Just a quick one today, in response to Cecilia Kang’s WaPo article on the FCC’s proposal to implement free public wireless in the United States. As Karl Bode at DSLReports.com points out, this is not a new proposal, but has been around since 2011, when trials for the use of White Spaces spectrum got the […]
I’ve been eagerly anticipating the arrival of Susan Crawford’s new book, Captive Audience: The Telecom Industry and Monopoly Power in the New Gilded Age. Promotion for her work has been widespread recently, with notable examples being a review by Sam Gustin for Time and a radio appearance by Dr. Crawford on NPR’s “The Diane Rehm […]
What does it mean to think of the Internet as a commons? First and foremost, it means the freedom to participate: a commons must be broadly inclusive; access to the Internet must not be discriminatory, based on age, race, gender, political leaning and perhaps most importantly class; in this last aspect, one’s level of financial […]
Here are my thoughts on Canada Post’s claim to copyright over postal codes. (Full disclosure: I’m a member of the Canadian Postmasters and Postmaster’s Assistants Association, although I’m not an active employee, I haven’t worked there in several years, and I do not rely on Canada Post for financial remuneration in any way. The views presented here […]
The Ontario government has just announced plans to introduce legislation aimed at curbing “cell phone shock” for consumers. With consumer complaints about wireless services skyrocketing, the McGuinty government’s decision to step into the fray and shake things up should be welcomed by Ontarians fed up with crummy service and unfair (even legally dubious) contracts. Ontario […]
Google just released a teaser video for its latest gadget – code named “Project Glass” Check it out: My first reaction, like many of my generation, was to think of Geordi Lafarge from Star Trek: Next Generation. Lafarge, played by LeVar Burton (if you’re old enough you might remember him from Reading Rainbow) was a […]
Today the CRTC announced a new consultation on whether it should consider instituting a “consumer code” to guide wireless providers’ retail services. Since 1994, the government has operated under the assumption that the Canadian wireless market is “sufficiently competitive” to ensure fair service for the public, and under that assumption has refrained from intervening in […]
In a crowded room, when everyone tries to talk at once, all those conversations might cause such a racket that no one can hear what anyone else is trying to say. Give a speaker a podium and a microphone, however, and the entire audience from the front row to the back can hear every last […]
Imagine the following scenario: The Canadian telecommunications market is dominated by a few large firms. A foreign venture capitalist, let’s call him Jay, sees an opportunity to make some money by starting up a competitor in Canada, ostensibly to provide quality service to Canadians and bring down the high prices that incumbent providers charge. Jay […]
Not that long ago, if you wanted to spend an evening watching a movie, you’d head down to the local video store, walk around the aisles a couple times, and once you found something ‘good’ you’d head to the till, whip out your membership card, pay and head straight for the couch. Today, if you’ve […]
