{"id":6757,"date":"2013-10-07T19:49:43","date_gmt":"2013-10-07T23:49:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mhgoldberg.com\/blog\/?p=6757"},"modified":"2013-10-07T21:42:00","modified_gmt":"2013-10-08T01:42:00","slug":"calvinball-continues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mhgoldberg.com\/blog\/?p=6757","title":{"rendered":"Calvinball continues"},"content":{"rendered":"

As I have explained before<\/a>, Calvinball is a game that has rules, but the rules keep changing.<\/p>\n

Here is how\u00a0Wikipedia describes<\/a>\u00a0the game, which was introduced about 20 years ago in the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes:<\/p>\n

The only consistent rule is that Calvinball may never be played with the same rules twice. Scoring is also arbitrary, with Hobbes reporting scores of \u201cQ to 12\u2033 and \u201coogy to boogy.\u201d The only recognizable sports Calvinball is similar to are the ones that it emulates (i.e., a cross between croquet, polo, badminton, capture the flag, and volleyball.) Equipment includes a volleyball (the eponymous \u201cCalvinball\u201d), a soccer ball, a croquet set, a badminton set, assorted flags, bags, signs, and a hobby horse. Other things are included as needed, such as a bucket of ice-cold water, a water balloon, and various songs and poetry. Players also wear masks that resemble blindfolds with holes for the eyes. When Rosalyn asked Calvin what the reason for the requirement was, Calvin responded, \u201cSorry, no one\u2019s allowed to question the masks.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

For the past 4 years, I have used Calvinball to describe Canada’s communications policy, such as here<\/a>, here<\/a>, here<\/a> and here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The government has been advertising that it welcomes foreign investment in telecommunications; foreign investment apparently forms a key part of the government’s strategy to encourage competition in the sector. Yet, this evening, the government turned down the sale by Manitoba Telecom (MTS) of Allstream to Accelero Capital<\/a> for “national security reasons,” having taken four and a half months to make a decision. According to MTS, the government “rejected an offer from MTS and Accelero to take whatever actions are necessary to address the government’s concerns.”<\/p>\n

Keep in mind that the principals of Accelero are well known to the government. These are the same people that were permitted to buy spectrum and operate WIND Mobile. Indeed, the government seemed to bend over backwards to approve their entry into the market, overturning a CRTC decision that denied WIND Mobile’s right to operate<\/a> (prior to the liberalization of foreign investment rules).<\/p>\n

The Government says<\/a>:<\/p>\n

The Government of Canada has concluded its review of Accelero Capital Holdings’ proposed acquisition of the Allstream division of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. (MTS) under the national security provisions of the Investment Canada Act. The result of this review is that the transaction will not proceed.<\/p>\n

MTS Allstream operates a national fibre optic network that provides critical telecommunications services to businesses and governments, including the Government of Canada.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Just last December, Allstream announced that it had been awarded a multi-year contract to manage theMPLS network<\/a>, for Shared Services Canada, the Government of Canada department responsible for providing telecommunication services, email and data centres. Allstream also appears to be a major supplier<\/a> to Canada’s civil aviation navigation services provider, NAV Canada, among other government sector clients.<\/p>\n

This evening’s government press release seems to be saying that foreign companies will not be permitted to acquire telecom companies that are providing services to the Government of Canada.<\/p>\n

As MTS states<\/a>,<\/p>\n

the transaction would have, among other things:<\/p>\n