Residential phone services in Greater Vancouver and Victoria have been deregulated, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission announced today.
The first wireline phone deregulation in B.C. followed applications by Telus Corp. (TSX:T, T.A.; NYSE:TU). The company has applied for deregulation in areas covering 78% of business lines in B.C. and Alberta.
It was the second wave of deregulation after the CRTC originally deregulated services in Fort McMurray and in the Maritimes last month. The CRTC announced in April that wireline service providers can apply for deregulation in areas where significant competition exists.
Also today, Telus reported a revenue increase of 4%, to $2.23 billion, during its second quarter, driven by growth of its wireless and data services. Quarterly earnings, however, decreased 29% to $253 million, compared to Q2 in 2006.
Telus CEO Darren Entwistle attributed the earnings drop to excess costs related to a new wireline billing and client care system in Alberta, the introduction of wireless number portability (WNP) and the impact of AMP'd Mobile, which recently entered into bankruptcy proceedings in the U.S.