The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission and the Competition Bureau announced that they have signed a Letter of Agreement calling for closer cooperation between the two agencies.
The agreement, among other things, calls for the sharing of best practices through joint training exercises of employees and knowledge transfer sessions, and provides for the creation of an employee exchange program. The agencies have committed to semi-annual meetings between senior management to discuss further avenues for cooperation and collaboration.
“This agreement will allow us to build upon our longstanding relationship with the Competition Bureau in areas of mutual interest,” said Jean-Pierre Blais, Chairman of the CRTC. “Through our combined efforts, Canadians will continue to have a choice of competitive, innovative and affordable broadcasting and telecommunications services.”
“The signing of this cooperation agreement will allow us to further strengthen our commitment to competition in the telecommunications and broadcasting sectors,” said John Pecman, Commissioner of Competition. “We look forward to continuing to work together towards our mutual goal of benefitting Canadian consumers by ensuring access to services at competitive prices."
Both agencies exercise complementary roles in reviewing merger transactions within Canada’s communication industry. The CRTC is responsible for enforcing the Broadcasting Act and Telecommunications Act, while the Competition Bureau is responsible for the administration and enforcement of the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act (except as it relates to food), the Textile Labelling Act and the Precious Metals Marking Act.