There has been an interesting discussion this week on Dave Farber's IP List comparing broadband speeds and linking that to the competitive environment. The discussion, which references congressional testimony and an ITIF study, notes how much faster, cheaper, and more competitive broadband services are in countries such as Japan and […]
Post Tagged with: "internet service providers"
Saskatchewan to Implement Free WiFi in Four Cities
IT Business reports that the Saskatchewan government has announced a plan to create what it called the country's largest wireless Internet network, which will allow the province's four largest cities' residents and visitors to access free-of-charge Wi-Fi in the downtown core and post-secondary institutions.
Child Pornography Blocking Plan a Risk Worth Taking
My weekly Law Bytes column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) wades back into the Project Cleanfeed Canada debate. My last post on this issue generated considerable discussion with many valid criticisms of the ISP plans to block access to child pornography. In developing this column, I posed many of the […]
Does the Government Have a Role in Internet Connectivity?
My weekly Law Bytes column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) picks up on Toronto Hydro’s announcement last week of its plans to blanket the City of Toronto with wireless Internet access. I note that the announcement has sparked an important debate about the appropriate role for governments and public institutions in providing Internet connectivity, which comes on the heels of the CRTC’s recent decision to distribute $652 million to major telecommunications providers such as Bell and Telus to help defray the costs of implementing high-speed connectivity in rural Canadian communities.
These developments place the spotlight squarely on a critical question for new Conservative Industry Minister Maxime Bernier – what, if anything, should government do about Internet connectivity?
The starting position for a Conservative government might well be to argue that government has a very limited role to play here, concluding that this is strictly a marketplace issue and that the private sector has plenty of incentives to develop networks for consumer use.
Given the Web’s importance, I argue that government cannot adopt a hands-off approach, though it must recognize that its role differs in the urban and rural markets.
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AI Spending is Not an AI Strategy: Why the Government’s Artificial Intelligence Plan Avoids the Hard Governance Questions 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 198: Richard Moon on the Return of the Section 13 Hate Speech Provision in the Online Harms Act 
Tweets Are Not Enough: Why Combatting Relentless Antisemitism in Canada Requires Real Leadership and Action 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 197: Divest, Ban or Regulate? – Anupam Chander on the Global Fight Over TikTok
