Archive for April 28th, 2009

The Electronic Commerce Protection Act – The Enforcement Prohibitions

The Electronic Commerce Protection Act will accomplish little if there is not a real commitment to enforcement.  The enforcement provisions form the bulk of anti-spam bill (my review of the prohibitions here, the effect on the do-not-call list here).  The enforcement part of the bill includes details on who does the enforcing, investigative powers, and penalties associated with anti-spam violations.  The short version is that the CRTC has been given a wide range of investigatory powers, including the power to compel ISPs to preserve transmission data.  Once it concludes its investigation, it can pursue a settlement or bring a notice of violation.  The penalties run as high as $10 million.  There are also smaller roles for the Privacy Commissioner and Competition Bureau as well as provisions to facilitate anti-spam lawsuits.

The more detailed version is:

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April 28, 2009 3 comments News

The Estimated Revenues From Fee-For-Carriage

The CRTC estimates that fee-for-carriage would generate $352 million in revenues for Canadian broadcasters.  As I argued last week, ultimately FFC is going to cost consumers.

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April 28, 2009 8 comments News