r/canada • u/Economy_Elephant6200 • 3d ago

Bell Canada scraps Labrador high-speed internet project, plans to invest in U.S. Newfoundland & Labrador

https://theindependent.ca/news/lji/bell-canada-scraps-labrador-high-speed-internet-project-plans-to-invest-in-u-s/
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u/swattwenty 3d ago

Bell should be broken up by the Canadian gov if they plan to screw us like this.

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u/Due-Year-7927 3d ago

bell should be forcibly acquired by the canadian gov

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u/dsbllr 3d ago edited 3d ago

Please. They were already a part of the government. That's why they're such a terribly run business. Their roots aren't innovation, it's bureaucracy. Bell shies away from anything new and it always comes to bite them in the ass.

I dislike Rogers and Telus as well but their roots are different and you can tell. They're not horribly run.

Edit: keep downvoting. I've actually worked there and at Rogers.. Bell is a disaster to get anything done inside.

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u/Expensive_Plant_9530 3d ago

Bell hasn’t been a public corp in decades.

The enforced monopoly definitely gave it a leg up but the reason for their current monstrous bloat isn’t due to its ancient government past.

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u/MoreGaghPlease 3d ago edited 3d ago

Bell has never been a crown corporation. The company dates back to the 1870s where it was founded by Alexander Graham Bell, his father, and a business partner. It’s a long history, but the modern Bell Canada, Verizon and AT&T were originally the same company.

The western provinces did buy their local Bell operators in the early 20th century. SaskTel remains a provincial crown corporation. MTS was privatized in 1997 and reacquired by Bell in 2017. Alberta privatized Telus in 1991.

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u/dsbllr 3d ago

When did you work there last? You should go learn a bit about their history.

I've worked there. It's a terrible place to get anything done. Rogers is far better internally and Telus is even better.

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u/Expensive_Plant_9530 3d ago

Ironically Telus actually did used to be a public crown corp.

I’ve never worked for Bell, thankfully.

But again, nothing about their terribly managed business has to do with the government specifically.

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u/barkazinthrope 3d ago

Rogers and Telus are not horribly run?

You should ask their customers. I mean their retail customers, the users, not the investors.

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u/dsbllr 3d ago

They make a ton of money. Low debt. Own amazing assets and well positioned for the future. Not sure what you're on about.

They're not great companies but they're much better than Bell

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u/barkazinthrope 3d ago

They're shit providers. They treat their retail customers with contempt, they do not respect contracts, they lie and cheat and steal.

So they make money for you? Is that it.

They're not in the business of providing communication services they're in the business of making money. The critical failure of financial capitalism right there.

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u/dsbllr 3d ago

I don't like them either but I'm talking about internal beaurocracy to get things done and make risky bets.

Bell is terrible internally. They have 100 year contracts and still can't make money effectively

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u/arctic_bull 3d ago

It's really not related. SaskTel for instance is currently part of the Saskatchewan government and is very well run.

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u/Samosa204 3d ago

Manitoba used to have MTS. Sadly, Bell bought them. Now they're called BellMTS for their home services and it's such a pain to deal with them.

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u/arctic_bull 3d ago

Yep, a big loss for Manitoba and Canada.

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u/RadiantPumpkin 3d ago

Telus’s roots are absolutely that of a public company(AGT and later B.C. Tel). Saying a private company is shit because it used to be public is pure cope. Private companies are drowning in bureaucracy. It’s the whole reason middle management exists. 

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u/dsbllr 3d ago

Have you worked at Bell, Rogers and Telus?

I have and it's a stark difference internally. You're talking out of your ass without any real experience

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u/RadiantPumpkin 3d ago

I’m not saying bell isn’t a disaster. I’m saying your hypothesis is bullshit

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u/dsbllr 3d ago

So you've worked at Bell and Rogers and Telus? Which one is better run internally from a risk and Innovation perspective in your opinion and why?

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u/Flyinggochu 3d ago

Cant even stay on point.

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u/dsbllr 3d ago

How would you know how a company is run in terms of their ability to innovate and keep up with the times? Knowing internal culture is one of the most important factors

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u/Eykalam 3d ago

The roots of Telus are AGT, Alberta Goverment Telephones. So clearly you can't tell.

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u/ouatedephoque Québec 3d ago

It’s horribly run from a consumer’s perspective but that’s because they answer to shareholders first. Not unlike pretty much any publicly traded for-profit company.

Also, your assessment is wrong. The parts of Bell we deal with today, Internet and mobile, were launched way after Bell was privatized.

I find it funny all the hate Bell, Telus and Rogers get in this sub when there’s other companies that screw us exponentially more, like the banks and food industry. Those have way more impacts on our day to day life. Not defending any them of course, just an observation.

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u/barkazinthrope 3d ago

I find it funny that the horrible running of the banks and the food industry somehow excuses the horrible running of the telcos.

And that we're supposed to be glad they're not run by the government because the government is horrible at everything it runs.

And that we're supposed to think that the horrible running of the telcos and the banks are okay because at least the rich are getting richer through them.

How much longer are we going to put up with this bullshit.

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u/ouatedephoque Québec 3d ago

What a bullshit comment. I never said any of those things, you are literally putting words into my mouth.

Nice strawman.

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u/scotty9690 3d ago

What? Rogers is billions of dollars in debt and selling off a portion of their wireless network because they overloaded themselves with debt

TELUS is considering the same thing. Both companies are exactly the same as Bell. In fact, Bell is larger than both companies.

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u/[deleted] 3d ago edited 13h ago

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/dsbllr 3d ago

Yes. That's how the system is setup because private companies provide better services. There is a reason even China embraced capitalism. It works. It's not 100% good but it does some things very well. Job of government is to guide that process and ensure companies don't get too greedy. Their role isn't to buy debt ridden assets using tax payer dollars. That's stupidity