The CRTC has conducted 2 separate proceedings related to the Internet. One was about content – their proceeding on new media broadcasting. They held another set of hearings on ISP traffic management practices, dubbed by some the Net Neutrality proceeding. The former was held under the Broadcasting Act and the decision was issued on June 4. The ISP proceeding takes place under the Telecommunications Act, and is therefore way more long-winded. Unfortunately, the new media proceeding steered well clear of Canada’s broadband problems.

On the other hand, the FCC isn’t simply reacting to the status quo, papering over the ever-widening cracks in the old telco business models (which the CRTC may be doing – jury’s still out). The FCC’s National Broadband Strategy, due before Congress on February 17, was mandated under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (which gave birth to several Recovery Act Broadband Initiatives). Moreover, the FCC is treating broadband as a precious national resource, just as it should. One blogger (Stacey Higginbotham on GigaOM) recently noted that “the FCC is embarking not on a National Broadband Plan, but a National Communications Plan.” Same idea as the national digital strategy the CRTC called for in its new media decision. Ottawa, please take note.