Internet Tax

[Josh at OpenMedia]

Members of Internet Advice Tips , When you open your next Internet bill, you could get a nasty shock. Unless we act quickly. Right now, lobbyists are pushing for a new tax on Canadians’ Internet access that could force Big Telecom to hike your bills up even higher.1, 2, 3 Find out more — and act now to stop the Internet tax dead in its tracks here: I Want to Stop the Internet Tax We need to demand Minister of Canadian Heritage Mélanie Joly take this ineffective ISP tax off the table ASAP. The highly controversial plan is being pushed onto Minister Joly by vocal minority of lobbyists.1, 4, 5 She’s reviewing Canadian content and cultural policy — a noble endeavour, but one that can’t be paid for by a hefty new tax for Internet Service Providers (ISPs). If she caves to these lobbyists, there is no doubt this tax will be passed on directly on to you in the form of higher Internet bills.2, 6 A backwards proposal like this, which taxes the open Internet when there are so many reasonable funding alternatives available, is not the right way forward. But here’s some good news: Right now, this is still just an idea. We have a huge chance to kill it well before it ever gets close to being enacted. There’s no doubt in my mind Canadians are going to hate this Internet Tax — so let’s come together and make it count. We have no time to lose. Our inside sources tell us this Internet tax could be slipped into the next federal budget, so we need to act right now. Canadians already pay some of the highest prices in the industrialized world for Internet service.6 And as a result, nearly one in five Canadians has no Internet connection in their home.7 The real cost of a tax like this is that even more of Canadians, in particular rural and low income families, will be left behind in our growing “digital divide.” This isn’t the right way forward for our country. We need the government to helping more people get online, not less. Tell Minister Joly that Canadians can't afford these a new Internet Tax, and demand she take this proposal off the table NOW! Your support will help Canadians’ Internet bills from rising. –Josh, on behalf of OpenMedia P.S., Solutions for funding quality content already exist, and should not come at the expense of bringing Canada into a 21st century digital economy. Tell Minister Joly to ditch the Internet tax and give Canadians a fairer Internet future. Footnotes [1] Internet price hikes could be coming as Ottawa reviews cultural policy, critics warn. Source: CBC [2] Stop the federal government before it taxes everything on the Internet. Source: Financial Post [3] New digital taxes may be the future of Cancon. Source: Globe and Mail [4] Why Copyright Reform Won’t Solve the Troubles Faced By the Newspaper Industry. Source: Michael Geist [5] Busking in the streaming age. Source: Montreal Gazette [6] How Canada’s Internet, wireless rates compare with international prices. Source: Globe and Mail [7] Rethinking Universal Service for the 21st Century and an All-IP World. Source: Canadian Media Concentration Research Project

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