The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission's public hearing into wholesale high-speed Internet access services began in Ottawa today.
In notes prepared for the opening speech by Chairman Konrad von Finckenstein, it was stated that retail consumer rates are not a part of the hearing; rather it deals with wholesale rates only.
Advocacy group OpenMedia.ca says that thousands of Canadians will be tuning into the CRTC hearings nevertheless, as OpenMedia.ca make its case for affordable and unmetered Internet access, and against so-called 'usage based billing'.
The organization's online petition and Stop The Meter campaign involved nearly half-a-million Canadians, it says, concerned about how much they have to pay for Internet service.
The Commission is holding the hearing to review how large telephone and cable companies charge their wholesale customers, the independent Internet service providers (ISPs), for the use of their networks. The Commission believes that retail rates (i.e. the prices charged by ISPs to consumers) are best set by the market - and the large and small providers that make up the market.
The large companies are currently required share their networks with independent ISPs under rates, terms and conditions approved by the Commission. This allows the independent ISPs to offer alternative services to Canadians - but those independent ISPs own price structure is restricted by the very wholesale costs and services the Commission wants to review.
So last year, after considering the issue on two separate occasions, the CRTC determined that large telephone companies must make their wholesale high-speed access services available to independent ISPs at the same speeds as those offered to their own retail customers. This covers all speeds, including the most recent higher-speed options.
At the same time, the Commission imposed what it calls more stringent obligations on cable companies to ensure their third-party Internet access services are an acceptable equivalent to the wholesale services offered by telecommunications companies.
In 2009, von Finckenstein described, the Bell companies applied for permission to impose additional charges to independent ISPs when their individual customers exceed monthly download limits. Some of the cable companies already had usage-based billing in place for their wholesale customers. Bell wanted to adopt a similar pricing model as an incentive for users to stay within their limits and to help manage traffic on its network.
The CRTC approved Bell's request at the end of a lengthy process that included several decisions. This past February, the Commission announced that it would review its decisions in light of the concerns expressed.
Many of those concerns were voiced through the Stop The Meter campaign, which OpenMedia.ca says has successfully pressured all the major political parties to take a stand against usage-based billing (Internet metering), and in fact ultimately forced the CRTC to launch the hearing today in order to reconsider its pricing policies.
"Canadians pushed for this hearing because Canada is falling behind our global counterparts on Internet pricing and investment," OpenMedia.ca Executive Director Steve Anderson said before the hearings began. "We've let big telecom giants regulate Internet pricing for long enough - now it's time to listen to Canadians."
During the current proceeding, parties have proposed new pricing models for wholesale high-speed access services that take into account the total bandwidth used by the customers of independent ISPs.
The CRTC says its understanding is that the proposals do not force independent ISPs to implement download limits or include additional charges based on the usage of their individual customers.
The pricing model for wholesale high-speed access services should drive large companies and independent ISPs to invest in their respective networks and maximize innovation, so the CRTC says it will examine the proposals with a view to providing independent ISPs the flexibility to offer innovative services and pricing options.
As part of the hearing, the Commission will make a final determination on the rates for wholesale residential high-speed access services. The interim rates it recent set will remain in effect until such a time as the Commission renders its decision, which could include retroactive adjustments.
von Finckenstein underscored that the interim rates were issued to ensure competitors have access to the services they need. He again stated that, as previously indicated, parties should not draw any inferences from this interim step, given its short and transitory nature.
The hearing continues tomorrow, Tuesday July 7, 2011.