Wind Mobile billionaire backer offers harsh words on the state of the Canadian wireless market

The Egyptian billionaire behind Wind Mobile is threatening to take his ball and go home over an upcoming federal auction of wireless licences, which could drastically affect competition in the Canadian mobile market. Naguib Sawiris wants Ottawa to reserve licences specifically for wireless providers like his own company—i.e. those not named Rogers, Bell or Telus—but he says instead the federal government chooses to “take our money and they leave us to the dogs.” Without the sort of restriction he’s asking for, the big three telecommunications giants (which Jesse Brown describes as a cartel in the pages of the December issue of Toronto Life) will maintain their iron grip on Canadian wireless service. In other words, they’ll continue to charge outlandish rates, maintain their absurd roaming charges and regard customers as disdainful udders of money that can be summarily milked for all they’re worth. Read the entire story [Globe and Mail] »