Legislation
Why net neutrality rules should apply to ‘zero rating’
By Michael Geist Jul. 18, 2016
A CRTC hearing on zero rating and differential pricing is planned for the fall, but it is already clear that a retreat from Canada’s well-established net neutrality principles will face vocal opposition from government, consumer groups, and a growing number of industry players.
Internet users won the policy battle and years later net neutrality rules can be found worldwide. Indeed, the importance of an 'open Internet' was recently affirmed by Canada's Minister of Innovation Navdeep Bains, who told an international conference that the economy depends upon it. The Hill Times photograph by Jake Wright
OTTAWA—Net neutrality emerged as a top internet policy issue over 10 years ago as some internet service providers (ISPs) openly discussed creating a two-tier system with a fast lane for websites and applications willing to pay additional fees and a slow lane for everyone else. The companies maintained that consumers would benefit from the two-tier approach by gaining faster access to premium content.
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