Wired Canada

The origins of modern communications technology can be traced back to Alexander Graham Bell, who immigrated to Canada from Scotland in 1870. The inventor of the telephone, however, may have been reluctant to embrace his new technology: in his latter years, he reportedly piled towels over his phone to avoid being interrupted by the ringing. Today, Dr. Bell might be delighted to know that we have telephones that can be unplugged, intercepted by answering machines, carried from place to place, programmed to forward calls, and adapted for people with hearing, speech or visual disabilities. He might also be amazed that telephone calls can now be routed through extensive landlines, via satellite, over wireless networks and—as convergence continues—through the Internet and television.

Whether living in downtown Toronto or the High Arctic, virtually all—97% in 2001—Canadian homes possess at least one telephone. Connecting each of these homes is one of the most dependable telephone networks in the world with only 2 faults per 100 lines in 2001. Moreover, Canadians pay less for their business and residential phone services. In 2001, the cost of a residential monthly telephone subscription in Canada was significantly cheaper than rates found in other industrialized nations including the United States, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Hong Kong and Japan. For example, Canadians paid only 57% the rate paid by subscribers in the United States for basic monthly service. Business rates and connection charges for both homes and businesses were also cheaper in Canada than in the United States.