The possibility of regulation of the internet
Re: “The Loss of Options”
Excalibur» sept 28, 2011
There is a potential further elimination of options used to watch movies. There is a strong possibility that there could be a CRTC ruling regarding OTT (Over-the-top) video services that would require these services to be treated like broadcasters or premium television channels.
This would result in the regulation of internet television and online video services such as Netflix and even YouTube. Online video services could be imposed with onerous conditions such as a levy or Canadian Content quotas.
Under these circumstances online video services emanating from outside of Canada would not want to extend their services into Canada. Google would probably not want to pay a levy and this could potentially lead to the shuttering of YouTube.
It sounds unfathomable but it is possible. Netflix could very well leave if draconian conditions were imposed on it. Big business like Bell and Rogers want to protect their turf and will resort to lobbying the government to legislate these online video sites out of Canada.
They have already implemented usage based billing (metered billing). This did not work to the extent that these big businesses wanted and now they are resorting to lobbying for legislation and changes to telecommunications act.
These big media companies want Canadians to pay for their services, such as video-on-demand, instead of Netflix even if this limits consumer choice. They would rather Canadians pay $7.99 for one or two movies than an online video service that does not involve them profiting from it.
The point that I am making is that consumer choice may be further limited if such a ruling happens. This could also result in the potential regulation of the internet. A ruling like this could have destructive and an immensely negative outcome for Canadian consumers: the limitation of a free and open internet.
—Laurence Price
