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With its declaration that high-speed Internet a basic service, Canada’s telecom regulator is shifting its regulatory focus from voice to broadband.

In a much-anticipated decision released Wednesday, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission declared that all residents are entitled to access voice and broadband Internet services on fixed and mobile wireless networks.

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The ruling compels telecommunications providers to help fund $750-million in broadband infrastructure in rural and remote areas over the next five years, sets ambitious speed targets and requires them to offer an unlimited data plan.

“These goals are ambitious, they will not be easy to achieve and they will cost money. But we have no choice,” Chairman Jean-Pierre Blais said at a news conference.

“The future of our economy, our prosperity, our society – indeed the future of every citizen – requires us to set ambitious goals, and to get on with connecting all Canadians for the 21st century.”

The CRTC will mandate Internet speeds of 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download and 10 Mbps upload – 10 times faster than existing speed targets, which Blais said “didn’t cut it anymore” given the exploding demand for data.