online rights – rgbFilter

CRTC launches public consultation on internet and telephony

July 28, 2010 Doug Groves canada, CRTC, Internet, Obligation to Serve, online rights, public consultation1 Comment

Last Friday, the CRTC launched a new public consultation to get feedback from Canadians on their telephone and internet services. Being cynical about the impact of such a public consultation, especially one with the title Obligation to Serve, would be the easy approach, given some of the CRTC’s past decisions regarding internet services. I’ll try not to be though, and suggest that everyone visit the public page and speak their mind. You can catch the full announcement after the break…

Usage-based billing okayed by CRTC

May 6, 2010May 6, 2010 Doug Groves Acanac, Bell, canada, CRTC, Internet, online rights, Teksavvy2 Comments

The CRTC has unsurprisingly sided with Bell, and is allowing the big blue telco to go ahead with it’s usage-based billing scheme, and yes, scheme is the most appropriate word here. Not only does it mean that Bell gets to charge it’s own customers, who are already paying through the nose for parltry data caps, but now big blue can hit 3rd party suppliers, like TekSavvy and Acanac with fees that look downright preposterous. Bell has complained about traffic congestion, caused mostly by heavy file sharing, but as their own…

DMCA disaster headed to Canada!

May 5, 2010 Doug Groves canada, DMCA, legal, Michael Geist, online rights, PMO5 Comments

Despite a vocal popular opposition to the idea of enacting anything like the lunacy of the US DMCA here in Canada, that’s exactly the type of copyright bill the Prime Minister’s Office plans on introducing this June. Who cares what the People say, when the US speaks, I guess, even if most of what they say regarding Canada as a copyright violators haven is propagandist FUD. Anyways, instead of ranting, here’s the details from Michael Geist’s site, as well as how to get your voice heard! Months of public debate…

Access Copyright wants anything but in Canada

October 15, 2009 Doug Groves copyright, online rights0 comment

As we’ve covered before, the Canadian government earlier this year put a call out to both individual Canadians and businesses and other organizations to state their cases for how the copyright should be treated moving forward. One of the most, well, ridiculous submissions comes from Access Copyright, which collects royalties for writers and publishers. The name ‘Access Copyright’ is exactly opposite of what they want for Canadians. The group is opposed to just about everything you can now legally do with your media, and wants to put an end to…

The Canadian Broadband Wars Heat Up

September 24, 2009September 24, 2009 Doug Groves Bell, broadband, CRTC, net neutrality, online rights, Telus2 Comments

A new initiative was recently launched to battle the CRTC rulings regarding Bell and Telus and access to network infrastructure. Competitivebroadband.com, which is comprised of a wide range of independent ISPs and coalitions, is aiming squarely at making the consumer aware of, and getting them involved with, the proceedings. From their mission statement… Following the decision by the CRTC, which was released on 11 December 2008, MTS Allstream decided to petition the federal Cabinet, which has the power to reverse this decision. Others have also made their views known in…

Bill C-61 To Return?

October 8, 2008July 25, 2009 Doug Groves CRTC, online rights9 Comments

(original image found at Wikipedia Commons) Though we try not to stray into party politics, digital copyright and internet issues are important to everyone. With the federal election a week away, it’s worth pointing out where each of the parties stand on the issue. We’ve discussed C-61 before, a nasty piece of legislation reform also known as the “DMCA of Canada”. The Bill caused the formation of a number of groups fighting against it, but ultimately died on the table when a federal election was called about a month ago….

Grassroots Growing Over Bill C-61

July 17, 2008July 25, 2009 Doug Groves CRTC, online rights1 Comment

In keeping up with the fight against Bill C-61, c61in61seconds.ca has launched. It’s a YouTube channel that’s giving users a central hub to post their opinions on the new Bill C-61 amendments that are going through the system here in Canada. Many people see these changes as little more than a Canadian version of the DMCA. An ever increasing number of Canadians are speaking out, however, and the with the summer delay of the Bill, the grassroots are getting some time to grow. The above video tells you how you…

Bell’s Own Data Shatters P2P Red Herring

June 26, 2008February 2, 2011 Doug Groves Bell, CRTC, online rights, Teksavvy10 Comments

About a week ago, the CRTC demanded that Bell release to the public by June 23rd information that would prove it’s claim that P2P throttling was having a negative impact on it’s network. Some, but not all, of that information has been made public. Many details are being kept from public view for ‘competitive’ reasons. Even the scant evidence released shows exactly how flimsy Bell’s case is. One would assume that the company would release the most damaging evidence, but their claim is that over a 2 month period, 2-5%…

Institutions of Higher Earning?

November 15, 2007July 25, 2009 Doug Groves online rights2 Comments

Top Democratic leaders have introduced a new bill that would essentially force universities to sign up to paid music services, or face losing federal financial aid including that for students who don’t use a computer. The proposal is buried in a 700+ page spending and financial aid bill. They also have the option of using technology based deterrents to prevent illegal downloading, and would suffer the same consequences if they fail to implement such measures. This amounts to little more than an extortion racket, and it’s not surprising that the…

Video Sharing – is it illegal?

September 21, 2007July 25, 2009 Doug Groves online rights2 Comments

This VCR is so old, it’s clock flashes 11:00… From boingboing.net: a discussion about video sharing via Nightline circa 1981. Yep. Though it’s pretty dry stuff, it’s essentially the same discussion that’s going on now, albeit sharing is just a little easier nowadays. There’s also some small measure of irony that the videos are being shared on Youtube.com Essentially, a rep from MCA and a lawyer discuss whether it’s illegal to use a Sony Betamax machine to record television shows. After all, back in the day home taping was going…