Weekly News (December 7th, 2021)

Compiled by Boxi Chen, Fizza Kulvi, Meaghan Wester, and Nick Gertler with Sara Bannerman, Fenwick McKelvey, Guillaume Dandurand, Marek Blottière, and Kevin Morin
McMaster University, Communications Governance Observatory

The Communications Governance Discussion Group meets every few weeks by Zoom.  Email organizer Derek Hrynyshyn <derekh@yorku.ca> for details.

(November 30-December 6, 2021)

Canadian News 

·         [DEFAMATION/HATE SPEECH] Supreme Court ruling could change how human rights law is applied in Quebec (National Post)

·         [PATENT] South African envoy calls on Canada to support waiver on COVID-19 vaccines (National Post)

·         [TELECOMMUNICATIONS POLICY/PRIVACY] New caller ID law now in place to help fight wave of spam and spoof calls (CBC News)

·         [PRIVACY] Dubé veut faciliter l’accès aux données de santé des Québécois (Le Devoir)

·         [PRIVACY] Ottawa, provinces must create agency to reform how health data is collected and used, report says (Globe & Mail)

·         [FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] Le Conseil de presse du Québec rejette deux plaintes contre «Le Devoir», mais en retient une (Le Devoir)

·         [PRIVACY] Gov. Gen. Mary Simon’s office says its internal network was hacked (Toronto Star)

·         [PRIVACY] Nova Scotia says new directive reinforces existing ban on police street checks (Toronto Star)

·         [HATE SPEECH] Most Canadians are fed up with online hatred and discrimination and want to see Parliament act, new survey says (Toronto Star)

·         [DEFAMATION] Judge rules Steven Galloway can proceed with defamation suit (Globe & Mail)

·         [ACCESS TO INFORMATION] Laurentian University has created ‘culture of fear’ among staff, stymied value-for-money audit, says AG (Toronto Star)

·         [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] How AI will change what happens when you see a doctor (Globe & Mail)

·         [PRIVACY] Sondage mené par la firme Léger : Les Québécois prêts à partager leurs données de santé (La Presse)

·         [FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] OPINION: Urback: The Liberals’ beefed-up ban on conversion therapy is a Charter challenge in the making (Globe & Mail)

International News

·         [PRIVACY] Roe v. Wade is before the U.S. Supreme Court. Here’s what’s at stake for abortion rights (Globe & Mail)

·         [PRIVACY/PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Big Tech Privacy Moves Spur Companies to Amass Customer Data (Wall Street Journal)

·         [PRIVACY/PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] How TikTok Reads Your Mind (New York Times)

·         [PLATFORM REGULATION] Facebook whistleblower Haugen urges lawmakers to avert impasse on social media laws (NBC News)

·         [CENSORSHIP] Federal judge blocks Texas law that would have opened doors for lawsuits against social media (USA Today)

·         [PRIVACY/PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Far right is using Twitter’s new rule against anti-extremism researchers (Washington Post)

·         [HATE SPEECH/PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Civil rights groups flagged dozens of anti-Muslim pages and groups to Facebook that stayed up, lawsuit alleges (Washington Post)

·         [PRIVACY] A U.K. Court Has Backed Meghan Markle in Her Dispute Over Privacy With a Publisher (Time)

·         [HATE SPEECH] Turning Outrage Into Power: How Far Right Is Changing GOP (US News)

·         [COPYRIGHT/TRADEMARK] Shopify sued by publishers accusing company of profiting from textbook piracy (Globe & Mail)

·         [DATA SECURITY] China Increasingly Obscures True State of Its Economy to Outsiders (Wall Street Journal)

·         [PRIVACY] Legal news service sues Virginia for access to online court records (Washington Post)

(November 30-December 6, 2021)

Canadian Media Concentration Research Project

• Growth and Upheaval in the Network Media Economy in Canada, 1984-2020
• The Network Media Economy in Canada, 2020

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

• Government of Canada backs visionary company’s high-tech solution for better protecting marine environments through innovative data-collection technology
• Government of Canada backs emerging leader in silicon chip photonics that produces navigation sensors for self-driving vehicles 

Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada:

·         2020-21 ATIP Annual Reports tabled in Parliament

CRTC

News Releases:

• Compliance and Enforcement decision 2021-399
  [2021-12-02 11:00:00]
  2260948 Ontario Inc., operating as Smart Choice Window and Door Systems – Violations of the Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules – File number: UTR 9174-2831
• Telecom order 2021-396
  [2021-12-01 11:00:00]
  Determination of costs award with respect to the participation of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre in the proceeding that led to Saskatchewan Telecommunications’ application to review and vary Telecom Decision 2021-45 – File numbers: 8662-S22-202101708, 8680-S22-202102317, and 4754-672
• Telecom order 2021-395
  [2021-12-01 11:00:00]
  Streamlined order – The Commission approves on a final basis the following tariff application: TELUS Communications Inc. TN 642
• Telecom notice of consultation 2020-269-2
  [2021-12-01 11:00:00]
  Call for comments – Imposition of administrative monetary penalties on Iristel Inc. and TELUS Communications Inc. in relation to the routing and termination of phone calls to the 867 area code in Northern Canada – Changes to procedure – Public record: 1011-NOC2020-0269
• Telecom decision 2021-398
  [2021-12-01 11:00:00]
  TELUS Communications Inc. – Application to review and vary Telecom Decision 2020-268 – Public record: 8662-T66-202007666
• Telecom decision 2021-397
  [2021-12-01 11:00:00]
  Iristel Inc. – Application to review, vary, and stay Telecom Decision 2020-268 and Telecom Notice of Consultation 2020-269 regarding the routing of traffic to Numbering Plan Area 867 – Public record: 8662-J64-202005595
• Telecom decision 2021-394
  [2021-12-01 11:00:00]
  Broadband Fund – Project funding approval for Base Technology Limited’s access project in British Columbia – Public record: 1011-NOC2019-0372
• Telecom decision 2021-393
  [2021-12-01 11:00:00]
  Relief for area code complex 819/873 in Western Quebec – Public record: 8621-C12-01/08
• Telecom notice of consultation 2021-191-1
  [2021-11-30 11:00:00]
  Call for comments – Introduction of a three-digit abbreviated dialing code for mental health crisis and suicide prevention services – Changes to procedure – Public record: 1011-NOC2021-0191

YouTube:

• Access for all, a balanced ecosystem, and powerful tools
• Shining a light on antisemitism, with the Anti-Defamation League

Microsoft:

• Protecting our data infrastructure through some new approaches to privacy

Twitter:

• Expanding access beyond information operations
• Disclosing state-linked information operations we’ve removed
• Our new search prompt to help people find credible information about HIV
• Expanding our private information policy to include media

Amazon:

• AWS Announces AWS Cloud WAN
• Rivian Selects AWS as Its Preferred Cloud Provider to Drive Efficiency, Performance, and Refinement of Electric Vehicles
• AWS Announces Three New Database Capabilities
• AWS Helps Pfizer Accelerate Drug Development and Clinical Manufacturing
• AWS Announces Two New Initiatives That Make Machine Learning More Accessible

Senate of Canada

• Planned & Possible sitting days this week: Dec 8-14, 2021; National Finance, Room B30, Senate of Canada Building and by videoconference, December 6, 2021, 10:00 AM ET

Canadian House of Commons

• Planned & Possible sitting days this week:  Dec 8-14, 2021; A new session has now started. However, committees may not take up the responsibilities assigned to them until their members have been named and a chair is duly elected.

CRTC 

      Open Proceedings

• CRTC Open Broadcasting Proceedings
• CRTC Open Telecom Proceedings

Anticipated releases for the week of 6 to 10 December 2021

• The CRTC plans to issue the following decisions and/or regulatory policies in the week of 6 to 10 December 2021. This is subject to change without notice.

  Broadcasting Decision:

• R.B. Communications Ltd.
  CKYY-FM and CIXL-FM – Licence renewal
  Public records: 2021-0521-2 and 2021-0522-0

Compliance and Enforcement and Telecom Decision:

• Bell Canada – Application to allow Bell Canada and its affiliates to block certain fraudulent and scam voice calls on a permanent basis
  Public record: 8638-B2-202006345

Open Public Consultations: 

• Prescribed electronic format to enable digital access to personal health information (reply comments due December 15, 2021)
• Enabling the enforceability of the Building Broadband Faster Act Guideline (reply comments due January 17, 2022)
• Consultation about a 3-digit phone number for suicide prevention (reply comments due January 31, 2022)