Canadians Are Roasting A Warning About 'Unforeseen Consequences' Of Lower Cellphone Bills

Watch out, Canadians: lower cellphone bills could actually be bad! Bad if you’re an investor in one of the big telecom companies in Canada, that is.

The Globe & Mail is getting absolutely roasted online after posting an opinion piece arguing that Canadians shouldn’t be pushing for lower cellphone bills because it could come back to bite them.

The headline reads: “Watch out, lower cellphone bills can have unforeseen consequences,” and no, it’s not a parody.

The piece basically argues that Bell, Rogers and Telus are hurting because they have to compete with smaller cellphone carriers offering cheaper plans, even as the feds push them to bring prices down further. The author also says lower prices have hurt the big telecoms' stock value and that’s forced them to cut jobs.

“The government’s fixation on lower telecommunications pricing has led to unfortunate unforeseen consequences. And these consequences will ultimately not just trickle down to consumers, but also ripple far and wide,” reads the column by Dvai Ghose. Ghose is not a Globe & Mail journalist but, as the story points out, he is an investor in Telus.

“Dvai Ghose is the principal at Ghose Investment Corp. His clients include Telus Communications Inc. He is the former head of global research and strategic development for Canaccord Genuity Group,” reads the disclaimer at the top of the article.

Critics were quick to jump on the author’s ties to Telus, with X users pointing out that he “has significant financial interesting in keeping cell phone bills high.”

“Did a cellphone company write this?” asked one person in the comments. “Or just someone who works for them?"

“SOMEBODY PLEASE THINK OF THE SHAREHOLDERS!!!” added another.

“Comedy gold, Globe and Mail. Comedy gold..” said someone else.

If you want to hear why shareholders need a break, you can read Ghose’s column.

If you want to know why so many Canadians want a break on their cellphone bill, all you need to do is look at research data from any firm that compares cellphone plans around the world, because Canadians generally pay more and get less.

For instance, Canada recently ranked 43rd out of 50 countries in an analysis of most affordable mobile plans, according to the research group Rewheel. The Finland-based firm releases these rankings twice a year and Canada routinely scores near the bottom for price and value.

The U.K.'s Cable.Co also ranked data prices for 237 countries last September, and Canada ranked 216th on the list.

In other words, you have plenty to complain about when it comes to value for your money on a cellphone plan. But have a little sympathy for the wealthy people losing a bit of money on their stock portfolios, won't you?