OpenMedia hopeful ahead of meeting with CRTC chair

Lobby group OpenMedia has been polling the public about what the major issues in broadcasting and telecom are. It wants to use that information when it sits down with CRTC chair Vicky Eatrides on Tuesday. The campaigns director for the organization is excited for the chance to present OpenMedia’s views to the commission. “As you know, the CRTC is very heavily lobbied from all kinds of angles, big telcos get in there, broadcasting folks get in there, various media guilds get in there, platforms get in there,” Matt Hatfield told The Wire Report in a phone interview. “There’s a lot of loud voices there that have very strong connections, but ultimately the CRTC needs to be trying to make the internet and broadcasting and I guess now news, most likely, better for ordinary folks.” The group was told back in late winter that it could meet with Eatrides but was not able to find a mutually workable spot on the calendar until now. OpenMedia met with previous chair Ian Scott early in his mandate. The OpenMedia website has been gleaning comments from across the country. People are remarking on costs of telephone services, internet accessibility and the provisions of the Online Streaming Act and the Online News Act. Those last two bills are subject to open consultations at the commission; Hatfield will only be able to touch on issues in general terms. He says there have been thousands of submissions from the public and a subset will be presented to the chair at their meeting. The campaigns director worries that the regulator is not looking carefully enough at the issue of affordability when it comes to telecom services. He cites the example of the government’s goal of having all Canadians connected to high-speed internet within seven years. “Even if we do hit this 2030 target of everyone having a certain level of internet access, there’s no guarantee people are going to be able to pay for the service they need,” he noted. Hatfield also imagines there will be discussion about the definition of Canadian content, now that the two online acts have been passed into law. The original rules for CanCon did not foresee the advent of the internet and did not take into account the productions from online creators. – Reporting by Paul Park at ppark@thewirereport.ca and editing by Phalen Tynes-MacDonald at pcreed@thewirereport.ca

OpenMedia hopeful ahead of meeting with CRTC chair

News | June 26, 2023

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OpenMedia hopeful ahead of meeting with CRTC chair

News | June 26, 2023

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