CRTC Gives Bell More Incentive to Discriminate Against Internet

Big Telecom is now set to wield an unprecedented amount of power over communications in Canada; the Bell-CTV deal comes only months after Shaw’s acquisition of Canwest-Global. Bell now has even more reason to push for a less open and affordable Internet with methods such as usage-based billing in order to gain more revenue from CTV programming.

While Bell has agreed to provide “tangible benefits,” the CRTC’s usual condition for this sort of transaction, it is very clear that this move will lead to less real choice and diverse options for news and other content in Canada.

Further, OpenMedia.ca believes this will create more incentive for Bell to discriminate against online content and services.

“The CRTC is playing dice with Canadians’ communications by allowing these large takeovers,” said Steve Anderson, OpenMedia.ca’s Executive Director. “Canada's media system is already one of the most highly concentrated in the Western world. Rubber-stamping the Bell-CTV deal makes it clear that the CRTC has not heard the nearly half-a-million Canadians who are speaking out, via the Stop The Meter petition, against big phone and cable companies' control of our media.”

OpenMedia.ca encourages Canadians to take a stand against big telecom's stranglehold on our media system by signing the petition at http://stopthemeter.ca

Contact

Lindsey Pinto
Communications Manager, OpenMedia.ca
778-238-7710
[email protected]

About OpenMedia.ca

OpenMedia.ca is a national, non-partisan, non-profit public engagement organization working to advance and support an open and innovative communications system in Canada. Our primary goal is to increase public awareness and informed participation in Canadian media, cultural, information, and telecommunications policy formation.

About Stop The Meter

In October, Canadians were outraged by the news that the CRTC had decided to allow Bell and other big Internet service providers (ISPs) to impose new fees on independent ISPs – usage-based billing. Now every Internet user in Canada is likely to feel the sting of a less affordable Internet, and a less competitive Internet service market. Recognizing the importance of this issue, OpenMedia.ca launched the Stop The Meter campaign.

Since its inception, this multi-platform petition, based at http://www.StopTheMeter.ca and in French at http://openmedia.ca/compteur, become a record breaker and a game changer. Over 470,000 names have now been added to the website, Facebook, Twitter, and in print.