The telecommunications industry, especially in Canada, is dominated by obtuse regulations and savvy lobbyists; I am no expert in the field. Nevertheless, it appears the CRTC’s decision to treat IP-based phone services the same as fixed-line services will be a good thing for Canadians. Why? Because it may finally allow start-ups to compete with the monopoly telcos in the local-service arena.

Granted both the old and new companies will complain about the ruling, but the potentially revolutionary ruling — which flies in the face of the U.S. regulations — may actually provide real benefits to the Canadian telecommunications industry, too. Look for lots of analysis and commentary from the real experts over the next few days.