Is the Canadian Internet and innovation at risk due to poor planning?

A few months ago, I was contacted by Steve Andersen who asked me if I would donate my domain name, SaveOurNet.ca to a coalition he’s been working on with a mandate to educate consumers and businesses on the importance of Net Neutrality and to force the Canadian government to realize that we need a plan to ensure the future Internet as we know it.

It didn’t take me long to realize that both Steve and Matt are very serious about the Internet in Canada.  In the end, I realized my domain name would have greater success in the hands of the coalition.

I’ve been a part of the Toronto startup ISP and webhosting community for more than 15 years and even us industry veterans (as I like to refer to myself) sometimes find difficult to wrap our heads around the all-encompassing nature of net neutrality and what it means for Canada.  It’s harder still, to explain to an average person why they should give a damn about what is shaping up to be a serious concern for Canada’s innovation economy.

So what is Net Neutrality exactly?  I’m glad you asked, because I have a video!  Although it hasn’t been “Canadian-ized” yet, it does a fantastic job of explaining what we’re up against:

[vid]cWt0XUocViE[/vid]

While ignorance may be bliss, if we as Canadians don’t stand up to protect the Internet as we know it today, one day, perhaps not even so far in the future, historians and economists will pinpoint the problem as to why Canada is no longer considered a global innovator: Canada did not have a plan for its most important resource.

What YOU Can Do:

1. Sign onto the coalition at http://SaveOurNet.ca, either as an individual supporter or as an organizational supporter.
2. PLEASE DONATE what you can to the seed fund for SaveOurNet.ca, and then blog about it, share it on Facebook, send to your networks and communities, talk about it.
3. Contact your MP’s office and arrange for a sit-down chat about the issue during their summer hiatus from Parliament. Many MPs are not familiar with the importance of Net Neutrality and just by booking the appointment will force your MP to get briefed on the issue, which is the first step in educating our elected officials and raising it on the political agenda come the fall.

For more information, Mark Kuznicki has a very thorough update of SaveOurNet.ca’s first event, held last night and well attended.