expansion of our network in communities in Outaouais, Laurentides, Estrie, Bas-Saint-Laurent, Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean and much more.”