Levy on ISPs would make getting online less affordable: advocate

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – As the federal government reviews the future of Canadian content and who should foot the bill for it, one of the ideas being considered is a new levy on internet service providers (ISPs).

While nothing concrete has been proposed yet, the Vancouver-based internet advocacy group Open Media is sounding the alarm.

“The answer isn’t to levy a new tax on what’s a pretty successful industry simply in order to prop-up one that is struggling,” says the group’s David Christopher, “I think we need a much longer-term approach than that.”

Christopher argues that Canadians are already paying some of the “highest prices in the industrialized world” for internet, and any new costs forced upon ISPs would only be passed on to consumers.

He adds this would have the greatest impact on low-income Canadians, and those in the most remote areas of the country.

“44 per cent of low-income households have no Internet access. If you then go and impose an ISP tax, that’s really going to make the difference for a lot of families who are currently struggling.”

Open Media plans to launch a public awareness campaign opposing such a levy. Members will also meet with federal Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly’s team early next month to make their concerns known.

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