Proposed Local Television Levy

I know this isn’t about music but I thought I’d post something about it here.

My local cable provider, Rogers, insists on passing the proposed levy on when quite frankly they could easily absorb most of it, like the blank audio media manufacturers and importers have absorbed the blank audio media levy.

I don’t believe their scare tactics and in the end if push comes to shove I, like many Rogers customers, will move on to off the air broadcasts for my local television, which is free, and use the net as an alternative to time shifting.

By August 2011, I will have access to about thirteen stations in HD quality here in Ottawa, five of which are already on the air and two of which will be on air shortly.

According to TVfool, a site that maps out local television signals, I would need to install an antenna in the attic of my rental unit to get most of my local channels but that would be quite inexpensive and I currently get three channels in my second floor bedroom, crystal clear and at top strength with a simple RCA HDTV Antenna.

Unfortunately I can’t get satellite because outdoor antennas aren’t allowed on my unit. But another option will be that IPTV service Bell will be expanding with their Fibe internet service.

Yes, Bell might consider passing it on as well but they will still try to compete with Rogers. And vice versa if their customers start talking to their customer service about the possibility of lookinf at the competition. Hint ! Hint ! 🙂

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TigerDirect (CA)

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March 24th, 2010 Comments Off on Proposed Local Television Levy Canadian Law, Consumer Information Rob McIntyre

U.S / Canadian Dollar Parity

Economists predict that the Canadian dollar will be at parity with the U.S dollar shortly so I thought I’d repost my guide on importing CDs & DVDs, with a few select links :

Importing CDs & DVDs to Save Money

As you can see I haven’t managed to find the time to move the international listings to this blog yet. I’m hoping to get something up by the end of this week. I will post a link here when it is added.

March 22nd, 2010 Comments Off on U.S / Canadian Dollar Parity Consumer Information Rob McIntyre

Don’t Fall for The Scams

I have just made aware of yet another phishing scam, this time involving Facebook.

Every few days someone tried to get people to click on fake links in official sounding emails and people are unfortunately still falling for it.

It’s quite simple. If a company sends an email to you saying there’s a problem with your account then go to the company’s web site directly.

Do not click on the link provided in the email !
Delete the email immediately !

These links are fake and dangerous. They lead to fake websites that steal passwords and install viruses onto your computer, that also not only steal more passwords as you type them but send out copies of the email you just received to the emails you’ve got in your contact list.

Some of these viruses also take over your computer, so it’s best to just delete these emails immediately and to install virus/malware scanners that will look for these viruses in the email you receive.

Microsoft currently offers windows users a free software package that can be used to protect Windows based machines.

Microsoft Security Essentials will protect machines against viruses, spyware and malware. But I also recommend the use of alternative browsers like Firefox, which is more secure, as well as web based email, like Gmail, whose email is usually scanned for viruses and spam.

I also like the immunity function of Spybot-Search and Destroy, which instructs your browser to prevent certain suspect scripts and websites from loading up. But you need to turn off real time protection if you’re using another virus scanning program.

Some of you may already have anti-virus and anti-spyware software pre-installed on your computers. Or some of you may have software provided to you by your internet providers. You should always update these regularly to address the latest threats. But even with this software installed it’s best to consider all emails of this nature to be potential threats.

March 19th, 2010 Comments Off on Don’t Fall for The Scams Consumer Information Rob McIntyre

New Levy Proposed For Mp3 Players

A new levy for mp3 players and iPods has been proposed in Parliament.

Private Members Bill C-499 would extend the current private copying levy from blank audio cassettes, CD-R, CD-RW and DAT tapes to MP3 Players, including iPods, in order to compensate copyright holders for the distribution of copyrighted material to these devices.

Unfortunately the previous attempt to expand this levy to “digital audio recorders” called for rates up to $75 per device, which would have been passed onto consumers by the manufacturers, and would have resulted in the decimation of the Canadian sales of these devices because Canadian consumers would have imported them to avoid the additional fees.

As a consumer I oppose these levies because I believe I have already paid for the right to distribute recordings that I have purchased online to these devices. And I have also purchased the compact discs from which I make private copies, copies for personal use that are deemed legal since the passing of the Private Copying Act in 1997.

Remuneration is not required from me because I do not download music illegally off the net, yet this levy is based on the assumption that I download recordings off the net illegally simply because I own a device that can be used to store this material.

After all they had assumed that most of the previously levied items were used to make copies of copyrighted material. And this will of course result in further assumptions about film downloads, which will likely result in more levies in the future on DVD-R, DVD-RW and devices on which video can be stored or played back.

We need an equitable, logical remuneration scheme based on the realities of today’s recording industry.

Distribution is no longer limited to a physical medium like vinyl, cassette or compact disc and the consumer should not be paying for a recording every time they copy this recording to a medium when this copying is meant for personal, private use.

Please contact your local Member of Parliament and voice your opinion on this issue as soon as possible.

I will be updating this blog entry as the issue progresses.

March 16th, 2010 2 Comments Canadian, Canadian Law, Consumer Information, Music Industry, Music Technology Rob McIntyre

Congratulations Platinum Blonde

Canadian 80’s new wave rockers Platinum Blonde will be inducted in the Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Hall of Fame tonight.

Congratulations to Mark Holmes, Sergio Galli, Chris Steffler and last but not least, the late Kenny Maclean.

March 12th, 2010 Comments Off on Congratulations Platinum Blonde Canadian, Canadian, Music Industry, Random Bump Rob McIntyre

Amazon Wants Canadian Distribution Center

Online retailer Amazon.com is considering a distribution center in Canada according to The Globe And Mail.

The online retailer currently operates Amazon.ca via a Canada Post subsidiary and hopes to pass on their savings in operating a “fulfillment center” in Canada.

March 11th, 2010 Comments Off on Amazon Wants Canadian Distribution Center Consumer Information Rob McIntyre