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Pressure growing for CRTC to deal with net neutrality

'Most significant legal development in the Canadian net neutrality debate yet.' - Michael Geist

 

Ottawa (9 April 2008) - Pressure is growing on the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to address the issue of Internet neutrality following the filing of an important application by the Canadian Association of Internet Providers (CAIP).

The organization, Canada's largest ISP association, has asked the CRTC to direct Bell Canada to stop 'throttling' its wholesale Internet service. The request follows a letter from the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) calling on the CRTC to conduct public hearings on the issue. It also coincides with growing public demand for action.

Noted Internet law expert Michael Geist calls the CAIP application "the most significant legal development in the Canadian net neutrality debate yet, since it places the issue squarely before the commission."

"The filing provides additional insights into Bell's action – the throttling has reduced speeds by as much as 90% – and marks an important milestone since the outcome will provide a clear answer on whether Canadian law currently protects net neutrality or if legislative reform is needed," Geist says.

CAIP argues that Bell's throttling practices have "impaired the speed and performance of the wholesale ADSL access services that it provides to independent ISPs and other competitors – to the point where the quality of the service has been degraded beyond recognition."

Bell's actions are making it almost impossible for independent ISPs to manage their networks and is forcing them to pay for bandwidth they cannot use, the group says.

The application asks the CRTC to issue an order directing Bell Canada to immediately cease and desist from using any technologies to shape, throttle or choke its wholesale ADSL services.

It also highlights many of the privacy concerns that have been raised by throttling. Privacy concerns are associated with the "deep-packet inspection" Bell performs as part of the throttling process.

"CAIP also brings the broader net neutrality issue into the picture" and "brings together many of the net neutrality arguments that have been raised in recent months." Geist says. "The ball is now in the CRTC's court."

NUPGE

The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring that our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE

More information:

Michael Geist
Harper government sides with big telecom companies
NUPGE asks CRTC to investigate Internet 'traffic shaping'
NUPGE resources on net neutrality campaign
YouTube: Bell Sympatico throttles Internet access