OpenMedia.ca in the news

Shortly after the online movie rental company Netflix said it would begin offering service north of the border, one of Canada’s largest Internet providers sliced the amount of data its subscribers can download each month.

On July 21, two days after Netflix announced it would offer a Canadian version of its wildly popular and industry-disrupting service starting in the fall, Rogers Communications Inc. changed two of its Internet plans: While prices are not dropping, new users of Rogers “lite” and “extreme” Internet service now have a stricter download limit.

Media Democracy Day totally kicked it this weekend at the VPL. The event was a good fit with the library, and the MDD fair - 40+ community groups set up to do community outreach and promote a more accessible media system with less corporate influence - was well attended, both by intentional MDD attendees and regular library-goers.

Read on here: http://geeksandglobaljustice.com/?p=47

By Charlie Smith

The words Net neutrality do not appear in the campaign platforms of the federal Liberal and Conservative parties. The federal NDP and Greens, on the other hand, Net neutrality in their platforms. The NDP say it’s vital to protecting Canadians’ ability to access the Internet at a flat rate of payment and with transparent rules.

I didn’t know the woman on the other end of the line. She was calling from Spain through Skype, a software program that allows people to make free phone calls over the internet, looking for someone with a similar name. Instead of hanging up, we kept chatting. Our spontaneous conversation ranged from politics and relationships to children and Spanish cuisine.

Having the ability to make a free long-distance call on the internet helped connect two people from different cultures. It may also prove to be foundational for a new media democracy.

NDP MP Charlie Angus is set to introduce a bill on net neutrality Wednesday just hours after hundreds of Canadian consumers descended on Parliament Hill in a rally for equal access to the Internet.

By Rafael Ruffolo, ComputerWorld Canada
May 28, 2008

NDP MP Charlie Angus is set to introduce a bill on net neutrality Wednesday just hours after hundreds of Canadian consumers descended on Parliament Hill in a rally for equal access to the Internet.

CRTC indecision a set back to Internet freedom

Ruling allows Bell to continue limiting open access to the Internet

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 15, 2008: In a disappointing move, the CRTC has chosen not to force Bell Canada to stop its internet throttling practices. The CRTC decision comes in response to a request from the Canadian Association of Internet Providers (CAIP) for immediate relief from throttling for the third-party businesses that lease the Bell Canada network. More than 2,000 Canadians filed letters with the CRTC supporting CAIP’s request.