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The Canadian equivalent of the FCC has ruled today on net neutrality and the practice of throttling different types of data. In short, they seem to have made enemies on both sides of the camp: The ISP’s will be crying foul as they must notify users before they throttle them and that it must be as a last resort. The end users can still be throttled in the end.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) today introduced a new framework to guide Internet service providers (ISPs) in their use of Internet traffic management practices. The Commission is also requiring ISPs to inform consumers of their practices, which will help them to make more informed decisions about the Internet services they purchase and use.
“Canada is the first country to develop and implement a comprehensive approach to Internet traffic management practices,” said Konrad von Finckenstein, Q.C., Chairman of the CRTC. “The centrepiece of our approach is a framework of analysis that will be employed to determine whether economic and technical practices are acceptable.”
“More and more, the Internet is serving as the backbone for communication, commerce, governance, health, education and entertainment. Our framework will foster an environment where ISPs, application providers and users have the utmost freedom to innovate,” added Mr. von Finckenstein.
ISPs will be required to inform retail customers at least 30 days, and wholesale customers at least 60 days, before an Internet traffic management practice takes effect. At that time, ISPs will need to describe how the practice will affect their customers’ service.
To meet the changing needs of Internet users, the Commission encourages ISPs to make investments to increase network capacity as much as possible. However, the Commission realizes that ISPs may need other measures to manage the traffic on their networks at certain times.
Whenever possible, ISPs should give preference to Internet traffic management practices based on economic measures. These practices are the most transparent as they are clearly identified on monthly bills. With this information, consumers can compare between different Internet services and match their bandwidth needs with the amount they are willing to pay. Technical means to manage traffic, such as traffic shaping, should only be employed as a last resort.
The Commission has also adopted special rules for ISPs that provide services on a wholesale basis to their competitors. These are necessary to ensure that ISPs do not use Internet traffic management practices to cause competitive harm to their wholesale customers.
For both the retail and wholesale markets, the Commission will use its new framework to review practices that raise concerns or generate complaints.
From: http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/NEWS/RELEASES/2009/r091021.htm
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Justin Lee