Bell Canada Violates CRTC Decision in Order to Stifle Competition

Bell Canada Violates CRTC Decision in Order to Stifle Competition

Bell uses its privileged access for its own benefit, not consumers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Vancouver, April 7, 2008: In March, the CRTC upheld a decade-old policy requiring Bell Canada to allow third-party businesses access to facilities, functions, or services where Bell is a monopoly (see Telecom Decision CRTC 2008-17). But as reported and criticized heavily in the media, Bell has begun shaping internet traffic on its network. By throttling the connection between competing Internet service providers and their customers, Bell is violating what should be reasonably understood as a regulatory requirement.

On Wednesday, after being asked a question in the House of Commons about this throttling by M.P. Charlie Angus, Industry Minister Jim Prentice said: “Mr. Speaker, for the edification of my friend, the Internet is not regulated in Canada. We continue to monitor the discussion that is taking place, but there is no regulation of the relationship between internet providers and consumers.”

But Bell is throttling what is a regulated service, inserting its own policy between internet providers and their customers. In this case Bell is not the internet service provider, but the supplier of a service that is a regulated monopoly input to the internet service provider.

Internet Technology Consultant Russell McOrmond says: "Some communications services are a natural monopoly, and need to either be strongly government regulated, or owned and managed by the government. It makes no more sense for every communications provider to own their own wires to our homes as it makes sense for every retailer to own their own roads to our homes. Telecommunications and cable providers have been given privileged access to run cables below and over municipally, provincially or federally owned land, often along roadways. It is incorrect for them to say that they own the network, and thus should be able to do anything they want with it".

He follows, “If communications providers like Bell are no longer willing to accept the responsibilities linked to this privileged access, then it may be time to mandate service separation as was done in Ontario for electricity where generation exists within a free market and distribution is government owned and managed”.

Bell Canada is currently under heavy scrutiny for its network management policies. By throttling third-party traffic, Bell is both limiting competitive access and violating net neutrality.

Campaign for Democratic Media! is a national, non-profit, non-partisan media reform network working to increase informed public participation in Canadian media policy formation. They strive to generate policies that will produce a more competitive diverse and public service-oriented, media system with a strong non-profit and non-commercial sector.




Contact:

Steve Anderson

National Coordinator

Campaign For Democratic Media

[email protected]

Phone:(604) 837-5730