Quickly after anonymous government sources told The Globe and Mail that online spying bill C-30 had quietly died, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews scurried to get in front of reporters to make it clear that, despite massive public pressure, he intends to push through the online spying plan. According to
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OpenMedia.ca: Action on the Homefront: Introducing the Street Team Program
As part of OpenMedia.ca’s commitment to community engagement and ground-level participation in the fight for a more open, affordable Internet, we are pleased to introduce the OpenMedia.ca Street Team program. The OpenMedia.ca Street Team program will engage the public in issues that will have a massive effect on Canada’s digital
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Moneyville: Bell getting hit with class-action lawsuit
It looks like big telecom company Bell is about to see some punishment for unfair practices around cell phone contracts. Canadians—led by some Ontario lawyers—are launching a $100-million class action lawsuit, arguing that Bell is on the wrong side of Ontario’s Consumer Protection Act. This is an important demonstration of
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Update on the state of the online spying bill
There are rumours that online spying bill C-30 is dead, but the government has still not announced any changes to their plan to pass this invasive piece of legislation. By speaking through anonymous sources in the Globe and Mail, the government has show that they are still trying to use
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: TPP: The secretive agreement that could criminalize your Internet use
You may already know that Big Media lobbyists are trying to lock down the Internet in Canada through Copyright Bill C-11 and other activities. The Bill includes provisions that would lock users out of their own services and give Big Media giants increased power to shut down websites. The bill
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Engadget: Europe takes measures to curb cell phone bill shock
The European community is taking a stand against cell phone bill shock, and putting a cap on data roaming charges. But here in Canada, we still have the industrialized world’s highest roaming fees, and generally some of the highest cell phone prices. Should Canada have a cap on Big Telecom
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: The Verge: Netherlands passes Internet openness law
This week, the Netherlands passed net neutrality (Internet openness) rules, which will prevent telecom companies from stifling online choice. We’re part of a global pro-Internet community that is, over time, winning the fight for a strong digital future. Canada also has Internet openness rules, but we just don’t have strong
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: CBC: Mobile app empowers people with disabilities
Here’s another reason why protecting our digital future is so important: accessibility. Since we started out, we’ve been getting a lot of email from people with disabilities and elderly people who rely on the Internet, apps, and emerging technologies to improve their quality of life. They (many of you, really)
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Globe: Harper preparing to appoint new CRTC chair
It may only be a matter of weeks before Canada has a new CRTC chair. We’ll have more information on the contenders coming at you soon. What do you want to see in Canada’s next (great?) CRTC chair? We at OpenMedia.ca believe the next chair should have significant experience in
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Video: Bell’s touch tone phone charge
Another example of how big telecom companies price-gouge Canadians. Let’s continue to grow our community so we can change the industry and safeguard the possibilities of the open and affordable Internet. Here’s our crowdsourced action plan. Here’s where you can send our plan, and the research report we produced to
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Toronto Star: Competition bureau to allow Big Telecom’s sports and entertainment buy
Two of Canada’s biggest telecom giants, Bell and Rogers, may soon be acquiring Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment together. These companies are already very large and vertically-integrated—each own a great deal of content as well as the pipes it flows through—which gives them incentive to hoard content from independent providers
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Calgary police caught violating email privacy; Are we ready for online spying codified in law?
The Calgary police were caught violating email privacy in a big way during a small investigation. Clearly we have problems ensuring that authorities don’t abuse their existing online spying powers—we’re nowhere near ready for warrantless electronic surveillance codified in law (i.e. Bill C-30). Our personal information must be kept personal.
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Complaints about Internet openness still coming in strong
The CRTC’s figures for March show that, once again, complaints about ISPs’ Internet traffic management practices—deliberately slowing down online traffic, for example—are coming in strong. This despite the promise made by Bell to stop throttling, and the subsequent same promise from Rogers following the exposure of their breach of Internet
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Infographic: How we’re using cell phones
Check out the infographic here about the ways we’re using cell phones. Pro-Internet community member Michelle Vee shared this on our Facebook Wall, with the following message about online choice, and why we need to push back against Big Telecom: This is why the TeleCartel would much rather force data
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Techvibes: Study shows Canada’s cell phone market is overpriced and anti-competitive
Yet another report has recently come out to demonstrate just how closed our cell phone market truly is. We’ve improved in the last four years, but we’re still seeing a situation where about 94% of the wireless market is dominated by only three large companies. Canada’s industry minister has yet
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Update on U.S. online spying bill CISPA: The fight continues
At OpenMedia.ca, we’re working on your behalf with our international counterparts to safeguard the open, affordable, surveillance-free Internet. One of the threats we face is a controversial U.S. bill called CISPA—the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act. We’ve written about CISPA before (check out posts here and here for some
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: CBC: Nova Scotia bill to protect cellphone users
Quebec, Manitoba, Ontario, and now Nova Scotia have introduced or passed legislation to protect Canadians against price-gouging cell phone companies. The bills do not go quite far enough, but they are a welcome step forward for people in these provinces. Article from CBC News: Nova Scotia plans to regulate cellphone
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: From CISPA to C-30, We Must Stay Engaged! — Weekly Update from OpenMedia.ca
Hello! Here’s Lindsey with your update: read more
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Paradis talks digital economy at Canada 3.0
Today Industry Minister Christian Paradis gave a speech to the Canada 3.0 Digital Media Forum in Stratford, Ontario, in which he reaffirmed the government’s commitment to a long-overdue digital economy strategy. The previous Industry Minister, Tony Clement, had initially discussed plans for a digital strategy nearly three years ago in
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Winseck: Will a national code for cell phone services serve Canadians?
Check out Prof. Dwayne Winseck’s article about potential national rules for the cell phone industry. We can’t let Big Telecom shape those rules for their own narrow interests—we’re working to make sure that, if developed, those rules build upon and strengthen measures that put Canadian cell phone users first. Have
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