IP Communications Featured Articles

As politicians bicker over net neutrality, here in the United States it appears our siblings to the North -  Canada -  are taking some time to reevaluate its Internet policy. The Canadian government is of the belief that its three current Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are not providing the proper climate, i.e. price and choice, for consumers. Due to a shift in consumer demand caused by the evolution of technology, the government felt it was time to step in and revisit regulatory practices.

"This hearing provides the opportunity to protect and enhance the country's competitive landscape in terms of how Internet providers offer services to Canadian consumers and small businesses," Michael Nowlan, CEO of Primus Telecommunications Canada  stated after the company made its submission to the hearing.

The hearing took place late last week and focused on a couple primary issues. One of the hearings priorities was the bundling of wholesale services that forces providers to purchase superfluous offerings to providing Internet connectivity. "We are looking to 'unbundle' the wholesale services provided by the big telephone and cable companies so that we can give consumers more choice, better packages and lower prices," concluded Nowlan.

Another primary issue discussed was that of fiber access, because so few control access it is believed that the current landscape makes it nearly impossible to provide fair pricing for enterprises and citizens alike. If the hearing has the effect many are counting on, the entire industry in Canada could see a shake up.

"For people at home who stream Netflix, who work on Wi-Fi at the coffee shop on their smartphone or computer, and many others in small business, these are critical issues," Nowlan said. "We really need to focus on bringing more freedom of choice, innovation and lower prices to consumers."

Access to the Internet has become a necessity to daily life, whether it’s emailing a client, video conferencing with one’s employees or simply doing some online shopping the Internet remains a common thread. To compound its integral nature, the BYOD trend is catching on like wildfire as enterprise after enterprise are allowing employees to be more mobile and work more remotely than years past. Only time will tell what our northern neighbors decide to do, but it is clear that the U.S. isn’t the only country with Internet policy in its crosshairs.