The Economic Impact of The New Telecommunications Legislation
By: David Lister
Canada has been transformed in recent years into an information based
society. Nearly half of the labour force in Canada works in occupations
involving the collection and processing of information. In a society in which
information has become a commodity, communications provide a vital link that can
mean the difference between success or failure. Telecommunications is a
fundamental infrastructure of the Canadian economy and society. For these
reasons, an efficient and dynamic telecommunications industry is necessary to
ensure economic prosperity. Deregulating the Long Distance Industry is the only
sure way to ensure that prosperity.
Telecommunications in Canada, which include services and manufacturing,
employ more than 125,000 people and generate over $21 billion in revenues (Dept.
of Communications, 1992, p7). Telecommunications helps to overcome the obstacles
of distance in a vast country such as Canada, permitting remote communities to
benefit from services taken for granted in large urban centres. More than 98
percent of Canadian households have a telephone, and there are more than 15
million telephone lines for a population of nearly 27 million(Dept. of
Communications, 1992, p7). It is therefore not surprising that Canadians are
among the biggest users of telecommunications in the world. For example, in 1990,
Canadians made more than three billion long-distance calls (Dept. of
Communications, 1992, p8).
Innovations made possible through telecommunications have also
contributed significantly to the phenomenal growth of the Canadian
telecommunications in ...