Susan Crawford wrote on and talked about this (mis)handling of telecoms in the US context years ago, the government letting the companies divide regions up and ensure a lack of competition.
My reading of the situation in Canada for internet and wireless is that it was a historical mix of:
lacking political will/interest to govern from day one
a policy of letting the free market run until it’s a major problem
follow the US lead for anything new
and support the (then) recently de-regulated incumbent (Bell) to dominate
give competitive advantages to Canadian companies vs allowing foreign competition even if it means worse outcomes for Canadian consumers (better to protect the Canadian economy from foreign interests than to ensure consumer best interests).
Susan Crawford wrote on and talked about this (mis)handling of telecoms in the US context years ago, the government letting the companies divide regions up and ensure a lack of competition.
My reading of the situation in Canada for internet and wireless is that it was a historical mix of: