SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Northwestel cable TV subscribers may be disappointed to learn that a Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications (CRTC) decision to force cable and satellite TV providers to supply a basic cable TV package for $25 a month, does not apply to Northwestel.

Northwestel is exempt from being forced to offer its cable TV subscribers a $25 basic package as of March. the CRTC says its new regulations do not apply to companies with less than 20,000 subscribers. Northwestel insists it will offer a slimmed-down package but they do not say when or how much it will cost. - John McFadden/NNSL photo

The CRTC decision was made last year and is to take effect in March. The actual enforcement of the new regulations won't kick in until September 2017.

In changes announced by the CTC last year, by December of this year subscribers with larger cable companies in the south like Rogers and Shaw must be given the option to pay for individual channels or smaller bundles.

In an e-mail to Yellowknifer Patricia Valladao, manager of media relations for the CRTC, stated that the new regulations only apply to cable and satellite TV providers with more than 20,000 subscribers.

"The commission did not want to impose this on smaller broadcasting distributors . because it would be too much of an administrative burden," Valladao stated. "That being said, since the $25 basic applied to direct-to-home operators (satellite TV providers) the commission felt that customers served by (cable companies) would have the choice of a $25 basic (with the satellite companies) and this could serve as an incentive for small cable providers to offer a comparably priced basic service."

Yellowknifer asked Adriann Kennedy, Northwestel's manager of external communications, for the number of subscribers it has across the North, but she refused to divulge them. Kennedy would also not say why she would not provide the company's subscription numbers. She did say however that the company is exempt from the new regulations but that doesn't mean its customers won't see some changes.

"The CRTC's decision was directed towards larger TV providers. But what it does do is opens up an opportunity for us to benefit from the decision as well as a small-scale provider. Before, if we wanted to offer a channel to a customer we often had to purchase it in a bundle from a larger distributor. Now we're hoping more and more to see stand-alone premium content that we can pass along to customers who can expect something that is comparable to other providers." Other changes mandated by the CRTC include providing consumers a simpler bill that lists the channels and bundles they subscribe to, making clear the length of promotional offers and giving consumers a more exact time frame when cable TV technicians are making service calls.

In Yellowknife, people who want live TV have the choice of two satellite providers - Bell and Shaw and one cable TV company - Northwestel. Yellowknifer spoke to two people who aren't buying into Northwestel and the CRTC's stance on the issue.

"They should be doing it but it'll take them years to do it honestly. I've seen it with them many times," said Bradley Choquette on whether he thinks Northwestel will in fact offer a $25 cable package.

"It already sounds iffy to me. If there wasn't a monopoly - (a cheaper package) would probably kick in immediately if there was another cable company here," said Maurie Edwards. "They may be small and it may cause an administration situation. They may have to eat some costs to gain some customers."