COVID-19 prompts multiple ISPs to suspend data caps

Multiple Canadian internet providers have suspended caps on data usage as they prepare for a huge increase in the amount of customers working from home in an attempt to limit the spread of COVID-19. Quebecor Inc. announced on Friday in a press release that Videotron would suspend all data caps on residential and business internet usage until the end of March to “help Québec organizations and businesses implement effective teleworking measures”, while Telus Corp, Rogers Communications Inc., Distributel Communications Ltd. and Teksavvy Solutions Inc. confirmed similar moves to The Wire Report later on Friday. Telus told The Wire Report it would waive its home internet overage charges until the end of April, but noted the majority of its home internet customers already were on unlimited data plans. A company spokesperson also said all roaming charges would be waived until the end of April for Telus and Koodo customers stuck in areas with Level 3 travel advisories. As of Friday, those countries with Level 3 advisories because of COVID-19 were Italy, China and Mongolia, while Iran was at Level 4. Telus will also issue flexible payment options for those facing financial difficulties because of the virus, the spokesperson said. A Rogers spokesperson also noted in an email that the bulk of its home internet customers were on unlimited plans, but said it would temporarily lift data caps for its customers on other plans “as we continue to explore ways to assist our customers.” The spokesperson said that Rogers would reinstate its data caps at the end of May. In a press release issued on Friday, Teksavvy CEO Marc Gaudrault said the reseller had also suspended billing overages for those on capped packages until April 5. Distributel has also lifted its data caps for at least the next 90 days. Shaw Communications Inc. does not have hard caps on its home internet plans, but a spokesperson said in an email that Shaw cable and satellite tv customers had been given access to a number of channels on free preview “to help keep their family entertained” as schools closed around the country. Asked about its confidence that Shaw could meet any increase in network consumption, the spokesperson said the company was “confident” recent upgrades would allow it to handle usage increases that may stem from increased remote working. “We also continue to work closely with industry partners across North America and the world to understand the network impacts they are seeing to help us best predict, model and mitigate issues to our network before they become an issue,” the spokesperson said. Videotron CEO Jean-François Pruneau on Thursday told analysts during Quebecor’s quarterly earnings call that he was “not worried at all about the impact of the virus on network consumption and capacity.” In an email, a Rogers spokesperson said the company continually invested in networks to stay ahead of demand and its business continuity team and network engineers were working tirelessly to “ensure our national wireless and business services, emergency services such as 911, and home internet continue to run seamlessly.” “We are monitoring our network and are ready to increase capacity quickly if we see greater consumer demand or usage patterns change significantly,” the spokesperson said. In a post to Twitter, Cogeco Inc. senior director of regulatory affairs Leonard Eichel said a 30-50 per cent increase in traffic during the day was “more than manageable” because the company’s networks were configured to handle peak loads in the evening and traffic was generally much lighter during the day. Eichel later clarified that he was not speaking on behalf of Cogeco. BCE Inc. did not respond to a question about whether it would also lift data caps, but a spokesperson said in an email that Bell was “focused on ensuring continued access to network and communications services for consumers, businesses and governments.” All of Bell’s home internet plans offer unlimited data except for its most basic Fibe internet plan, which has a 50 GB limit. The plan is marketed on its website to “light internet users” at a cost of $49.95 a month. -- With reporting by Adam Langenberg at alangenberg@thewirereport.ca and editing by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewireport.ca

COVID-19 prompts multiple ISPs to suspend data caps

News | March 13, 2020

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COVID-19 prompts multiple ISPs to suspend data caps

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