CRTC promotes greater use of Internet protocol technology by phone companies

By The Canadian Press  | January 19, 2012

Link to originating article

GATINEAU, Que. - The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission is changing its policies to encourage big phone companies to adopt Internet protocol technology throughout their networks.

The federal regulator says the phone companies right now are at different stages on using IP technology and it wants to see faster adoption of the system.

The major companies are gradually shifting from traditional voice circuit-switched technology — called TDM — to IP, while newcomers such as cable and wireless providers have IP networks.

The policy changes are aimed at encouraging everyone to make the jump.

One change deals with how the costs of transferring telephone calls between a wireless and a wireline provider are shared and will reduce costs for wireless providers.

The CRTC says this will level the playing field between independent providers and those that are affiliated with a larger communications company.

The changes are part of a major policy review which has led the commission to deregulate parts of the telecommunications market in recent years.

The CRTC sees IP as the way of the future.

"The networks of the future will be primarily based on Internet protocol," said Konrad von Finckenstein, chairman of the CRTC. "We have established basic principles to ensure this technology becomes the industry standard for voice networks as quickly as possible."