Media Advisory: OpenMedia.ca available fo comment on Industry Minister’s Digital Economy Strategy update

WHO:
The Honourable Tony Clement, Minister of Industry, will provide an update on the development of a digital economy strategy for Canada.

Steve Anderson, National Coordinator of OpenMedia.ca and Founder of the SaveOurNet Coalition, will be available for comment (contact information below). Steve appears regularly on Canadian national and local media for comment on pertinent media and telecommunications developments. Reach him at 604-837-5730 or by emailing [email protected].

Lindsey Pinto, Communications Manager of OpenMedia.ca, will be available for comment. She has written extensively about net neutrality and obligation to serve (rural broadband) issues, and is an author of the report “Internet Openness - Where Do the Parties Stand”. Reach her at 778-238-7710 or by emailing [email protected].

WHAT:
This will be the first update on the Digital Economy Strategy since it was first announced to the public in May 2010.

WHERE:
International Institute of Communications Canada conference
Crowne Plaza Hotel - International Ballroom (Lower Level)
101 Lyon Street, Ottawa, ON

WHEN: 12:00 PM EST (9:00 AM PST) Monday, November 22

Background information:
One year after it was initially discussed in June 2009, the Government of Canada officially announced that they would develop a digital economy strategy for Canada.

Industry Minister Tony Clement, Heritage Minister James Moore, and Human Resources and Skills Development Minister Diane Finley began by holding a public consultation from May 2010 to July 2010 to inform policy around key issues, including media ownership, internet openness, broadband access, cell phone rates and competition, and support for digital media production.

To inform the consultation, the government produced a consultation paper "Improving Canada's Digital Advantage" that outlines key issues. OpenMedia.ca found the paper to be narrowly framed in the language of efficiency and competition. The emphasis was not on the Internet as a public resource, but instead on "maximizing reliance on market forces," through protection of the "legitimate interests" of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and other industry players. This interim update on the Digital Economy Strategy has the potential to either quell OpenMedia.ca’s concerns or to reinforce them.

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 telecommunication policy formation.

For more information please contact:
Lindsey Pinto - 778.238.7710 - [email protected]
Steve Anderson - 604.837.5730 - [email protected]

You can also visit http://openmedia.ca or http://saveournet.ca.