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Source: Joint CRTC-Statistics Canada Quarterly Survey

Mini-methodology & definitions

The data below is representative of approximately 90% of the communications industry. The data is collected on a quarterly basis and is not adjusted for seasonality.

• Landline long distance minutes refer to the number of long distance minutes that wireline (“landline, home phone”) subscribers use each quarter.
• Mobile long distance minutes refer to the number of long distance minutes that mobile phone subscribers use each quarter.

Consumer usage: Long-distance minutes

Key takeaways

• Long distance COVID-19 bump: Residential long-distance minutes have been keeping steady over the years, but increased when the pandemic hit. The increase was likely due to more people calling long distance during the lockdowns. Business long-distance minutes saw a similar increase at the start of the pandemic, but in recent quarters, it has been followed by a slight decline back to pre-pandemic levels.
• New normal for mobile long-distance minutes? Minutes for mobile long distance calls have gone up as Canadians switched to using mobile phones for work calls (including long distance) when they worked from home during the pandemic and increased their calls to friends and family. Mobile long-distance minutes have increased slightly since pre-pandemic and have remained stable since the initial increase.