CRTC sets net neutrality rules for Canada, allows throttling as 'last resort'
By Donald Melanson 
posted Oct 21st 2009 2:18PM
posted Oct 21st 2009 2:18PM
The FCC may be yet to act on Chairman Genachowski's proposed net neutrality rules, but the agency's Canadian counterpart, the CRTC, has made a fairly significant ruling of its own on the matter today, and it seems like it may have manged to disappoint folks on both sides of the debate in the process. The short of it is that the CRTC will allow internet service providers to practice "traffic shaping" (a.k.a. bandwidth throttling), but only as a "last resort," and only after it has issued a warning that the throttling will take place (30 days in advance for regular users, and 60 days for wholesale customers). What's more, the CRTC is also recommending that ISPs "give preference to Internet traffic management practices based on economic measures" before cutting into customers downloads -- in other words, charge more for extra bandwidth, or offer discounts during non-peak hours.Read - CRTC ruling
Read - The Globe and Mail, "CRTC sets Web 'throttling' rules"
CRTC is going to regulate this 'throttling' by installing OnStar on all the Canadian ISP's
In the meantime, all Canadians can VPN to the United States, all their traffic will look like normal traffic that way. You can use my FIOS for $25/mo
we already pay enough for internet 50$/m for 60GB 6mb down 512kb up
CRTC can suck it. I'm sick of Canadians getting raped everywhere.
Internet, check.
Cell Phone Carriers, check.
TV, check, and now, it looks like they want to charge us extra tax to support local tv (really, I haven't looked into this case a lot, just seen a lot of the Bell/Rogers ads).
we'll know what's going to happen. The ISPs will go to last resort first.
Damn bas***ds
Well Bell does charge their users $75 to fix their Satellite TV service. I was like WTF I`m paying $100+ a month and you wouldn`t fix your service, I have to pay them to fix it for me.
That's why you don't get internet from Bell or Rogers. I get the same internet as Bell customers, DSL 5mbps, for $30 a month with a 200GB/month limit.
Wholesale internet from Teksavvy, hopefully Bell will stop throttling torrents down to 30kBps after 5pm now.
Well,
I like this ruling from Canada. It pretty much silences the net neutrality nuts and gives the ISP's the open door to provide real service based on usage.
Luckily, in the US, the ISP's won't let full blown net neutrality happen and will leave some loopholes in whatever regulation occurs.
If real net neutrality were to occur, the lower end consumer prices would begin to rise dramatically to be able to maintain speeds. Eventually the system will overload because they can't throttle heavy users that pay the same as light users. Then all suffer.
When businesses that pay for high quality service begin to suffer, a real net neutrality will fall apart.
Hopefully we never get that far!!!
You clearly do not understand net neutrality...
You clearly don't if you think the internet will get better for it!
You clearly don't understand that without net neutrality in the first place, there wouldn't be any internet at all.
I'm a little confused; does this mean that Bell will stop throttling me (well, my ISP TekSavvy actually) between 4:00 PM and 2:00 AM every goddamn day of the week?
No it means throttling is OK as long as they say "last resort".
And viola; CRTC F's us in the A again.
Good to know that I'm not the only one being throttled by Bell between 4PM and 2AM. What a joke. And now they're going to have the right to charge us for bandwidth usage. Ridiculous. Obviously the CRTC is either controlled or being bribed by the Big Corporations.
Just to add to my last comment, this also means that Bell will be able to charge me extra if I go over a certain bandwidth by downloading games and demos on my Xbox 360 and PS3. Unreal!!!!!!!!
From what I have been able to pick up so far essentially Bell will throttle your connection (and mine to as a fellow Teksavvy customer and proud of it). You lodge a complaint and the CRTC forces Bell to justify, in writing, its actions. In other words, the big ISPs can't freely throttle any more, they have to write a cute letter to the CRTC making an excuse for it, then throttle our sorry asses to death.
The next question is: will the CRTC ever side in the best interests of consumers? For that matter, does the CRTC even understand the technologies they regulate?
I don't think I'd like the answers to either of those...
@Jorvay
I know you don't want the answer, but my guess is that the answer to both of your questions is NO........
I'm a Canadian, and all geeks from Canada knows CRTC is pretty much a joke by this point.
All my electronics say "FCC" on them. FCC Patent XXXXXXXXXXXXX, etc. CRTC is a joke. We should just bring the FCC here (providing they have a better stance on net neutrality).
So basically I'll probably get an email shortly from Rogers saying they've make changes to my service and that to cope with this new CRTC ruling I'm going to be charged even more money, and then roll out some complicated structure for when I can download now.
I pay for 60gigs, so let me use it how I like. I'll have to keep an eye on my Rogers bills again…
Switch to Arcanac or Teksavvy
Bell will give Arcanac or Teksavvy 60 days notice. So in a couple of months, it won't make any difference.
The short of it is that the CRTC will allow internet service providers to practice "traffic shaping" (a.k.a. bandwidth throttling), but only as a "last resort,"
so 30 days from now we are back to traffic shaping
Yep, the CRTC's mandate is to "protect Canadians" from foreigners which is why we'll never get Netflix, Kindle, Nook, Hulu, or a decent cell phone plans.
F the CRTC
In other news Bell and Rogers just released a press release stating that they have to use the last resort. The lines are full, the pipes clogged. They will continue throttling and be dinks.
When that occurs here the Elite thinkers appointed by the Obama administration will tack on the fairness doctrine, tax telcos and isps so has to fund broadband for the "poor" and totally screw everything up. folks if it aint broke dont fix it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straw_man_argument
You don't like democrats or fairness, we get it.
Wow, the CRTC's logo looks like a golf ball from the 80s.. what an awful logo. But I guess it's better than spending $100 million like any new government logo costs.
God Engadget's commenting system sucks.
No, I think it's the perfect logo for them in that respect. It reflects their understanding of that newfangled "tec-no-lo-gy" shit us youngsters are always bugging them about.
Bell just wants to turn off throttling in time for UBB to come into effect. Then Bell can charge the independent ISP's for the extra bandwidth (for those on real unlimited plans with them). With throttling its harder to go over those caps.
Im not surprise by this. Everyone know at this point, CRTC is basically run by the the 3 douches.
Canada, this is what you get for Terrance and Phillip.
I nominate T+P to take over from the CRTC. They're clearly smarter and have the best interest of all Canadians at heart. That being said, my coffee mug is smarter than the CRTC.
beep boop boop bee boop boo beep ba beebee boop
The CRTC is giving the ISPs the power to suppress streaming video services that compete with the traditional cable and satellite television services offered by the same companies. The companies that sell internet also sell television, and they don't want to allow streaming video to cannibalize their outdated television services.
Its not's like the CRTC is looking out for consumer interests either.
WWRD ??
thats What Will Rogers Do
I'm for net neutrality as long as it doesn't give the government any expanded power over the internet. This is a lot like the health debate. If the government tries to mandate broadband, I don't want them providing it. I also Don't want the government to take away the option of companies throttling certain people and keeping it for themselves. I don't want anybody to have that power. I'm for it as long as it gives the government no right to regulate content. I do not want an internet version of the fairness doctrine. Because that is what Mark Loyd (FCC "diversity" czar) wants. That man is scary.
What this means for Canadian consumers is that we'll now have capped data plans, with huge overage charges.
The telcos and cablecos aren't going to bother with anything that will actually make consumers happy, like time-of-day discounts or anything like that. They'll hit heavy users hard because they can make money, and the CRTC ruling essentially gives them permission to charge whatever they want for heavy bandwidth users.
You need to stop watching Fox news. The government isn't out to 'get you'. If they were they'd be wiretapping without warrants and hypocritically calling criticism of their party "unpatriotic".
Australia gets this RIGHT. We dont have ISPs selling bandwidth that they cant deliver. We dont have ISPs selling "unlimited" that isn't really unlimited.
Why is it that the North Americans seem uniquely unable to get this right.
ISPs need to stop selling service they cant deliver because their network sucks. They need to stop selling "unlimited" service. They need to stop throttling specific protocols (although in many cases the throttling seems to have more to do with protecting the broken last-century business model of the giant media conglomerates by hurting alternatives to expensive cable TV than anything to do with lack of bandwidth)
Hi everybody, do something about it.
Please sign up petition for disolve CRTC. I did 1 month ago.
http://dissolvethecrtc.ca/node/1
worst...logo...ever
What CRTC calls "throttling" or "traffic shaping" is NOT the same as what FCC calls "throttling" or "traffic shaping". They are sending forged reset packets, causing users inflated bandwidth. The fact that they are using this technique to throttle indicates that the congestion they are attempting to clear up does not exist.
When usage based billing is added it will be a double-dip theft from consumers, approved by the regulator.
They are doing this now, there is nothing in the ruling about stopping what they are doing. The "notice" is for when they CHANGE how they are throttling or implementing goodies like Usage Based Billing.
Anyone wanting more info can check my public service blog:
http://stopusagebasedbilling.wordpress.com/
and sign the petition at http://dissolvethecrtc.ca/
This is really bad, I think I will just relocate to one of the eastern asian countries for a higher quality internet service. Those countries offer much better and faster connection while being much cheaper than what we have in North America, especially Canada!
I will get REALLY pissed if my local ISP (Persona/Eastlink) decides to follow in their footsteps. Rogers already gives us expensive cell service with tons of fees and restrictions, the last thing I want is them setting an example. If they do... A large amount of shit is going to coat the exterior of one of their service vans...