FREE SPEECH

It’s frustrating that the company I work for (Global Television) constantly e-mails PR extolling its ratings successes and multi-million-dollar deals to the very employee group it plans to lay off early in 2008, claiming hard times.

Also frustrating is to see a headline in Playback Daily for Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2007 – ‘Unions call on PM to keep TV Canadian’ – and to be barred from reading the story because it’s now deemed ‘premium content by subscription only.’

At issue is the fundamental right of Canadians to be well-served by companies granted broadcast licences, something Global Television’s new direction spurns. It speaks directly to the efforts by my union, CEP, to get Canadians to wake up to what is happening before it’s too late.

Global Television should not be permitted to snub the entire Atlantic region of Canada, but actions like yours only play into their hands by barring information that needs to be freely disseminated.

I’m disappointed that Playback should impose fees. How can you believe this to be serving your readership well? You didn’t get to where you are by charging a fee.

If it’s not already clear, I won’t be subscribing. Sometime between February and April 2008, my 33-year career in broadcasting will, in all likelihood, be terminated.

A Global Maritimes veteran.

TIME TO RETHINK THE INTERNET

Well, I’m gob smacked!

The Globe and Mail (Nov. 29) recently reported that BitTorrent users were facing an engineeered traffic jam by intervening ISPs.

Geez, I thought that the Internet couldn’t be regulated?

But apparently it can be.

And by ISP technicians ‘in Canada and the United States (that) restrict the flow of certain traffic on their networks.’

Oh, and I guess by rogue regimes, political cabals and thug dictators in Burma, Syria, Pakistan – and yup, China.

Moreover, ask Canadians to keyboard in ‘google.com’ just to see what happens.

Looks like somebody there is also ‘traffic shaping’ for commercial reasons.

Maybe it’s time for the CRTC to indulge a very public and open rethink of the Internet.

Obviously the Internet is and can be regulated.

The multi-gazillion-dollar question is – by whom?

And, since Industry Minister Jim Prentice has asserted (Nov. 28, 2007) that spectrum is owned by the public – to what end?

Bill Roberts,
President and CEO,
S-VOX and VisionTV.