In the wake of last summer’s Rogers outage that left millions of Canadians unable to access banking, 911 services, and basic communications, the federal telecom regulator has finally unveiled new rules requiring providers to notify customers within 30 minutes when major disruptions occur.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission announced Thursday that telecom companies must now provide rapid notification to customers and critical services during significant network failures. The decision represents one of the most concrete regulatory responses to the July 2022 Rogers outage that paralyzed much of the country for nearly 19 hours.
“Canadians deserve better than finding out about service disruptions through social media or word of mouth,” said CRTC Chairperson Vicky Eatrides in the announcement. “When networks go down, people need timely information about what’s happening and when they can expect service to resume.”
Under the new framework, telecoms experiencing major outages must provide their first public notification within 30 minutes, followed by updates every two hours until service is restored. Companies must use multiple channels including their websites, apps, and social media accounts to ensure the information reaches affected customers.
The requirements apply to outages lasting at least 60 minutes and impacting at least 100,000 households. For critical infrastructure like hospitals, police stations, and emergency operations centers, providers must maintain direct communication channels and notify them of disruptions within 15 minutes.
The Rogers outage highlighted dangerous gaps in Canada’s telecommunications infrastructure when an early-morning network update cascaded into a nationwide failure. The disruption prevented millions from making calls, accessing the internet, or processing payments. Most concerning to public safety officials, some Canadians couldn’t reach 911 emergency services.
“What we saw with Rogers was just how fragile our digital infrastructure can be,” said Dwayne Winseck, professor at Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication. “These new requirements acknowledge that telecommunications aren’t luxury services anymore—they’re essential utilities that people’s lives depend on.”
Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne, who summoned telecom CEOs for an emergency meeting following the Rogers incident, praised the CRTC’s decision but suggested more action might be needed.
“While these notification requirements represent progress, we continue examining whether structural changes are required to ensure network resilience,” Champagne told reporters in Ottawa. “The status quo is simply not acceptable when so many Canadians depend on these services for their livelihoods and safety.”
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre, which had called for even stricter requirements, described the new rules as “a step in the right direction, but hardly revolutionary.” Executive Director John Lawford noted that the 30-minute notification window still leaves a significant gap for critical services.
“Half an hour is an eternity when you can’t call 911,” Lawford said. “We had advocated for immediate notifications and stronger penalties for non-compliance.”
The new rules also require providers to submit detailed post-mortem reports to the CRTC within 10 business days of major outages, explaining what went wrong and outlining steps taken to prevent similar disruptions.
Bell, Rogers, and Telus released nearly identical statements welcoming the new requirements while highlighting their existing notification systems. Rogers pointed to its enhanced notification protocols implemented after last year’s outage, though consumer advocates note these were largely voluntary until now.
According to a recent Angus Reid survey, 76% of Canadians worry about their ability to contact emergency services during network outages, and 82% support stricter regulations on telecom companies.
The requirements take effect January 1, giving providers several months to implement necessary technical and procedural changes. The CRTC indicated it will conduct a review after 18 months to assess the effectiveness of the new framework.
For rural communities, where alternative connection options are limited, network disruptions can be particularly isolating. Sarah Johnson, mayor of a small northern Ontario community, expressed cautious optimism about the changes.
“When our internet goes down here, we’re completely cut off,” Johnson explained. “Knowing when service might be restored would at least help us plan accordingly, but what we really need is more network redundancy in rural areas.”
The CRTC’s announcement follows recommendations from last year’s parliamentary hearings on the Rogers outage, though some experts question whether notification requirements alone address the underlying issue of network vulnerability.
“Telling people their service is down is useful, but preventing outages in the first place should be the priority,” said technology analyst Ritesh Kotak. “Canada’s telecom market lacks the competitive pressure that might otherwise drive providers to invest more heavily in network resilience.”
The regulator indicated that additional requirements regarding network reliability and redundancy remain under consideration as part of its broader review of telecommunications policy.
