Does Telus match competitors pricing (ex. Koodo)?

[momof5]

Does Telus match competitors price plans(ex. Telus)? As well as cell phone offers?

[xl · Accepted solution]

Fyi.... koodo is Telus.

The question is when will discount competitors match Telus's coverage instead of going bankrupt and charging roaming fees IN CANADA.

[Nighthawk · Accepted solution]

@xl, the answer for that is easy. Wind can only offer that deal in the states because the provider they teamed up with isn't an over priced money hungry blob. Bell, Rogers and Telus are epic sponges soaking up all the money they can. Competition is a foreign concept to them all. If Telus charged the prices Wind charges, they would still make money. Data is extremely overpriced as it talk and text. In the States you can get a brand new iPhone and an unlimited everything plan as low as $30/month. Here? Will never happen.

[xl · Accepted solution]

Fyi.... koodo is Telus.

The question is when will discount competitors match Telus's coverage instead of going bankrupt and charging roaming fees IN CANADA.

[Nighthawk · Accepted solution]

@xl, the answer for that is easy. Wind can only offer that deal in the states because the provider they teamed up with isn't an over priced money hungry blob. Bell, Rogers and Telus are epic sponges soaking up all the money they can. Competition is a foreign concept to them all. If Telus charged the prices Wind charges, they would still make money. Data is extremely overpriced as it talk and text. In the States you can get a brand new iPhone and an unlimited everything plan as low as $30/month. Here? Will never happen.

[Kaj · Accepted solution]

If you can provide a link to this $30 unlimited everything plan that would be great. I just checked T-Mobile's website since they're usually the cheapest US provider with nationwide coverage and their unlimited plan is $70/month. Even their Unlimited Talk&Text plan with 500MB is still $50, $20 more than this mystery plan you speak of.

I get that we pay more than the US for wireless service, but they also have 10 times the population. Our most population dense province has just under 25 people per kilometer. The 10th most populous state is California which has around 96 people per kilometer. Which means there are nearly 4 times the people (and potential subscribers) per kilometer, which means the money for infrastructure and towers could theoretically be quadrupled over our potential in the most densely populated province.

Even if you take into account the large parts of Canada that are uninhabited, California still has a larger population than our entire country. Setting up the towers to cover a comparatively small area like California would be much less expensive (when you take into account the extra towers and support for the larger strain put on the network, it's still likely much cheaper) than setting up towers to cover a much larger area with less income from subscribers to pay for it all.

[tsizzle]

Don't forget the prices you're quoting at T-Mobile do not include the monthly cost of the device - Telus include this in the cost of the rate plan. Its really $50 + ~$27/month for an iPhone 5s fore example.

[Dark_Knight]

I think the problem with that argument @Nighthawk is that if the national carriers charged the prices that companies like WIND and Mobilicity charge, we'd still be living in a cellular stoneage.

Consumers expect the latest and greatest devices, but they also want networks that are capable of taking advantage of them. We are very lucky to have not one, but three carriers that are able to provide networks that meet the criteria. 

Europe is a great example of why charging the consumers more now is a necessary evil - It allows the carriers to afford the infastructure required to future-proof our cellular networks. Heck, the vice president of the European Commission went on the record stating "The EU is teetering on the edge of network collapse. Global mobile traffic is predicted to grow 66% a year, smart devices are everywhere and people want to watch video on those devices. Without more spectrum being made available the whole thing falls apart." The only countries in the EU that have advanced rollouts of 4G networks are Germany, Estonia and Sweden.

Canadian consumers have been exposed to two spectrum auctions in the last 5 years, so we all know how much money is costs the carriers just to purchase that spectrum - It costs even more money to deploy it. There is always a trade off, it's just a question of what you can live with. Personally, I would rather pay more now to have access to some of the best cellular networks in the world. I have a youtube addiction. 😛