The vertical integration hearing is getting curiouser and curiouser

Cross-posted from The Globe And Mail In the first of two column’s last week I offered evidence and argument as to why the CRTC’s current vertical integration hearing is not likely to deal effectively with the question of telecom, media and Internet concentration in Canada. Sitting in on three days of hearings has convinced me that the prospects may be even dimmer than I thought.

The hearings had an Alice in Wonderland feel, mainly because the evidence offered by all sides was remarkably poor. Consequently, discussion meandered between speculative worries and rose-tinted visions brought to us courtesy of the great media corporations of Canada.

If you know how to say “voluntary code,” “case-by-case dispute resolution,” “skinny basic,” and “status quo,” then you’re in luck because that’s probably what the outcome will be. Some consumers will benefit with slimmed down and more affordable basic cable and satellite packages and there’s a 50-50 chance that a hands-off-Netflix approach is in store, if I am right. The pay-per Internet model and less than a handful of telecom, media and Internet behemoths, however, will be still stand astride a set of highly concentrated industries, and we will be the poorer for this. Read more »

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