Regulate Netflix In Canada? Cogeco CEO Says That Would Risk 'Censorship'

MONTREAL — Although he shares the frustrations about video on demand services like Netflix, Cogeco's chief executive says he's opposed to government intervention that could open the door to tighter supervision of the Internet.

Several cable companies have accused the U.S. company of reaping significant revenues in Canada without paying taxes and investing in telecommunications infrastructure.

Netflix battles with CRTC over disclosure

OTTAWA - One of the hottest dramas to hit the fall season isn't on your TV screen — it's happening behind the scenes in a battle of wills between the country's fastest-growing video supplier and Canada's broadcast regulator.

Netflix has told the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission it won't turn over sensitive corporate information, despite being ordered to do so at a hearing last Friday.

The move calls into question the very authority of the broadcast regulator to institute any rules governing Internet-based video service providers, says new media expert Michael Geist.

Congress Says Netflix Can Share What You're Watching

When the streaming-video site Netflix suffered an outage on Christmas Eve, millions of Americans confronted the terrifying possibility of an evening of spent talking with their relatives instead of re-watching Die Hard. But Netflix's technical snafu wasn't the only streaming-related news infuriating Americans over the Christmas holiday.

Last Tuesday, the Senate quietly altered a key privacy law, making it much easier for video streaming services like Netflix to share your viewing habits. How quietly? The Senate didn't even hold a recorded vote: The bill was approved by unanimous consent. (Joe Mullin of Ars Technica was among the first to note the vote.)