The federal telecom regulator may be backing away from a high-stakes fight with Netflix.

In a letter to the U.S.-based, web-streaming service on Monday, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications’ secretary general John Traversy said the CRTC has “the powers of a superior court . . . to enforce its orders” and oblige Netflix to provide confidential business data.

But he said the regulator has decided to carry on without the information.

Traversy, however, said the CRTC would expunge on Oct. 2 all public record of Netflix’s participation in public hearings on the broadcasting system if it continues to refuse to relinquish closely held information. The CRTC will base any regulatory outcomes on the data available.

“It’s not the hill (the CRTC) wants to die on today,” said a source, who added that the regulator aims to avoid protracted litigation that may or may not assert its authority over Netflix and other unregulated content providers such as Google’s YouTube.

In pressing Netflix, the arm’s length regulator could also run contrary to wishes of the Prime Minister who has said he would not favour a “Netflix tax.”

The CRTC sent a letter to Google similar to the Netflix correspondence after Google showed reluctance when asked to provide data, citing competitive reasons. Google submitted additional information pursuant to a CRTC request, but it may not have been proprietary data.

During the final day of the Let’s Talk TV hearing, Netflix refused to hand over information on its subscribers in Canada and its spending on local programming, saying it needed absolute guarantees the data would be kept private.

The CRTC’s seeming unwillingness to take on Netflix and Google comes despite a warning Netflix’s exemption from regulation in Canada would be at risk if it failed to comply with the data request.

The letters were made public as the regulator commenced a week long hearing into the state of competition in the country’s wireless industry. The CRTC is examining the wholesale rates carriers charge to use each other’s networks, along with cellular tower sharing arrangements

Upstart carrier Wind Mobile told the hearing Monday that the rates are too high, even after Ottawa imposed an interim cap.

Toronto-based Wind said the rates should be below what incumbent carriers charge a retail customer, to reflect the lower cost of providing wholesale services.

Both Wind and fellow upstart Mobilicity said there is a need for regulatory intervention in roaming and site sharing, despite evidence changes have helped Wind better compete for new customers against the big three — Bell, Rogers and Telus.

Mobilicity argued that established companies have used their market power to discourage competition at the wholesale level, though the company believes the retail market is competitive.

Both Wind and Mobilicity said incumbents lack motivation to provide easy access to their infrastructure for rivals seeking to win market share.

The week-long CRTC hearting aims to determine if the wireless market is competitive and if further regulation is needed in the interest of consumers.

In an initial fact finding exercise the CRTC found what it called clear examples that certain wireless companies were subjecting smaller Canadian competitors to unjustly discriminatory rates and terms for roaming services.

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The CRTC has responded by prohibiting exclusivity clauses from being included in roaming deals.

The CRTC panel will hear views on roaming and will also examine whether companies that do not have their own network infrastructure or spectrum should have access to certain wholesale wireless services at rates set by the commission.

It is to determine whether “greater regulatory oversight would be appropriate” and is widely expected to set a cap on wholesale rates lower than Ottawa’s interim measure.

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