Volume VI

Issue : 12: June 12, 2008

• U.K. Broadcaster to Create Web Page for each TV Episode Going Back 80 Years
• Class Action Status Granted to Municipality Against Online Travel Companies For Uncollected Tax
• French Court Finds eBay Liable for Sale of Counterfeit Handbags
• U.S. Supreme Court Refuses to Intervene in Dispute over Fantasy Sports Game
• Overstock Sues New York over New Retail Sales Tax Legislation
• US Appellate Court Upholds Virginias Law on Online Solicitation of Minors
• Australian Survey Finds Email Leaks Leading to Increased Dismissal of Employees
• US Supreme Court Rules Against Multiple Royalties Claims in Patent Disputes
• Bell Canada Sued For Shaping Internet Traffic

Home > Volume VI > Issue 12: June 12, 2008 > Bell Canada Sued For Shaping Internet Traffic

Bell Canada Sued For Shaping Internet Traffic

Bell Canada is facing another challenge to its Internet throttling practices as Quebec's consumer watchdog, L'Union des consommateurs, filed a class-action lawsuit on May 29, 2008 in Quebec Superior Court against the company. The lawsuit alleges that by deliberately slowing Internet service speeds, Bell has misrepresented its service to consumers and raised concerns over users’ privacy. The suit seeks a return of 80 percent of the subscriber fees, which L’Union des consommateurs claims is the equivalent to the reduction in speed, as well as additional compensation for false advertising and privacy violations.

Bell has previously admitted to using deep-packet inspection (DPI) technology to slow down (known as “throttling” or “traffic shaping”) some Internet applications, particularly peer-to-peer applications such as BitTorrent, during peak hours. Rogers Communications, another major Internet Service Provider ( ISP), has also acknowledged the use of DPI technology, as have several U.S.-based ISPs. The position of the ISPs is that a small percentage of users engaged in heavy peer-to-peer file transfers can congest the network for all users, necessitating the use of DPI to ensure consistent network speed and access for all users during peak periods.

Bell is also currently addressing a complaint made to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) in April by the Canadian Association of Internet Providers (CAIP), a group of 55 small ISPs that rent network access from Bell. The CAIP is alleging that the DPI throttling is additionally affecting users of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) who work from home, as well as users of Voice over IP (VoIP) telephone systems, not just peer-to-peer applications. Submissions from both sides are due in June, with a CRTC ruling expected in September.

For additional information, visit :

http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2008/06/02/tech-quebec.html