Analyst slams CRTC data ruling

With its ruling that Internet providers can’t give free data to consumers who stream certain music or video content, Canada’s telecom regulator broke from its American counterpart by reiterating its position that carriers should simply act as pipes.

The Canadian Radio- television and Telecommunications Commission reinforced its position on net neutrality rules Thursday with a decision that confirms Internet providers will be treated as common carriers that cannot pick favourites among t he content t hat t ravels across their networks.

“Dumb pipes it is!” reacted Desjardins analyst Maher Yaghi, writing in a note to clients that the requirement for content- agnostic data pricing effectively bans the practice known as differential pricing or zero rating.

This means no more data freebies such as Quebecor Inc.- owned Videotron’s unlimited music service, which let customers stream as much music as desired without it counting toward their data caps. Yaghi calls the unlimited music package an “important selling argument.”

“By closing the door on differential pricing, the CRTC is yet again forcing providers to compete on price and service quality, and away from innovative product segmentation offerings,” Yaghi wrote.

The CRTC argued such practices hurt customers in the long run by steering them to a handful of providers picked by a gatekeeper. Its new framework “supports the freedom of consumers and citizens to access the online content of their choice without being unduly influenced by the marketing strategies and pricing decisions of Internet service providers.”