The cost of cellular phone plans for Rogers customers is set to increase in the coming weeks, according to a statement from the company. The price updates will affect Rogers and Fido customers without a contract, while those with a term contract will not see any changes to their “base monthly service fee” until their contract is up. Rogers says that the price changes are necessary to ensure they can continue delivering mobile services with the highest standard of quality and reliability. The changes are due to increased capacity, expansion of service into more communities, and improvements to customer service tools. The specific cost changes will depend on the current plan or bundle customers have.
Some wireless customers have already been notified of the price change, which will take effect after Jan. 17. Additionally, Bell Mobility may also be increasing the price of cell phone plans, according to a media report, but further details were not available at the time of publication.
Data from Statistics Canada shows that cell phone prices dropped by around 22 percent between November 2022 and November 2023, with the annual amount Canadians pay for cellular services dropping by over 5 percent between 2021 and 2022. Despite this, households spent about $109 each month on cell phones in 2021, which accounted for about 1.7 percent of total monthly expenses.
The price increase comes shortly after Rogers completed its takeover of Shaw Communications in a merger worth $20 billion. In May 2023, the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) announced that it was developing a policy to increase cell phone competition for Canadian consumers.
According to a report from the Privy Council Office released last year, most Canadians are dissatisfied with the affordability and reliability of internet service options. The survey showed that consumers felt internet services were not fairly priced and called for the government to address these issues across the country. Participants also expressed the belief that high-speed internet should be viewed as a basic right going forward, given its essential role in work, study, and communication.