For the past 20 years, a small collection of cultural groups have been pressing the CRTC to regulate and tax the Internet. After years of consistent rejections from the govt and regulator, today the CRTC reversed that policy in a deeply flawed report (1/7) michaelgeist.ca/2018/05/regula… 
The foundation of the report is flawed for at least four reasons. First, Canadian broadcasting regulation is essentially regulation on speech. To extend to the Internet, means virtually no limits. Is the CRTC taxing & regulating newspapers? Podcasts? (2/7) michaelgeist.ca/2018/05/regula…
Second, there is no Canadian content emergency. Last year, the total value of the Canadian production sector exceeded $8 billion, over than a billion more than has been recorded over the past decade. (3/7) michaelgeist.ca/2018/05/regula…
Third, an Internet tax is largely premised on the argument that ISPs and Internet companies owe their revenues to the cultural content accessed by subscribers. But the Internet is about far more than streaming videos or listening to music. (4/7) michaelgeist.ca/2018/05/regula…
Yet the CRTC envisions the Internet as little more than cable television and wants to implement a taxation system akin to cable. Cable contributions can be rationalized because the only thing you can do is watch programming. Not so with the Internet (5/7) michaelgeist.ca/2018/05/regula…
Fourth, there is little reason to believe that the costs won’t have an impact on Internet and wireless pricing that is already some of the highest in the world. There is no way around the fact that an Internet tax would make access less affordable. (6/7) michaelgeist.ca/2018/05/regula…
It is frankly stunning to the CRTC effectively drop affordable access as a top priority. I sum up today’s disastrous decision this way (7/7) michaelgeist.ca/2018/05/regula…
