Press release

Mobile-adaptive site launched as threats to open Internet access go global

August 23, 2012 – In response to the secretive Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) process and other threats to Internet freedom, Canadian non-profit Internet freedom organization, OpenMedia, is launching a platform to amplify the voices of the global pro-Internet community.

Working with Canadians across the country, OpenMedia led the biggest online campaign in Canadian history—Stop The Meter—along with the public outcry that has thus far stopped online spying bill C-30. OpenMedia hosted a multifaceted online campaign—incorporating social media, direct communication with MPs, viral videos, and educational graphics.

Following those accomplishments, OpenMedia joined with a diverse coalition of groups to launch the StopTheTrap.net petition in June of this year, wading for the first time into international waters. This online petition allowed citizens to push back against the secretive Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, which contains restrictive binding provisions that could criminalize everyday uses of the Internet. Over 100,000 people from around the world have already signed the petition. Read more »

Broad coalition confronts TPP negotiations armed with over 90,000-strong StopTheTrap.net petition

July 7, 2012 – Organizations and people belonging to the StopTheTrap.net Coalition delivered 90,000+ signatures from around the world to Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations Friday, arguing that the trade agreement’s Internet restriction provisions would create an “Internet trap”. The StopTheTrap.net Coalition represents a diverse range of organizations and people committed to standing against the TPP's extreme intellectual property restrictions.

Shortly after 12:00 PM PT Friday over one-thousand pages of petition signatures were delivered at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Hotel, where TPP negotiations have been taking place since Monday. The handoff was backed by StopTheTrap.net Coalition members—including legal and policy experts and supporters from Public Knowledge, Public Citizen, SumOfUs, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Read more »

Canadians kick off international coalition to fight new Internet restrictions proposed in TPP trade agreement

June 27, 2012 – OpenMedia.ca launched a campaign today, supported a by a group of organizations, to stand against the new Internet restrictions, including new content fines, that Internet users will be subject to through the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement. Read more »

Pro-Internet group OpenMedia.ca warns that entry into TPP could force an “Internet lockdown” in Canada

June 19, 2012 – Canada has become the latest country to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a secretive international trade agreement that will include rules for copyright, trademarks, and patents that are far more restrictive than those currently required in Canada by existing treaties or regulations. But as Canada prepares to join the talks, digital rights advocates are expressing concerns that the TPP would extend Internet restrictions across the globe.

The TPP’s intellectual property measures would give large media conglomerates new powers to lock users out of their own content and services, provide new liabilities that might force ISPs to police online activity, and give giant media companies even greater powers to shut down websites and remove content at will. Read more »

Citizen Outcry Against Bill C-30 Pushes Over Sixty MPs to Add Their Names to OpenMedia.ca Pro-Privacy Listing

WHO:
Steve Anderson, Executive Director, OpenMedia.ca
Lindsey Pinto, Communications Manager, OpenMedia.ca

WHAT:
OpenMedia.ca has just released a tool that displays the names of the over sixty Members of Parliament—nearly two-thirds of opposition party members—who have signed up as Pro-Privacy MPs, and taken a stand against warrantless online spying legislation in Canada (Bill C-30). By adding their names, these politicians have publicly committed to work "with Canadians to ensure that any Lawful Access legislation respects our privacy, security, and personal budgets.” Read more »

Citizen-Made Video Launches After Millions Are Set Aside For Bill C-30

May 24, 2012 – OpenMedia.ca has launched a citizen-made online video educating Canadians about the true cost of the government’s online spying legislation C-30 and the threat it poses to personal privacy.

If passed, Bill C-30 will force Canadians to pay for a range of authorities to invasively access their private data, at any time, without a warrant.

Despite media coverage suggesting Bill C-30 has been shelved, last week, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews proclaimed that the government is still “intent on proceeding” with its unpopular, warrantless online spying bill. It has also been revealed that Toews has quietly set aside millions in taxpayer dollars to pay for this costly online spying plan (see links below for details). Read more »