CRTC investigates Rogers Communications

If online gamers have been experiencing slowness and lag during their game play, there may be a reason why. The CRTC is investigating possible complaints from the CGO that Rogers Communications may be illegally "throttling" its customer's Internet speeds.

Throttling is a technique Internet service providers (ISP) will often use as part of their traffic management techniques. This technique is allowed for applications such as peer-to-peer file sharing through programs such as Frostwire, but it is in violation of the Canadian Radio and Television Commission (CRTC) guidelines when it throttles services such as video streaming or online gaming.  Unlike with file sharing – throttling online games is prohibited as it affects the quality of the game.

On Oct. 27, the CRTC sent a letter to the Canadian Gaming Organization (CGO) stating that they were moving this complaint to their enforcement division. The CRTC's enforcement division has the power to inspect Rogers equipment or order a third-party audit of the company's Internet systems.

 Jason Koblovsky, Co-founder of the CGO, stated on his blog that Rogers told the Canadian Broadcast Company that it is within full compliance with CRTC policy and guidelines, but with the CRTC's investigation, Koblowsky and the CGO believes otherwise.

Rogers had admitted to throttling the game World of Warcraft in March of 2011 and, after user complaints, they have fixed that problem. According to the CGO, the current game that is experiencing lag and throttling is Call of Duty: Black Ops and they are concerned about which other games Rogers may attempt to throttle.  

Openmedia.ca, a profound advocate for "net neutrality", has often denounced the CRTC's ability to enforce their own regulations. Steve Anderson, OpenMedia.ca's Executive Director said that, by violating these rules, Rogers has shown that it values focus only on commercial interests over that of its customers and Canada's digital economy. Anderson believes that the big telecom businesses are out of control, and they need to be reined in before they damage our innovation economy further.

If the CRTC confirms Rogers is in violation, they can go so far as to order the company to partially reimburse customers and to change its practices.

The issue of an Internet Service Provider throttling the Internet speed of its customers call into question the principle of net neutrality, which advocates that the Internet should be kept open and free from interference or restrictions from service providers, and certain users should not be favoured over others.

The principle of net neutrality is becoming a major concern in today's world with many countries now adding access to the Internet as a basic right of a citizen. Advocates of this principle are trying to keep a level playing field of service and quality, whether it is for business or leisure.  

For more information on net neutrality and the importance of it, visit openmedia.ca/saveournet.