Archive for December, 2013

Copyright Collectives Gone Mad: How the ERCC Spent Dollars to Earn Pennies

Howard Knopf points to an interesting Copyright Board of Canada decision that provides a instructive lesson in how copyright collectives fail. At issue is the Educational Rights Collective Canada, a collective formed in 1998 to collect royalties for educational copying of broadcast programs in classrooms. The ERCC, which includes the […]

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December 20, 2013 7 comments News

Govt Promises Domestic Wireless Roaming Regulation: Can Wholesale Price Regulation Be Far Behind?

Industry Minister James Moore yesterday took another step toward improving the state of wireless competition in Canada by announcing plans to cap wholesale domestic roaming fees at the same rates the companies charge their own customers. The cost of domestic roaming has been a persistent concern for new entrants and regional wireless carriers, who argue that the national carriers increase wholesale prices for roaming that render the smaller players less competitive. The new government reforms will put an end to those concerns. Moreover, it plans to create tough new penalties for companies that violate the wireless code or other regulatory requirements, a move that may increase compliance rates.

While the usual critics will moan that the latest changes are indicative of a wireless policy with ever-changing rules, the reality is that the government has made a clear commitment toward addressing the state of wireless competition in Canada. Some of its hopes may have been thwarted – the entry of Verizon tops that list – but identifying and addressing competitive barriers should be a continuing process with regular reforms as needs arise.

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December 19, 2013 13 comments News

Podcast on the Fight for Digital Rights

I appeared on CJSR’s Think to discuss the Fight for Digital Rights. Listen to this podcast or download it in iTunes.

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December 19, 2013 Comments are Disabled ExtPodcasts

The Case For Cancelling Canada’s Simultaneous Substitution Rules

The government’s promise to implement a “pick-and-pay” television model that would allow consumers to subscribe to individual channels from cable and satellite providers garnered significant attention this fall. The approach was promoted as a pro-consumer reform that better reflects expectations that the public controls when, where, and on what device they watch broadcast programming.

Consistent with the government’s policy commitment, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission will soon report on the regulatory implications of such a reform. Changing cable packages may only be the beginning, however, as CRTC Chair Jean-Pierre Blais has stated that the regulator needs to “develop a regulatory framework that will be flexible enough to be adapted to the new technological reality.”

My weekly technology law column (homepage version, Toronto Star version) notes the unbundling of television packages represents the broadcast distribution side of the changing environment, but the flip side of the coin involves the need for changes to Canadian broadcast policy. If Industry Minister James Moore and the CRTC are prepared to shake up the way Canadians access television, they should also consider changing longstanding and increasingly outdated broadcast rules, starting with the gradual elimination of “simultaneous substitution” policies.

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December 17, 2013 6 comments Columns

The Case For Cancelling Canada’s Simultaneous Substitution Rules

Appeared in the Toronto Star on December 14, 2013 as It’s Time to Let Canadians See Those Super Bowl Ads The government’s promise to implement a “pick-and-pay” television model that would allow consumers to subscribe to individual channels from cable and satellite providers garnered significant attention this fall. The approach […]

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December 17, 2013 Comments are Disabled Columns Archive