Canada’s national telecommunications regulator is directing all service providers to notify it within two hours when they experience a network outage, something it notes is increasing in frequency.
The interim requirement is the first step of a consultation announced Wednesday by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission aimed at “enhancing the resilience and reliability” of telecommunications networks.
Providers must also file a report with the CRTC within 14 days following an outage.
The move comes after a mandate handed down by Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne went into effect last week, requiring the agency to implement new rules to bolster consumer rights, affordability, competition and universal access.
The directive rescinds a 2006 policy direction for the agency to rely on market forces in making decisions. It calls on the CRTC to improve consumer protection during service outages.
“Canadians need reliable, high-quality telecommunications services,” CRTC chairwoman Vicky Eatrides said in a statement.
“We are taking action to lessen the disruptive impact of service outages on Canadians, reduce their occurrence and length, and ensure that essential services such as 911 and emergency alerts are always available.”
The CRTC said in its press release that telephone and internet services go down more often due to factors such as extreme weather events, cyberattacks and accidents.
Last July, a major Rogers Communications Inc. network outage left more than 12 million mobile and internet customers without service for upwards of 15 hours.
Champagne later gave Rogers and other major telecommunications companies 60 days to come up with a joint crisis plan in case of future outages. The companies signed onto a formal agreement that ensures emergency roaming, mutual assistance, and a communications protocol for advising the public and government during such outages.
Under that pact, companies have been required since September to provide support to one another when experiencing outages so that Canadians can still place calls, access 911 and conduct business transactions.
