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April 25, 2005

Is Telefonica in Chile Port Blocking?

Dear Carl.

This is the link to our Web site where we have published our legal complaint against Telefonica CTC Chile because of their blockage of VoIP ports, among other anticompetitive actions.


http://www.redvoiss.net/contenido/contenido.php?sel=12

REDVOISS DEFENDS THE RIGHTS OF BROADBAND USERS


Since 1997 we foresaw that in the long run the Internet would become the infrastructure platform on which all telecommunications services and applications would be rendered. Since then we have been experimenting and investing in Voice over IP (VoIP) and, especially, in Internet telephony services. We knew that in the end our progress would meet strong opposition from the incumbent phone companies. In the case of Chile, from Telefónica CTC.

However, we never foresaw that in the defense of its economic interests, this company went to the extreme of restricting basic principles of Internet freedom, both in concrete actions as well as in the contracts they have signed with their clients and independent ISPs. We believe that we are in front of a similar challenge to that we faced at the beginnings of the commercial Internet, when various policies implemented by CTC obstructed its development in Chile and prompted our parent company, Magenta, to launch what we called a "Crusade for a High Quality Internet in Chile", during 1998.

In our view, the infringement incurred by CTC and the abuse of its
dominating position is such that we had to raise a complaint under the Tribunal for the Defense of Free Competition (TDLC) to denounce these policies that are totally contrary to the spirit that prevails on the Net, and which should be respected by all parties that participate in its development.

The restrictions imposed on Internet users are of such magnitude that our case should set a legal precedent so that such important rights as the freedom to access all the possibilities offered by the Internet can never again be restricted, as this would hinder the social and economic development of a country in its transition to the Information Society. On the other hand, though RedVoiss and Internet telephony are the activities presently affected by these policies, the danger of accepting CTC's arguments in areas as diverse as television, the press, healthcare, education and the economy in general, which use the Internet for their future development, in our opinion poses a serious threat to basic economic freedoms, which would severely affect free competition.

Through these Web pages we wish to publicly disclose the course of our complaint as well as Teléfonica CTC's response. We do so because we are aware of what is at stake here and because the Internet offers us the opportunity to make these conducts and actions known to the public without the filters and blockages imposed by the dominating position of the company denounced.

Alberto

Posted by carl at 12:26 PM | Comments (1)

April 22, 2005

Should I take a B for Voice on the Net Canada

I'll take the B for me and the Voice on the Net Canada show. I will not take it for our guests. Carl Condon, Tom Evslin and Maddog were stellar speakers. (The fact that their presentations weren't mentioned is upsetting to me.)

So, Mark, thanks for the grade, but you can't convince me that I was trying too hard. We put alot of effort into Voice on the Net Canada - and it showed.

Some people are never satisfied. I am for VoIP freeing the world of telephone monopolies, and the marconi dream of everyone being a broadcaster.... But I am concerned that youth is being wasted on the young.

VON Canada was a great show, to me. I have some issues with Canadian content that does not grasp the pulver event view of presentations. And I, as some one who glimpses behind the scenes, "knows how the sausage was made," know that we have room for improvement.

I'll take the B for me and the Voice on the Net Canada show. I will not take it for our guests. Carl Condon, Tom Evslin and Maddog were stellar speakers. (The fact that their presentations weren't mentioned is upsetting to me.)

Larry Shaw and Lawson Hunter did a good job of talking the regulatory issues that Canada is facing.

The show had Buzz. For next year I would like to add an Enterprise track going and I would like to have the show grow past the 1,000 people we had at the event. Yes, we had a thousand people including and active Exhibits Only crowd.

So, Mark, thanks for the grade, but you can't convince me that I was trying too hard. We put alot of effort into Voice on the Net Canada - and it showed.

Posted by carl at 07:19 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack