As many of our subscribers know, an important process has been underway before the CRTC, concerning the framework for wholesale access to internet services. It is this framework which, through regulations and tariffs enforced by the CRTC, allows companies like VMedia to be able to acquire bandwidth from the incumbent telcos like Rogers and Bell, and offer internet services to our subscribers. Part of the cost of acquiring that bandwidth relates to usage, and is commonly known as capacity based billing (CBB).
This process has not gotten the attention of the public in the same way the usage based billing (UBB) issue did, but it is at least as important, especially if Canadians want choice and fair pricing in BOTH internet and TV services. The climbing cost of CBB as usage grows is inexorable, and the trend reflects a very difficult future for ISPs and their ability to provide competitively priced services if it is not reversed through the introduction of fair pricing, arrived at through a transparent process.
The hearing recently ended, and it remains for the Commission to decide on whether it will adopt new approaches to ensure that bandwidth is priced fairly by the incumbents, at a cost that reflects their actual cost of supplying it. VMedia believes that the pricing of CBB is too high, and not reflective of the actual costs to the incumbents.
VMedia has tried from the outset of these hearings to turn the attention of the Commission to the interrelationship between CBB and online video content consumption, in particular IPTV, which represents the only alternative to the incumbents. Frankly VMedia truly believes the Commission gets it. The issue is not about giving IPTV providers a break on pricing, but coming up with a CBB pricing, or more importantly costing, model that reflects reality rather than the magical thinking of most incumbents.
The central argument VMedia has made is that there has to be transparency in how the costs the incumbents claim as the basis of the tariffs are arrived at, so that they can be reviewed and critiqued by independents ISPs in an open process, rather than submitted confidentially to the CRTC, as they have been.
For those of you who are interested, VMedia has posted:
- A copy of our final reply in the wholesale framework proceedings
- The text of our oral presentation at the hearings
We believe this is a very important issue for all Canadians, and the outcome of these proceedings will determine whether Canadians will have choice not only in the internet services available to them, but also the TV services which they subscribe for, a choice that goes beyond the two incumbents that dominate each market.
The problem with the issue of capacity-based billing is the fact that the CRTC has separated video content from internet content. Internet content falls under the Telecom category… as if Internet is only related to VoIP and traditional phone systems but has nothing to do with video.
Netflix, Youtube and the rest of the online video world have been around long enough for the CRTC to put some rules in place that deal with companies who can take advantage of online video and skirt around the rules of broadcasting.
That’s why I applaud VMedia’s efforts to become an alternative for people who want current content with real TV options.
I moved to VMedia from Rogers. My friends and family know that I have a ton of patience for EVERYTHING but my patience with VMedia is running thin.
EVERY WEEK there is an issue with the TV service, and to top it off, to add insult to injury, you just sent me an email that you have raised your prices and I have only been with you since December. Last night (could not watch television). This morning, no television. Last week, no television.
I should be paying for SERVICE. Not paying to not watch television. Very disappointing.
I moved to VMedia from Rogers.
two Thumbs up for the reliability and quality of internet services
one thumb up for the phone system. I set up for 4 phones to ring. Every week 1 or more of the handsets don’t ring and I have to reset the handset. How useless is a handset in one room that when a call comes in you can’t use it because the ringer capability has turned off
As for the TV option. You get what you pay for. The price is lower than Rogers or Bell but once every two years with Rogers I have an issue. With VMEDIA it is weekly that the sound/audio is off by a few seconds. It is like watching a cheap foreign film where the English translation/voice over doesn’t match what is on TV. Try watching hockey where the video and audio are off by 8-9 seconds. To top if off tonight we were watching a TV show and at the climax of the show, 5 minutes before the show is done the TV freezes up.
As for increasing the price, I think you should be reducing your price for the quality of your product.
While I get HD at a lower price when reliability is an issue discounts aren’t worth it.
No wonder why the sales people even at the store where they sell your products don’t have complementary things to say about your TV option
It is easy to notice the bigger companies want to put back their old clients into their cages. In addition, those companies want to apply their greedy tariffs, for anything that users do or need. Shameful. I receive every week annoying flyer ads from the two big companies – Bell and Rogers, proposing what they want to force us to take, very miserable plans including things that I don´t need, but taking the controll for what is the real important issue: to control the data allowance. In the depth of this affair, they want to put their rules again in order to get the users paying for useless plans for the sole right to get from internet only emails (what´s the purpose then for “broadband” I wonder?) , silly photos of cats on Facebook, or scam- boring videos on Youtube…and that´s all. For any other wanted services, they like keep us paying apart for TV and home phone services. They want to sell any feature of each of services like slices, putting prices for everything in order to get easy money. I definitely reject those dirty practices.
I hope you guys are working together with groups such as openmedia.org
https://act.openmedia.org/emergency?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=7012&tdid=317