Appeared in the Toronto Star on July 6, 2009 as Neutrality Hearings Begin With Conflicting Claims The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission hosts long-awaited network management hearings this week, pitting Canada’s telecom and cable companies against a broad range of consumer, creator, and technology groups in a fight that may […]
Post Tagged with: "Shaw"
CRTC New Media Hearings – Day Nine: Astral, Rogers, Cogeco, Shaw, CTV, CCSA
On Tuesday, the Commission conducted hearings with leading broadcast and telecom companies including Astral Media, Rogers Communications, Cogeco Cable, Shaw Communications, CTV GlobeMedia, and the CCSA. The lively discussion focused on the ISP levy, with strong opposition to the levy and even the hearings themselves. The following review was compiled by University of Ottawa student Yael Wexler.
Canadian ISP Alliance Forms For New Media Fight
Canada's leading telecommunications and cable companies have formed the Canadian ISP Alliance as they gear up for the forthcoming fight at the CRTC over a potential new levy on ISP services. The ISP Alliance, which includes all the major Canadian players (Quebecor, Rogers, Cogeco, Telus, MTS Allstream, Shaw, Sasktel, Eastlink, Bell, and Bell Aliant) argues that the CRTC's plans to revisit the 1999 new media exemption order is unnecessary. While the ISP Alliance is not alone in making that argument (the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and ITAC reach the same conclusion), their submission is noteworthy because it includes a legal opinion that argues that the CRTC does not have the legal authority under the Broadcasting Act to impose a new levy on ISPs (the levy is being promoted by several groups including ACTRA).
The legal opinion from Fasken Martineau DuMoulin first tries to make an analogy to satellite services, which similarly transmit video and audio content, yet have not been regulated as broadcast undertakings. The opinion also notes the functional separation between telecommunications and broadcast regulation, arguing that it was the clear intent of Parliament to regulate broadcasters in the Broadcasting Act and telecom companies in the Telecommunications Act.
While the legal opinion makes no reference to net neutrality, the issue could ultimately play a pivotal role.
CBC’s Marketplace on ISP Speed Claims
CBC's Marketplace features an eye-opening investigation into the misleading ISP claims about consumer broadband services.
Engadget Reports Cable Co’s Actively Using Broadcast Flag
Engadget reports that some Canadian cable providers, particularly Rogers and Shaw, are activating the broadcast flag onto a questionable amount of content. The site says that "users who are trying to record said programming via their own Windows Vista Media Center setup are receiving all sorts of errors and messages […]
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