Archive for June 22nd, 2009

Canada’s Digital Economy: Toward A Safer, Stronger Online Marketplace

I appeared earlier today at Industry Minister Tony Clement's Canada's Digital Economy Conference.  I shared the stage with Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart and Tim Wilson from Visa Canada on a panel titled Toward A Safer, Stronger Online Marketplace.  My prepared remarks are posted below:

Canada’s Digital Economy: Toward A Safer, Stronger Online Marketplace

Michael Geist, June 22, 2009

Let me begin by thanking Minister Clement – both for the invitation to speak here today and more importantly for his leadership on this critical issue.  We all recognize the importance of the digital environment for commercial, cultural, educational, and communication purposes.  Canada was once a proud leader in this arena and I think most would acknowledge that we have failed in recent years to articulate much-needed vision, strategy, and perhaps most importantly – urgency.

Minister Clement opened today’s conference by citing confidence as one of his key concerns.  I think he’s identified a crucial concern.  Privacy and security are key components in instilling this confidence, but there are other issues.  I recently wrote about a digital action plan and I want to tease out several points that arise within the context of building confidence. 

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June 22, 2009 13 comments News

The Guardian’s Crowdsourcing Success

The Guardian reports on its crowdsourcing success of sifting through hundreds of thousands of records involving MP expenses.  In a matter of days, 20,000 people have examined about 160,000 documents.

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June 22, 2009 3 comments News

Ordinary Thursday Anything But For Canadian Internet

My weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) notes that last Thursday began as an ordinary, rainy, spring day in Ottawa.  Canadian politicians, having just avoided an unwanted election, were only two days away from an extended summer break.  Yet by the end of the day, a trio of events unfolded that could help shape the Internet in Canada for years to come.

The first event took place mid-morning, with the introduction of new lawful access legislation.  The bills would dramatically change the Internet in Canada, requiring Internet service providers to install new surveillance capabilities, force them to disclose subscriber information such as name, address, and email address without a court order, as well as grant police broad new powers to obtain Internet transmission data.

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June 22, 2009 14 comments Columns

Ordinary Thursday Anything But For Canadian Internet

Appeared in the Toronto Star on June 22, 2009 as Liberal Shift May Assure Net Neutrality Last Thursday began as an ordinary, rainy, spring day in Ottawa.  Canadian politicians, having just avoided an unwanted election, were only two days away from an extended summer break.  Yet by the end of […]

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June 22, 2009 Comments are Disabled Columns Archive