CCTA praises VoIP decision
The Canadian Cable Telecommunications Association (CCTA) is praising the CRTC’s decision to regulate Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) just as it does circuit-switched services. "The decision to treat VoIP as a telephone service makes sense," CCTA president Michael Hennessy said in a statement. "Since VoIP has the same pricing, packaging and functions as traditional phone service, it should be regulated like traditional phone service." He added, "This decision is not about regulating the Internet. Apart from the incumbent pricing safeguards and ensuring access to 911 services, the CRTC has taken a light-handed approach to regulation." Under the ruling, cablecos wanting to offer VoIP will have to apply as CLECs. Incumbent telephone providers such as Bell Canada and TELUS Corp. have vowed to appeal to Cabinet to have the decision overturned. For a detailed look at the CRTC’s landmark VoIP ruling, see the May 25 issue of affiliate newsletter Network Letter.

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