As of March 2021, there are over 33 million wireless subscriptions in Canada.[1] Approximately 90% of Canadian mobile phone users subscribe to one of the four largest national telecommunication companies (Rogers Wireless, Bell Mobility, Freedom Mobile and Telus Mobility) or one of their subsidiary brands. These four mobile network operators own and operate transmission facilities that cover most of the country, though they sometimes share each other's networks in certain geographical regions in order to reduce costs and reach more customers.

The remaining 10% of subscribers are served by smaller, regional providers, mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs), and resellers.[2] Regional providers own and operate transmission facilities that cover a limited area and rely on partnerships with national service providers to connect their customers across Canada. In contrast, MVNOs and resellers do not own spectrum or network infrastructure and are required to lease network capacity from other providers at wholesale rates. While MVNOs have their own facilities to package and support their mobile services, resellers rely on the host network provider to package, market, bill, and deliver mobile services.[3]

All wireless service providers in Canada are regulated by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), which has been blamed by some for the concentration of wireless service subscribers to only three large national carriers. Though measures have been taken to encourage more competition, critics suggest that more should be done to address the issue, e.g. by mandating wholesale network access for MVNOs.[4][5]

Mobile network operators (MNOs)

This is a list of mobile network operators, which includes national and regional service providers. Where applicable, this list will also include any subsidiary "extension" brands associated with a mobile service provider. While primary brands, such as Rogers Wireless or Bell Mobility, account for roughly 82% of wireless revenue, extension brands allow wireless service providers to differentiate service offerings and reach broader market segments.[6]

Operator Subscribers
(in millions)		 Coverage
(excluding roaming)		 Ownership
Airtel Wireless Calgary, AB Airtel Wireless Ltd.
Bell Mobility 10.028 (Q2 2023) Nationwide[note 1] BCE Inc.
Eastlink Wireless 0.075 (Q4 2015) NB, NL, NS, ON, PE Eastlink
Fleetcom Unknown Toronto, ON Fleetcom Inc.
Iristel NU, NT, YT, QC Iristel
Keewaytinook Mobile Remote ON[7][8] Communities K-Net
Rogers Wireless 11.349 (Q2 2023) ON, QC, NS, NB, MB,
BC, PE, SK, AB, NL		 Rogers Communications
SaskTel Mobility
  • Lum Mobile
 0.654 (Q4 2022) Saskatchewan SaskTel
Sogetel Mobilité Quebec Sogetel
Qiniq NU SSi Canada
EEyou Mobility Quebec SSi Canada
TbayTel Mobility Ontario TbayTel
Telus Mobility 9.798[9] (Q2 2023) Nationwide[note 1] Telus Corporation
TNW Wireless BC, YT TNW Networks
Québecor 3.600 (Q2 2023) QC, ON, BC, AB Québecor
  1. 1 2 Bell Mobility and Telus Mobility have a multiple operator core network agreement to provide a common radio network to the customer (distinct from a roaming arrangement, where the radio networks are separate). Bell builds most of its towers in Eastern Canada, while most of Telus' towers are in Western Canada.

Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) and resellers

Operator Network Ownership Type
7-Eleven Speak Out Wireless Rogers Wireless Ztar Mobile Reseller[10]
rasamobile.com Unknown Rasa Mobile
dotmobile Iristel[11] Data On Tap Inc. MVNO[10]
Cansel Connect Rogers Wireless Cansel
DCI Wireless Telus Mobility DCI Telecom Reseller[10]
Execulink Mobility Bell Mobility Execulink Telecom Reseller[10]
Fongo Wireless Rogers Wireless Unknown Data only plans
good2go Mobile Canada[12] Rogers Wireless Ztar Mobile Reseller[10]
KORE Wireless[13] Rogers Wireless KORE Telematics
OnStar Bell Mobility General Motors
PC Mobile Bell Mobility Loblaws Reseller[10]
Good2Go Mobility (formerly Petro-Canada Mobility) Rogers Wireless Ztar Mobile Reseller[10]
Wundle Mobile Bell Mobility/Telus Mobility Fabricate INC
PhoneBox Rogers and Telus PhoneBox Reseller
Canadiansim.com Rogers Wireless Canadiansim.com Reseller

Former MVNOs

Operator Network Ownership Notes
Solo Mobile Bell Mobility Bell Canada Discontinued for new customers, but still active for current ones.
Clearnet Telus Mobility Telus Mobility Discontinued as of June 2, 2012. Started on April 5, 2011 by Telus.

Defunct, merged and acquired operators

Some operators listed below may still function as a separate brand but they no longer own any infrastructure (towers, network, etc.).

Operator Ownership Voice technology Data technology End date Notes
CityWest CityWest GSM EDGE December 13, 2013 Wireless services discontinued; mobile customers transitioned to Telus[14]
Clearnet Clearnet Communications CDMA2000 EV-DO 2000 Network merged with Telus
Dryden Municipal Telephone Service Dryden Municipal Telephone Service GSM, CDMA2000 EDGE, EV-DO December 21, 2012 Wireless customers migrated to Tbaytel[15]
Fido Microcell GSM EDGE November 8, 2004 Network merged with Rogers; continues to operate as an MVNO.
Kenora Municipal Telephone Service Kenora Municipal Telephone Service CDMA2000 EV-DO February 2008 Acquired by Bell Aliant.
Lynx Mobility Lynx Mobility GSM EDGE March 2018 Ceased operations.
Mobilicity DAVE Wireless UMTS HSPA+ July 19, 2015 Acquired by Rogers Wireless; customers transitioned to Chatr Mobile.
NorthernTel Mobility NorthernTel Mobility June 19, 2014 Acquired by Bell Aliant
Public Mobile Public Mobile CDMA2000 EV-DO August 8, 2014[16] Acquired by Telus; CDMA network decommissioned, continues to operate as a Telus MVNO[16]
Superior Wireless Superior Wireless CDMA2000 EV-DO August 2006 Merged with TBayTel
Télébec Mobilité Télébec February 2007 Télébec Mobilité wireless subscribers moved to Bell Aliant.[17]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Subscribers Stats EN 2021 Q1" (PDF). CWTA. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Communications Monitoring Report 2015" (PDF). CRTC.
  3. ↑ "Mobile Service Providers". February 16, 2016.
  4. ↑ Geist, Michael (May 8, 2015). "CRTC falls short on true wireless competition". Toronto Star.
  5. ↑ Chin, Brian (May 8, 2015). "No room for low-cost MVNO smartphone plan providers in Canada".
  6. ↑ "Percentage of revenues and subscribers derived via primary brands, extension brands, and resellers/rebillers, 2014" (PDF). Communications Monitoring Report. CRTC.
  7. ↑ "K-Net Mobile 3G Data Map | MOBILE". mobile.knet.ca. Archived from the original on September 27, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
  8. ↑ "Network Coverage – KuhKenah Network". Archived from the original on October 31, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
  9. ↑ "TELUS reports resilient operational and financial results for second quarter 2023". TELUS. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Wideman, Alex. "What is an MVNO? List and Status in Canada". Cansumer. Retrieved September 26, 2022.
  11. ↑ "Iristel - Iristel Partners with dotmobile". www.iristel.com. September 22, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2021.
  12. ↑ soon to be absorbed by PCM
  13. ↑ only data, no voice
  14. ↑ "About TELUS". about.telus.com. Archived from the original on December 16, 2013. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  15. ↑ "DMTS Notice to Customers " Dryden Municipal Telephone System". Dryden Municipal Telephone System. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  16. 1 2 "Public Mobile". www.publicmobile.ca.
  17. ↑ "About Télébec > History".
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