Rural eastern Ontario internet too slow, politicians say

Upgrades are needed to make broadbandinternet service faster inrural eastern Ontario, politicians say, and they're making their case for more fundingat a CRTC hearing on broadband service in Canada that began Monday and ends later this month.

In 2015 a rural broadband network started providing high-speed internet to more than one million peopleacross 50,000 square kilometres of rural eastern Ontario.

But thenetwork had been planned years earlier, and since then, the needs of residents have changed dramatically.

"Demand for internet speed is constantly increasing. When we started in 2010, Netflix didn't exist in Canada and now 40 per cent of the internet traffic ispeople using it for Netflix," said David Fell, CEO of the Eastern Ontario Regional Network, which was created by theOntario Wardens' Caucus to provide higher speeds and bandwidth to at least 95 per cent of homes and businesses in eastern Ontario.

More money is needed to improve speed, and to also upgrade cellular broadband service, Fell said.

"Alot of the internet traffic is moving to mobile devices, so we're advocating to both the federal and provincial governments to increase cell broadband infrastructure as wellto eastern Ontario," Fell added.

• Listen to the two men make their case on Ottawa Morning.

'More capacity'

Peter Emon, the warden of Renfrew County andchairof the Eastern Ontario Wardens' Caucus, said the government's regulatory framework needs to change to designatebroadband internet an essential service, and to make rural internet service on par with urban service.

"[Rural residents]want it quicker, they want faster downloads, they want more capacity to download bigger files," he said.

"We think it should be an equal price point, and that means the federal governmentandtheprovincial government and local governments are going to have to band togetherto ensure that that service is there at an affordable rate."

The CRTC's hearings on broadband internet service in Canada are expected to wrap up on April 28.