Rogers and Bell customers are about to see an increase in their wireless bills.
In an email to Daily Hive, a representative for Rogers stated that the price updates will apply to Rogers and Fido customers. And depending on their plan, customers could see an increase of $7 to $9.
Those who aren’t on a term contract will see the new prices on their first bill after January 17. However, customers on a term contract will not experience a change to their base monthly service fee for the duration of their contract.
Bell is also set to increase the rates for its wireless plans, according to a report by MobileSyrup. One customer shared a screenshot of an email sent out on December 8 alerting them to the upcoming increase. The customer’s plan is set to go up by $6 starting February 2024.
As for the reason behind the increase, the email states, “At Bell, we are continuously investing to provide world-class services, reliable connections and to support the rapidly increasing network demand.”
Daily Hive has reached out to Bell for more information.
Despite the increase, the price of wireless/internet plans has actually been dropping in Canada, according to a spokesperson for the Canadian Telecommunications Association (CTA).
They pointed out that as per StatCan’s Consumer Price Index, the cost of internet access services has dropped by almost 7% over the past five years. Meanwhile, within the same period, the price of cellular services has dropped by over 47%.
“This is in stark contrast to an increase in overall inflation of 19% for the same period,” they stated.
As the price index drops, the CTA representative stated that “Canada’s telecom sector has been investing billions each year in expanding and enhancing its networks so that subscribers enjoy faster speeds, wider coverage, and larger data allotments.”
Source: dailyhive