#telecommunications act

[allthecanadianpolitics]

CRTC to eliminate fees when cancelling or switching cellphone and internet plans | CBC News

Canada's telecommunications regulator says it will prevent companies from charging customers when they cancel, change or activate plans.

Canada's telecommunications regulator says it will prevent companies from charging customers when they cancel, change or activate plans. The CRTC says the move is meant to make it easier for consumers to switch internet and cellphone plans, with the ability to take advantage of better offers without having to worry about unexpected costs. The new rules will come into effect on June 12. The regulator says it will announce additional consumer protection measures in the coming months to make it easier to shop for, compare and choose plans.

Read more.

Tagging: @newsfromstolenland

[odinsblog]

I’ve seen tweets on Twitter and posts on Tumblr with blaming Reagan for the rise of Fox News because he vetoed the Fairness Doctrine.

And then again, I’ve also seen some objectively smart people play the role of devils advocate and try to refute this particular argument.

The truth is slightly more nuanced.

It’s true that the Fairness Doctrine was written at a time when most people did not get their news from cable news outlets. And it is also true that Reagan’s veto definitely did not help. But what David Cay Johnson and most neoliberal centrists miss (or aggressively ignore) is the fact that it was Bill (big government bad, deregulation good) Clinton who helped Republicans.

Without Clinton’s massive deregulation pushes of the 90s, we would be in a much better position than we find ourselves today.

PLEASE remember ALL of how we got here: This disaster is a direct result of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, signed into law by Bill Clinton. Among other things, the bill brought deregulation to the cable industry, deregulated price controls on how much cable companies could charge consumers, and lifted the national cap on radio station ownership. In the spirit of “pragmatic” compromise, “less government” and more “free market” competition, the legislation obliterated the rules that once placed ownership restrictions on broadcasters. 

The Telecommunications Act fueled media consolidation, and now over 90 percent of the media is owned by just six companies. Ninety percent of the top 50 cable stations are owned by the same parent companies that own the broadcast networks, which should destroy the notion that cable is any real source of competition. The bill was a giveaway to big business, but it was sold to the public as a consumer friendly bill.

Media consolidation is a threat to democracy. Corporations like Fox News and Sinclair Broadcasting Group are legally using lies, propaganda, disinformation and “alt facts” on an unsuspecting public.

The other disingenuous argument that David Johnson is making is that "people have a constitutional right to believe lies and to choose to be deceived" ..... Yes, but does the government have the right to be enabling those lies? Should the government really be facilitating privately owned, mass media corporations lying to the public??

Reaganism is and was bad for America. Clintonism made it worse in many many ways.

The simple answer is to reinstate a modern version of the Fairness Doctrine and also repeal the Telecommunications Act. Deregulation hurts citizens and consumers. We need more, not less, government regulation of big business.

[blacklionroars]

Thank you Ajit @blacklionroars

[allthecanadianpolitics]

Cybersecurity bill won’t be used to kick people off internet, minister says - National | Globalnews.ca

Industry Minister Melanie Joly responded to concerns that language in Bill C-8, which she said targets telecommunication service providers,

Expanded powers under the federal government’s proposed cybersecurity legislation won’t be used to kick Canadians off the internet for their online conduct, Industry Minister Melanie Joly told MPs on Tuesday. Bill C-8 would amend the Telecommunications Act to ensure security is a stated priority of Ottawa’s telecommunications strategy and allow the government to compel service providers to act in the event of a cybersecurity incident. Under the bill, the federal industry minister could issue orders to those companies — without judicial review and potentially with a non-disclosure clause — to remove equipment or services from their networks if it’s found to pose a security risk.

Read more.

Tagging: @newsfromstolenland

[infoism-surveillance]

"Parliament does not have to be notified of section 94 directions and until last year they were not subject to formal oversight from any watchdog. Their operation will be reorganised under the investigatory powers bill although the IOCCO is pressing for stronger oversight of bulk communications data collection."

[weblingus]

"7. It is hereby affirmed that telecommunications performs an essential role in the maintenance of Canada’s identity and sovereignty and that the Canadian telecommunications policy has as its objectives (a) to facilitate the orderly development throughout Canada of a telecommunications system that serves to safeguard, enrich and strengthen the social and economic fabric of Canada and its regions;

(b) to render reliable and affordable telecommunications services of high quality accessible to Canadians in both urban and rural areas in all regions of Canada;

(c) to enhance the efficiency and competitiveness, at the national and international levels, of Canadian telecommunications;

(d) to promote the ownership and control of Canadian carriers by Canadians;

(e) to promote the use of Canadian transmission facilities for telecommunications within Canada and between Canada and points outside Canada;

(f) to foster increased reliance on market forces for the provision of telecommunications services and to ensure that regulation, where required, is efficient and effective;

(g) to stimulate research and development in Canada in the field of telecommunications and to encourage innovation in the provision of telecommunications services;

(h) to respond to the economic and social requirements of users of telecommunications services; and

(i) to contribute to the protection of the privacy of persons."

[femininefreak]

So the time has come for the FCC to recognize that broadband service is of the same importance and must carry the same obligations as so many of the other vital services do. To do that, I believe the FCC should reclassify consumer broadband service under Title II of the Telecommunications Act — while at the same time forbearing from rate regulation and other provisions less relevant to broadband services.

President Obama, Obama's Plan to Save the Internet (Updating)

[antinwo]