Not sure how I feel about this.
One- I’ve always enjoyed backing the underdog (ooo- a pun). Two- Fido’s only downside is a smaller network. Lands End Road don’t know Fido. If Telus eats Fido (dog eat dog, yes) then presumably they’ll nuke the redundant relays and Fido will access Telus’s network directly. Great news as far as range goes. But Fido’s value lays in its across-the-board lower rates (and obviously the no-contracts deal). If Telus takes over I assume we’ll be saying bbye to lower rates. Hell, without scrappy little Fido shaking things up Rogers, Telus and Bell will split the market, with absolutely no room for underdogs to jump in the game. As if that’s not a recipe for price fixing.
But on the other hand, ipso facto, my coverage would get a lot better, and I don’t think they would repeal existing service agreements.
So I guess in principle I’m concerned about serious undermining of the glorious gift we call healthy competition, but in the end I just don’t want my rates to go up. And I seem to recall something about Fido starting the contract thing recently.
Hmm.
And what’s the cause of Telus’ panic attack? Fido’s $45 a month flat rate for local air time. That’s how it’s done in the UK, and there’s a bit of a rustle in the US along the same lines. So obviously Fido is going to see an angle and take it. Telus is afraid that it will work, dragging profits down throughout the market and costing Telus market share. Right. Blame the other guy. I say it’s inevitable. That’s the way the world is going. Realistic costs based on realistic models. Nobody pays for local time with a landline. So Telus is just trying to bully a few more dollars for another year or two.
Then again, with the three giants in charge they could hold off flat rate pricing indefinitely, couldn’t they.
Hmm.