I received an email on Monday from CATA Alliance, asking for Canadians to sign a petition calling for a pledge of full endorsement of their i-Canada vision. I can’t endorse the document, let alone pledge that I “do fully endorse” it. Quite simply, the preamble contains too many flaws to merit my full endorsement.

The message starts out by inviting us to view a video from TVO featuring a soliloquy bemoaning Canada’s supposedly sorry network condition, citing a “recent study.” I won’t get into any further trashing of the widely discredited Harvard Berkman study, upon which the CATA Alliance release relies. After all, that is old news to my regular readers. Even the FCC – the folks who commissioned the Berkman study – ignored the report.

To call it a “Harvard” study implies credibility – as though there was an academic peer review of the paper. Ha! Just like there is no questioning of the facts set out in the TVO video. Of course, a critical interviewer might have destroyed so many of the premises of the position that claims Canadian broadband is woefully inadequate – that we have “some of the poorest high-speed internet service in the developed world.”

For example, Google’s gigabit network plans are said to be 1000 times faster than what we suffer with today in Canada. That would mean that the fastest connection in Canada is only 1 Mbps. Anyone care to offer a view on the accuracy of that?

It speaks of Australia’s future plans, Google’s planned trials, a Swedish community network serving 50,000 people and confuses these by comparing it to the slowest networks in Canada.

In the iCanada manifesto, the document lists Canada’s accomplishments of the past before ringing an alarm bell that cries out that “Canada has been falling down the international leadership staircase in terms of the innovation and application of technology.”

It would have been inconvenient to point out that Canada is home to 3 of the world’s fastest mobile wireless networks – the only country in the world with 3 such networks and more being built [see our earlier post on this point]. It wouldn’t have fit the hypothesis to note that Canada has led the world in the deployment of ultra-high speed DOCSIS 3.0 cable internet service.

While the monologue talks about a community of 50,000 in Sweden investing $4500 per household to build a community fibre network, there is no mention of competition driving phone companies across Canada, from New Brunswick through Quebec and Manitoba to build fibre to the home – without individuals having to front the costs.

There was no mention of the 14 Canadian communities recognized for excellence by the Intelligent Communities Forum, more than half the number of communities named in the US; no other countries have more than 5 communities recognized. I didn’t hear see CATA Alliance’s document recognize New Brunswick premier Shawn Graham being named Intelligent Community Visionary of the Year “based on his dedication to make New Brunswick the first complete broadband province in Canada and transform its educational system to pursue a knowledge-based economy.”

CATA Alliance is apparently trying to build participation in the national dialog to set a direction for Canada’s Digital Economy. It seems to me that it can be hard to figure out where you are going if you don’t know where you are starting from.

The 2010 Canadian Telecom Summit, June 7-9, will be the place to find out where we are and discuss where we should be heading.

Canada’s Digital Economy future will be prominently featured throughout The 2010 Canadian Telecom Summit, right from the  opening keynote address on June 7, delivered by Industry Minister Tony Clement. Tuesday June 8 will feature a number of sessions that examine these issues – how other countries are developing their ICT Strategies and some perspectives on what should be done here in Canada. 

Have you registered yet? Download the complete conference brochure here [pdf, 1.2MB].

John Bitove already has a significant share of Canada’s “on-the-go” wallet. For regular readers of my blog, we generally think in terms of communications services and technology. But the chairman of Canada’s newest mobile services brand has a broader appeal for Canadians on the go.

He is also executive chair of Priszm, controlling some of Canada’s top fast-food brands: KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. Besides food, he is also a big player in mobile entertainment; I have written a number of times about his satellite radio operations, XM Canada. And as of this past weekend, mobile phone and data services have been added to the portfolio in the Greater Toronto Area.

Since launching the new brandname in early February, Mobilicity had been quiet about its precise launch plans and pricing, simply telling us that it wanted to be prepared for a painless start.

On Friday, President Dave Dobbin helped Chairman John Bitove cut the ribbon, and unlike Public Mobile, Mobilicity is opening its stores with a network covering the bulk of the GTA, beyond the city limits of Toronto, already up and running and ready for customers to turn their phones on when they leave the stores.

The wider coverage area, including the populous suburbs of Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan and Markham, and a range of unlimited plans starting as low as $15 per month will put pressure on the other new entrants. Datastick unlimited access in the Mobilicity footprint is $40 per month.

The $65 plan (that includes unlimited Canadian and US voice calling, unlimited global text messaging, voice mail, caller ID, Callwaiting, forwarding, three way calling, unlimited data) appears to be a great choice for students: no contract, no credit check, unlimited. The only negative is that there is no roaming right now – and roaming won’t be included in these rates. However, the unlimited data includes tethering, so it will be a great plan for wireline substitution. With its aggressive unlimited international calling plans, Mobilicity is also beating Wind’s affiliate Yak in going after key ethnic markets.

Calling to other countries and various pay-per-use features are available using an innovative Mobile Wallet, with advanced prompts to let users know how much it will cost – aimed at removing end of month bill shock. Regulators should take note: the marketplace is finding solutions to problems without government intervention.

When Mobilicity launched the new magenta and green brand, we described the name as combining Mobile and Simplicity. There is another emphasis from the part of its name that shows up on a green background: City. The new kid on the block is offering a portfolio of City-wide plans, taking aim at people who need urban (not national) mobility but simple, predictable price plans. Will this drive a return of City Fido?

Mobilicity President & CEO Dave Dobbin will be joined by Wind Mobile CEO Ken Campbell and Rogers EVP of Marketing John Boynton, speaking on the closing panel at The 2010 Canadian Telecom Summit, taking place June 7-9. Have you registered yet?

Download the complete conference brochure.

Earlier this week, Industry Minister Tony Clement announced the launch of a consultation on the Digital Economy.

The consultation is examining various themes and each theme has a number of questions for which responses are being sought.

Consultation Questions

• Innovation Using Digital Technologies
  • Should Canada focus on increasing innovation in some key sectors or focus on providing the foundation for innovation across the economy?
  • Which conditions best incent and promote adoption of ICT by Canadian business?
  • What would a successful digital strategy look like for your firm or sector? What are the barriers to implementation?
  • Once copyright, anti-spam and data breach/privacy amendments are in place, are their other legislative or policy changes needed to deal with emerging issues?
  • How can Canada use its regulatory and policy regime to promote Canada as a favourable environment for e-commerce?
• Digital Infrastructure
  • What speeds and other service characteristics are needed by users (e.g., consumers, businesses, public sector bodies) and how should Canada set goals for next generation networks?
  • What steps must be taken to meet these goals? Are the current regulatory and legislative frameworks conducive to incenting investment and competition? What are the appropriate roles of stakeholders in the public and private sectors?
  • What steps should be taken to ensure there is sufficient radio spectrum available to support advanced infrastructure development?
  • How best can we ensure that rural and remote communities are not left behind in terms of access to advanced networks and what are the priority areas for attention in these regions?
• Growing the ICT Industry
  • Do our current investments in R&D effectively lead to innovation, and the creation of new businesses, products and services? Should we promote investments in small start-ups to expand our innovation capacity?
  • What is needed to innovate and grow the size of the ICT industry including the number of large ICT firms headquartered in Canada?
  • What would best position Canada as a destination of choice for venture capital and investments in global research and development mandates?
  • What efforts are needed to address the talent needs in the coming years?
• Canada’s Digital Content
  • What does creating Canada’s digital content advantage mean to you?
  • What elements do you want to see in Canada’s marketplace framework for digital media and content?
  • How do you see digital content contributing to Canada’s prosperity?
  • What kinds of infrastructure investments do you foresee making in the future? What kinds of infrastructure will you need in the future to be successful at home and abroad?
  • How can stakeholders encourage investment, particularly early stage investment, in the development of innovative digital media and content?
• Building Digital Skills
  • What do you see as the most critical challenges in skills development for a digital economy?
  • What is the best way to address these challenges?
  • What can we do to ensure that labour market entrants have digital skills?
  • What is the best way to ensure the current workforce gets the continuous upskilling required to remain competitive in the digital economy? Are different tactics required for SMEs versus large enterprises?
  • How will the digital economy impact the learning system in Canada? How we teach? How we learn?
  • What strategies could be employed to address the digital divide?
• Improving Canada’s Digital Advantage
  • Should we set targets for our made-in-Canada digital strategy? And if so, what should those targets be?
  • What should the timelines be to reach these targets?

There are two ways to participate: through the on-line ideas forum, or through a more formal submission of a document.

But there is a problem with the submission guidelines. Formal submissions are limited to 10 pages, with a one page executive summary. So, we have 24 questions (plus some with follow-up questions) organized under 5 themes, plus a couple questions under the broad heading of “Improving Canada’s Digital Advantage”) and the response is limited to 5000 words and 10 pages, whether you respond to one question or to all of them.

I think there is a difference between an objective of keeping things succinct and mandating superficiality.

It seems to me that we should want people and associations and companies to think of wholistic digital strategies, trying to tie together responses that look at multiple themes. Given that the consultation paper asking the questions was 40 pages, is it reasonable to have the responses limited to one quarter the size? As an exercise, I cut and pasted the listing of the questions above. That uses up 543 words and a page and a half at 10 point font.

In speaking with the help desk, it appears that the 10 page limit is more of a recommendation than a hard cap. Uploads are limited to 10MB – which sets more of a firm ceiling on the document size. The point is clearly to manage the work load in reviewing the materials.

Hopefully there will be a re-phrasing of the submission limits – encouraging complete, but succinct inputs toward creating a national digital economy.

I caught a rant by David Duchovny’s character on Californication last night that was worth pondering – especially by those of us who blog and tweet:

People… they don’t write anymore – they blog. Instead of talking, they text, no punctuation, no grammar: LOL this and LMFAO that. You know, it just seems to me it’s just a bunch of stupid people pseudo-communicating with a bunch of other stupid people in a proto-language that resembles more what cavemen used to speak than the King’s English.

During the initial webcast from Canada 3.0, a tweet asked the question about why everyone felt the need to be in Stratford, considering the discussion was about a digital strategy. A response was that you can’t meet people from your desk.

Random encounters, opportunities for meaningful encounters with serious (and not so serious) people, are among the reasons to climb from behind the keyboard and LCD and interact with the non-virtual world, face-to-face – no thumbs required. No event compares to The 2010 Canadian Telecom Summit in providing a three-day schmooze fest, with formal discussions led by the top influencers on Canada’s ICT industries, on top of incomparable networking opportunities.

Have you registered yet? Download the complete conference brochure here [pdf, 1.2MB].

In yesterday’s blog post, I observed that some of the first user comments on the Digital Economy consultation website focused on digital plumbing – the supply side of broadband.

Yesterday, David Eaves wondered if we are asking the right questions. He observed:

I think we need to stop talking about a digital as the future.

This whole conversation isn’t about being a digital country. It isn’t about a future where everything is going to be digitized. That isn’t the challenge. It is already happening.
…
The dirty truth is that Canada’s digital future isn’t about digital. What is special isn’t that everything is being digitized. It’s that everything is being connected. The web isn’t interesting because you can read it on a computer screen. It is special because of hyperlinks – that information is connected to other information

His blog post is worth reading, although some of his ideas for moving forward are guilty of prejudging outcomes before providing a full review, such as his perspectives on network conditions.

But we agree that the vision for Canada’s digital future needs to be broader.

As I wrote yesterday, “Ensuring leading edge infrastructure is a necessary, but not sufficient enabler of Canada’s global leadership. … There are a range of issues to be explored.”

In scanning various media, I noticed a story about a digital consultation process. The story speaks about high priced broadband and lagging behind other countries in the roll-out of next generation services. What made this story interesting was that it was about Europe, not Canada.

The 2010 Canadian Telecom Summit will feature a number of sessions that examine these issues – including international perspectives – starting with the opening keynote address by Industry Minister Tony Clement on June 7.

Have you registered yet? Download the complete conference brochure here [pdf, 1.2MB].