While thousands of Canadians voice their concerns about the government’s online spying bill, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews is continuing his irresponsible PR campaign that suggests that warrantless collection of our private data is “on par with the phone book.” This infographic shows just how far that is from the
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OpenMedia.ca: Video: Too much copyright
The founder of popular website icanhascheezburger.com says the imposition of copyright rules that would restrict our use of the Internet “is our generation’s prohibition”. Do you agree? More info about the Canadian context here: http://openmedia.ca/SayNo read more
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Huffington Post: The U.S. could get a hold of Canadians’ personal information
The U.S. is fighting their own online spying bill (CISPA) now. Like our friends in the U.K., American groups are using some of the innovative social media outreach tactics pioneered by the pro-Internet community here in Canada. You should all be proud of yourselves for leading the way to a
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Speak Up! The CRTC is listening: Weekly Update from OpenMedia.ca
Hello! Here’s Lindsey with your update: read more
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: EFF: What CISPA could mean for Canadian privacy
EFF and a number of civil society organizations have declared this to be ‘Stop Cyber Spying Week’ in protest of several controversial U.S. cybersecurity legislative proposals, including the bill currently before Congress and the Senate called CISPA, the Cyber Intelligence Sharing & Protection Act of 2011. While ‘Stop Cyber Spying
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Geist: Big Telecom wants to make money on online spying
If we end up footing the bill for mandatory online spying for through our taxes—the alternative being that we pay even more on our monthly bills—Big Telecom may be looking at violations of your privacy as a new revenue source. According to law professor Michael Geist, Big Telecom may be
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: CBC: Rogers’ cell phone price-gouging hits BC family in the wallet
This is outrageous: This man’s son was not informed of new fees on his texting and was charged a whopping $1,400 by Rogers—talk about price-gouging! To make matters worse, Rogers terminated their phone contracts and then charged them a contract cancellation fee. We know a lot of Canadians have similar
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: The EFF teams up with OpenMedia.ca and others to launch Stop Cyber Spying Week
OpenMedia.ca is participating in a week of Internet-wide protests today against the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act of 2011 (CISPA). This is a controversial piece of cybersecurity legislation in the U.S. which, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), would negate existing privacy laws and allow companies to share
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: ISLR: The fastest networks in the U.S. are built by local governments
It’s interesting to see how, in this U.S. example, that towns and cities that create their own Internet infrastructure are doing a way better job offering faster, cheaper Internet than big telecom companies. It turns out old telecom giants are less innovative and efficient than local governments. Do you think
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: What should we focus on going forward?: Weekly News Update from OpenMedia.ca
Hello! Here’s Lindsey with your update: read more
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Letter to Supporters: What’s next for Canada’s digital future?
The threats to the open, affordable, surveillance-free Internet aren’t going away. Whether those threats come from industry lobbyists bent on protecting outdated business models, price-gouging big telecom companies, or out-of-touch government officials, to win we’re going to need smart strategies, innovative engagement tools, and most importantly, a growing pro-Internet community.
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Infographic: We are the web
What aspects of the Internet do you value most? read more
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: MobileSyrup: What does the future hold for independent cell phone options?
The government is taking a lobbyist-first half-measured approach to our cell phone market. Going forward, it’s essential that we continue working to ensure independent options are safeguarded. Keep up the charge at http://StopTheSqueeze.ca. Article by Ian Hardy for MobileSyrup: Based on some recent stats it’s estimated that the total wireless
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: CBC: Rogers contracts push the envelope, lawyer says
Rogers costumers in fixed-term contracts have no choice but to accept rate hikes or pay steep fees to end their contract. Does this seem fair to you? If you are sick of telecom price-gouging, take action by signing our Stop the Squeeze petition and make the switch to an indy
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Financial Post: Big telcos warn of ‘market shake-out’ if pick-and-pay TV model adopted
Big Telecoms Rogers and Shaw are lobbying against the so-called ‘a la carte’ model that would allow customers to pick and pay for individual channels. The CRTC also expressed concern over the pick-and-pay system saying that a lack of choice and flexibility could lead to consumers leaving the broadcasting system.
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Canada is a Pro-Internet Trendsetter: Weekly News Update from OpenMedia.ca
Hello! Here’s Lindsey with your update: read more
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: The CRTC wants you to comment on the state of wireless competition in Canada!
The CRTC recently announced that it is looking into creating minimum national standards to protect wireless customers, and is now asking Canadians for input. After receiving several requests to create a national code from Big Telecom as well as from public interest groups, the CRTC is now asking for your
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Geist: Justice Committee recommends expanding online spying bill despite outcry
By Michael Geist The government has placed Bill C-30, the lawful access/online surveillance bill on hold, but there is no reason to believe it is going away. In fact, a recent report Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights suggests that the changes coming to the bill may not address
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: CNET: U.S. ISPs take copyright law into their own hands
Since big telecom companies have major content assets and are ISPs, there’s a good chance we’ll see this sort extra-judicial online censorship in Canada before too long. What can you do? Switch to an indie ISP. And if you haven’t already, give us key input to help us improve our
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Big Telecom’s good idea: National standards to protect consumers
You read that title correctly. Here’s the idea: Rogers recently filed an application with the CRTC asking “for stronger protections for customers of wireless services”, not long after Telus made a similar request. Their ask is for minimum national standards to protect wireless customers, as opposed to differing provincial rules.
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