ALERT!

Thousands of Alberta jobs under THREAT if Rogers buys Shaw

Email your MP NOW to demand our federal government completely block this deal!

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What’s happening?

Telecom behemoth Rogers is trying to buy out Alberta-based Shaw — and Ottawa plans to let it happen.

This Stampede, we’re pounding the pavement in Calgary for one reason: to make it clear to Minister Champagne and PM Trudeau that Albertans WILL NOT STAND for our federal government’s support of the terrible Rogers-Shaw deal.

So what?

If our federal government lets this terrible deal go through:

  • Thousands of Alberta jobs are under threat1
  • Your family will pay more for their telecom bills (it already happened in Manitoba when Bell bought smaller provider MTS!2)
  • Industry titan Rogers will gain even more control over our Internet

Albertans deserve BETTER. We already pay some of the highest prices in the world for our cell phones and Internet. With the cost of living exploding, higher telecom costs are the last thing we need.3,4

Why now?

The Rogers-Shaw sale is already on shaky ground; it’s been challenged by the Competition Bureau and condemned by concerned MPs from ALL sides.5-7

But it’s not enough. Unless everyday people dial up the pressure on Ottawa right now, this unfair buyout could still go through.

This is our last and best shot to defend Alberta jobs by demanding Rogers-Shaw be totally blocked!

Will you take action?

EMAIL YOUR MP!

But what about...

…Rogers’ promises to make the buyout worth Alberta’s while?

Rogers is playing with smoke and mirrors. Whether it’s claims of increased broadband investments or a future regional office in Calgary, the sole purpose of these promises is to mask the smell of a rotten deal.8 If Minister Champagne and Trudeau allow this deal based on Rogers’ wishy-washy promises, Albertans will be left holding the bag. 

There is absolutely nothing holding Rogers accountable to fulfilling their word. Once all is said and done, there is no way to guarantee that Rogers will not default on everything they’ve promised Albertans — just like the T-Mobile/Sprint merger in the United States.9,10 T-Mobile promised its mega-$$$ buyout of Sprint would create new jobs, but in fact, The Wall Street Journal reported that the company actually cut jobs post-merger.11 Sound familiar?

Let’s be clear. Buyouts exist to save companies money — not to spend money on new Alberta offices, build out Internet to rural communities, or invest in the West. They’re doing this to make billions by mowing down the competition.

…splitting Freedom Mobile off from the Rogers-Shaw deal?

Spinning off Freedom Mobile does not make the deal any less harmful to Albertans. Letting Freedom be sold to another telecom giant like Quebecor is no better of a solution than selling it to Rogers.12 The outcome is the same: thousands of Alberta jobs are still under threat, and Shaw, a HUGE innovator and competitor in the market, will be lost to Big Telecom. Meanwhile, we will continue to pay some of the highest prices in the world for cell phone services.13

…the Competition Bureau? I thought they blocked this buyout already!

Unfortunately, Rogers-Shaw is still very much alive, despite the Competition Bureau’s rightful challenge of the deal. On May 9th, the Competition Bureau made headlines siding with Canadians against Rogers’ bid for even more power and influence. Now, the challenge moves to a lengthy Tribunal process that will determine if the Bureau’s block will hold — meaning the Rogers-Shaw deal could still go through, UNLESS Minister Champagne and Trudeau act to stop it.14

…what Minister Champagne claims about his limited power to stop Rogers-Shaw?

Here’s the bottom line: Minister Champagne and Prime Minister Trudeau ALREADY have the power to render this buyout deal dead in the water. All they need to do is insist that wireless spectrum owned by Shaw must stay with Shaw, and may not be divested to Rogers or any other party. As the only ones who can fully stop this buyout, we need their unconditional opposition. To get it, we must ACT. If we bring our MPs into the fray to publicly pressure Minister Champagne and the Prime Minister, we can make it politically impossible for them to side with Big Telecom.

On board?

Email your MP NOW: Call on Minister Champagne and PM Trudeau to block Rogers-Shaw!

TAKE ACTION

 

Sources

  1. Shaw Communications - Forbes
  2. Bell’s takeover of MTS will harm middle class consumers and businesses who rely on affordable telecom services - OpenMedia
  3. The state of 4G and 5G pricing, 2H2021 – country rankings - Rewheel
  4. The federal government's little secret: internet prices are soaring - Teksavvy
  5. Competition Bureau seeks full block of Rogers’ proposed acquisition of Shaw - Competition Bureau Canada
  6. Competition Bureau seeks to block Rogers-Shaw buyout - OpenMedia
  7. Proposed Acquisition of Shaw Communications by Rogers Communications: Better Together? Report of the Standing Committee on Industry and Technology - House of Commons
  8. Why Alberta politicians hope a takeover bid of Calgary's Shaw will be an economic win - CBC
  9. The T-Mobile / Sprint merger hasn’t created jobs — it’s ended them - The Verge
  10. Predictably, T-Mobile’s merger promises weren’t enough to make a carrier out of Dish - The Verge
  11. See 9
  12. Rogers, Shaw and Quebecor announce agreement for sale of Freedom Mobile - Rogers
  13. Consumer groups and opposition parties support move to block Rogers-Shaw merger - National Post
  14. See 5

Press

Press releases
Read OpenMedia’s press release here: July 11, 2022

Media Contact
Rosa Addario | Phone: +1 (888) 441-2640 ext. 0  | [email protected]

 


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