SaveOurNet.ca CRTC Hearing Report Back: The Trifecta

As you know, the CRTC hearings took place the week of July 6-10 and SaveOurNet.ca coalition members were there, presenting a strong case for maintaining the open Internet in Canada. Our presentation included testimony from Internet experts Dr. David Reed of MIT, Dr. Andrew Odlyzko of the Minnesota Internet Traffic Studies (MINTS) project, and Bill St. Arnaud, Chief Research Officer for CANARIE Inc., Canada's Advanced Internet Development Organization, alongside David Fewer, Acting Director at CIPPIC, and Steve Anderson, National Co-ordinator of SaveOurNet.ca and Campaign for Democratic Media.

Steve Anderson brought citizen voices into the hearing, focusing on the 11,000 comments sent to the CRTC by Canadians. He highlighted that the CRTC works for us, the Canadian people, and that their decisions will have an impact on consumer choice, innovation and free speech.

David Fewer laid out specific guidelines that the CRTC should adopt. Our experts backed us with their unmatched technical expertise. The commission received our presentation well. The CRTC chairman noted that we had brought with us "eminent experts" and he used them as resources to clear up some technical questions the commission had been struggling with. Commissioner Denton described the principles we laid out as being ones on which there was "broad agreement."

You can listen to our presentation, and find a roundup of media coverage of the hearing here.

The hearing was historic in part due to its impact on the way Canadians communicate and live, but also because of how citizens engaged with it. Read SaveOurNet.ca co-ordinator Steve Anderson's recent article on this topic here.

WE HAVE MORE WORK TO DO!

Although our presentation went well, the Big Telecoms remained forceful and indignant. What's worse is that the ISPs' presentations revealed that several of them are throttling and employing a variety of traffic management tools. As Michael Geist noted, "There are those that throttle all the time (Cogeco), during large chunks of the day (Bell), only during congested periods (Shaw), or not at all (Telus, Videotron).

"There are those that throttle upload only (Rogers) or upload and download (Bell). This points to the fact that ... broader principled tests are essential."

Now more than ever, it's important that the CRTC know where the public stands on this issue. You helped deliver nearly 12,000 letters to the CRTC. Now help us get even more by telling your friends and family to do the same: http://openmedia.ca/saveournet

One of the wonderful aspects of the Internet is that it brings people together. Already citizens in several cities are bringing their friends and family together for an informational gathering about one of the most crucial issues of our time: Net Neutrality.

The biggest challenge with this issue is education. Once people understand this issue, they are usually immediately interested and engaged -- it is the Internet after all! Help us educate more people about the importance of the open Internet. Be a part of the Internet immune system, become a Net Ambassador.

We've come a long way, but now it is more important than ever that we press on. Our work would not be possible without your contributions. Please donate today: http://openmedia.ca/donate.

Sincerely,

The SaveOurNet.ca Team | As you know, the CRTC hearings took place the week of July 6-10 and SaveOurNet.ca coalition members were there, presenting a strong case for maintaining the open Internet in Canada. Our presentation included testimony from Internet experts Dr. David Reed of MIT, Dr. Andrew Odlyzko of the Minnesota Internet Traffic Studies (MINTS) project, and Bill St. Arnaud.