Archive for January, 2011

Creator Groups Trade Short Term Gain for Long Term Pain in Bell – CTV Merger Review

This week the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission will hold hearings on Canada’s biggest media and communications merger – BCE Inc. and CTVglobemedia Inc.  The merger will combine the country’s biggest telecom provider, private broadcaster, Internet provider, and second largest wireless provider into a single powerhouse.  

My weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) notes that the implications are enormous, yet in stark contrast to a similar recent merger in the United States between cable giant Comcast and broadcaster NBCU, the competition concerns will take a back seat to the “benefits package” that BCE must pay to the Canadian cultural community.

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January 31, 2011 6 comments Columns

Creator Groups Trade Short Term Gain for Long Term Pain on BCE-CTV Merger

Appeared in the Toronto Star on January 30, 2011 as Monster Merger Threatens New Uses of Web This week the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission will hold hearings on Canada’s biggest media and communications merger – BCE Inc. and CTVglobemedia Inc.  The merger will combine the country’s biggest telecom provider, […]

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January 31, 2011 Comments are Disabled Columns Archive

Telus On “Unlimited Internet”

From the company’sFAQ: Q. Why do you call your service unlimited, when my monthly usage islimited?A. We refer to TELUS High Speed as being unlimited because you getunlimited hours of monthly access. Update (10:20 pm): It appears that TELUS has removed this Q & A from its FAQ. 

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January 31, 2011 29 comments News

More Canadians Speak Out on Bill C-32, Deadline Today

Today is the final day for Canadians to submit their comments on Bill C-32 to the legislative committee examining the bill.  New posts of submissions include Heather Morrison linking open access with copyright reform and Dylan McCall with a library perspective. Meanwhile, CBC.ca covers the politics behind the bill and […]

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January 31, 2011 6 comments News

ACTA: Negotiations May Be Done, But Debate Continues

Next week, the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage will begin hearings on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement.  The hearing are long overdue as many other countries have held hearings or other consultations on the agreement.  The ACTA hearings come just as the issue heats up around the world: An ACTA analysis […]

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January 28, 2011 2 comments News