CRTC Chair Len Katz called out Bell Canada and Bell Aliant yesterday for failing to extend broadband to dozens of rural communities across the country as required by a 2010 decision. Katz noted that in August 2010 the Commission directed the large phone companies to spend over $420 million from […]
Post Tagged with: "bell"
What a Difference a Year Makes: Bell on Local Television Channels
Last year, when Bell’s purchase of CTV was undergoing regulatory approval, the company went out of its way to emphasize its support for the struggling local channels it was acquiring as part of the deal. At a CRTC hearing on the issue in February 2011, company officials stated: the ‘A’ […]
CRTC’s Net Neutrality Rules in Action: Bell To Drop P2P Traffic Shaping
Bell advised the CRTC yesterday that it plans to drop all peer-to-peer traffic shaping (often called throttling) as of March 1, 2012. While the decision has been described as surprising or as quid pro quo for the usage based billing ruling, I think it is neither of those. The writing […]
Undue Intervention: Why the CRTC Got It Wrong on Exclusive Content
The CRTC analysis involves a two-step process. First, it considers whether an undertaking has given itself a preference or subjected another person to a disadvantage. If it finds a preference, it moves to a second step to determine whether the preference is undue. Note that the burden of demonstrating that the preference was not undue rests with the undertaking that has granted it.
In this case, the Commission found that Bell granted itself a preference by entering into an exclusive contract for NHL and NFL programming. Note that the NFL programming is not something that Bell produces or otherwise owns. There is also no indication that the Bell’s wireless access to the NFL is linked to similar licenses for its broadcasting properties (Bell says the NFL deal was concluded before its purchase of CTV). If this constitutes a preference, then any exclusive contract will seemingly rise to the level of a preference and the party that enters into it may be faced with the burden of demonstrating that it is not an undue preference (which appears to be precisely what the Commission has in mind).
Do Bell’s Throttling Practices Violate CRTC Net Neutrality Rules?: It Says P2P Congestion Declining
Earlier this week, Bell wrote to its wholesale ISP customers to let them know that it is shifting away from throttling practices that have been in place for several years. The letter states: Effective November 2011, new links implemented by Bell to augment our DSL network may not be subject […]
Recent Posts
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 269: Inside the Bill C-22 Committee Hearing for the Case Against Government’s Lawful Access Plans 
The Online Streaming Act Bill Comes Due: Why the CRTC’s Latest Ruling Guarantees Years of Trade and Legal Battles 
The Government Tries to Make the Case for Bill C-22: Why Its Own Use Cases Reveal Disproportionate Overreach 
Tech Exodus: Why Bill C-22’s Privacy and Security Risks Will Drive Digital Services Out of the Country 
The Lawful Access Two-Headed Surveillance Monster: How Bill C-22 Went Off the Rails
