Technology

Internet Drama in Canada. (Really.)

Let’s talk about internet policy! In Canada! We!

I am serious about the useful lessons from the story about Canadian home internet services. Although imperfect, a promising system that increases Canadian choice and improves Internet services is ready to collapse.

Many small Internet providers in Canada can significantly increase prices, lose customers, or shut down. More competitive dreams that lead to better internet services for Canadians are in life support.

What’s happening in Canada reveals why smart internet policies need to be combined with strong government oversight to make the internet better and more affordable for everyone.

The United States has failed it for years, and that’s one of the reasons American Internet services stink. Canada may be a real experiment on what happens when confused government regulations undermine Internet policy, which was mostly effective.

Endure with me for a Canadian home internet service lesson. The bottom line is that Canadians have something relatively novel to Americans. Many people have the option of choosing a home internet provider that they don’t dislike.

This is because in Canada (as in many countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia and Japan), companies that own Internet pipelines need to rent access to companies that sell Internet services to their homes. Regulators are closely monitoring these rents and conditions to ensure they are fair.

Owners of Internet infrastructure in Canada and elsewhere do not like this approach. They usually say that there is little incentive to improve and expand the Internet pipeline if they need to share the infrastructure and the potential benefits from it.

The United States for the last two decades has rarely worked this way. Large companies like Comcast and Verizon own most internet pipelines and in most cases are not obliged to rent access to small businesses that may want to sell their services to us.

According to 2020, mandatory and regulated leasing of internet pipelines is generally one of the reasons why Europeans tend to pay much less for better internet services than the United States. analysis By New America, a left-wing American think tank.

Internet services in Canada aren’t great yet.But 2019 analysis by government agencies found Although the country’s rental access approach has its drawbacks, it has been very effective in increasing the competitiveness of Internet services, reducing costs for businesses, and improving networks and customer service.

The focus in Canada is the price charged by the owner of the internet pipeline. Over the past few years, there have been legal and regulatory disputes over the appropriate costs and conditions for large companies to rent pipelines. A small Canadian internet company says infrastructure owners have misunderstood regulators about the cost of building and maintaining a network.

As a result, after some flip-flops by government officials, national telecommunications regulators On the side of the internet pipeline owner.. The government is set up for small internet providers to charge significantly higher fees for leasing large corporate pipelines.At least one such provider in Canada already Sold myself And he said it wouldn’t have been able to continue the business at the new rates.

Smaller internet providers say Canada is trying to break the system that served its customers well.

Jeff White, Executive Director of Canada’s Competitive Network Operators, an industry group of small telecommunications service providers, said: Mr White said it took years for the country’s Internet system to become more competitive and “has been gradually revoked.”

He and other critics of Canada’s Internet policy said service providers and customers have suffered years of regulatory impasse regarding the cost of leasing Internet pipes. To be sure, figuring out the right price is a complex analysis in any country. If the price is set too low or too high, the system will fail.

It’s worth paying attention to what’s happening in Canada. Like other important services, including electricity and healthcare, great internet services don’t happen by accident. It is a choice that demands a wise combination of effective public policy and the best that capitalism can offer.


This week’s tips

Brian X. Chen, a consumer technology columnist at The New York Times, gives advice this week from his column about trying to repair his iPhone and monumentally failing.

I talked about failing with Apple’s new self-repair program of renting a £ 75 worth of repair machine and installing a battery on the iPhone 12. I made one stupid mistake and destroyed the screen. It’s my fault, but it tells me how unforgiving Apple’s machines are. Virtually no room for error.

However, I managed to install the battery on my wife’s iPhone XS using a much more modest toolkit from iFixit, which publishes instructions and sells DIY repair tools. The kit for replacing the battery includes tweezers, a screwdriver, and a plastic pick to cut the glue that seals the phone together.

If you want to try repairing your own electronics, I have the advice I’ve had a hard time getting:

  • training: Any DIYer I know that I rarely work perfectly for the first time. Mistakes are part of the learning process. Look for and practice low stakes gadgets before prying open your cell phone or laptop. A good candidate is an outdated Kindle or an unused iPad.

  • Organize. It’s very important to keep track of what you’re doing so that you can get your gadget back correctly. Using my wife’s iPhone, I took pictures and numbered each screw I removed before starting the repair. Insert the screws into the paper tray labeled with the corresponding number.

  • Please be careful slowly. Unlike car, bicycle and plumbing repairs, electronic devices are extremely fragile. delicately. Place the device on a soft object such as a lint-free cloth to prevent damage. Move slowly and carefully to prevent the cables from tearing or the screws from coming off. This can actually feel meditation.

If you succeed, it will hopefully everything will be worth it.

This poor dog, Lotti doesn’t seem to enjoy daily group hikes..

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