STOP CRTC please sign petition!

[Muskeg]

‎"The CRTC just made a decision that paves the way for new internet fees to be added to your bill. To stop this we need to raise our voices now more than ever."
click to link http://openmedia.ca/meter and sign this URGENT petition before Canada becomes one of the most restricted and over billed countries in the world.

[Nomad]

Here is the ruling from the CRTC's website. I'm still trying to figure out what it means.

http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/archive/2011/2011-44.htm

[Muskeg]

- The OpenMedia.ca Team


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The CRTC just decided to let your Internet Service Provider put a meter on your Internet!

Bell Canada and other big telecom companies can now freely impose usage-based billing on independent Internet Service Providers (indie ISPs) and YOU. Big Telecom companies are obviously trying to gouge consumers, control the Internet market, and ensure that consumers continue to subscribe to their television services.

This means we're looking at a future where ISPs will charge per byte, the way they do with smart phones. If we allow this to happen Canadians will have no choice but to pay more for less Internet.

This will crush innovative services, Canada's digital competitiveness, and your wallet.

We need to stand up for the Internet.

Sign the Stop The Meter petition at: http://StopTheMeter.ca


Want to know more? Here’s the lowdown:

This decision is a blow to consumer choice, to access, and to free expression. Independent Internet service providers (ISPs), such as TekSavvy, pay incumbent telecoms like Bell for access points in their networks. In applying usage-based billing (UBB) to these indie ISPs, the CRTC has allowed Bell to determine and limit how many gigabytes of usage their independent competitors can provide to their customers.

- This severely limits competition in the telecommunications market, which is bad for innovation and diversity of content.

- This also means that the cost will necessarily be passed down to you, the consumer.

- Usage-based billing, or metering discriminates against certain forms of information insofar as it charges consumers more for content that requires the use of a large amount of gigabytes, such as audio and video.

- This also means that those who produce media-based art, and depend on the Internet to show the world their work, are less able to produce and disseminate their content freely. This means less innovation and more control of art, film, music, and other forms we may not yet know of!

Sign the petition and save the freest medium we have ever known (again!). Stop the Meter and save our net!


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Read more at SaveOurNet.ca: http://saveournet.ca/content/what-do...net-neutrality

Read more at OpenMedia.ca: http://openmedia.ca/blog/crtc-decisi...ed-billing-all

Read TV Versus The Internet by Steve Anderson: http://thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2010/10...ersusInternet/

Read more at CBC.ca: http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2...-internet.html

[roadkill]

I signed. I'm with an ISP (Bell Canada) whut really pushed for UBB, so as soon as it kicks into effect, I'm jumping ship. I *think* the other big player here (cable provider) isn't doing it, but I haven't yet looked into this enough.

Like, I don't yet know whether Bell will charge its own customers with a UBB model. Right now, it looks like this will only affect customers of the smaller ISPs that use Bell's lines, but even if that's what it is, it's still the beginning of a very slippery slope...

[Northern]

What a stupid ruling. I read an article that says these big companies (bell, telus, Rogers) make the most profit then any other service providers in the world. Now they want us to fork overmore money to them?? No wonder Canadians are carrying a higher debt to income ratio then the states.

[Iron Brew]

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/techn...787/story.html

[Jimboy]

Throw the computer in the back lane and live like we did in 1959 ,WITHOUT IT.
Life will still go on.

[Badgerbadger]

I don't see the big issue.

One has to pay for what one uses, right? If you buy beer, you pay for what you buy. If you get gas for your car, you can decide what type of vehicle you want so you get the best gas mileage.

With the advent of bittorrenting, netflix, etc. it puts more demands on the infrastructure required to provide internet service. It's like having more cars on the road. When there's a lot of traffic, maybe you need to widen the road, or do more maintenance on it, or whatever.

This may actually help level the playing field and drive costs down, because if the "big guys" have to add infrastructure to provide decent service, 'small' providers may find it cost effective to get in to the market using state of the art equipment off the bat.

I don't work for the industry, but I know when my neighbours download their movies and play their xbox online. It comes down to what you use your internet for, and how much you're willing to pay to do so.

[Giterdone]

Done