$5/month Internet tax proposed in Canada

[blastus]

Canada's labels slam proposed digital tax (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080105/wr_nm/canada_dc_1)

If I have read the article correctly, every wireless and Internet account in Canada would be taxed $5/month. It would tax every Canadian citizen for using the Internet regardless if they have never and will never download any music of any kind.

This is ludicrous. This is far worse than the already existing levy on blank media which assumes that blank media cannot be used for anything else but music. Those levies aren't MONTHLY EXPENSES.

[sunexplodes]

Although the plus side is that it keeps industry groups from having the right to force ISPs to disclose personal information, sue teenagers and grandmothers, etc, like they do in the states.

And it's not like the blank media levy is huge or anything, I bought a spindle of 100 CDRs yesterday for 20 bucks.

Fact is, I'll happily pay an extra $5 a month if it gives me legal license to download all the music I want. Heh.

[blastus]

Fact is, I'll happily pay an extra $5 a month if it gives me legal license to download all the music I want. Heh.

Yea and not everyone downloads music so why should everyone across the country have to pay for something you want?

[sunexplodes]

Because I'm special.

[GiantRobot]

This is one of the silliest things I have ever heard. Five dollars a month for a privaledge that I would never use? No thanks. It sounds nice when they explain it, "Oh yeah, 60 dollars a year and you have access to all the music you want." However, it is 5 dollars a month on EVERY account with a wireless or internet provider. In my family alone we have 6 cellphones and 2 internet connections. That's an extra 40 dollars a month that I'm pretty sure my parents won't be wanting to pay.

Also, by charging EVERYBODY it gives people the feeling that you are accusing them of something. Whether people download music or not they are still getting charged the 5 dollars just because they have the capability to download music. When I go into my local 7/11 they don't charge me 5 dollars at the door just because I have the ability to steal a chocolate bar or something.

Most downloaded music quality is terrible anyways. I might be inclined to pay the 5 dollars if I could go grab any CD I wanted at the closest record store for free. :P

[~LoKe]

Fact is, I'll happily pay an extra $5 a month if it gives me legal license to download all the music I want. Heh.

I'm pretty sure there's no law in Canada against downloading music, but rather uploading it. Unless that has changed...

[Pethegreat]

Yea and not everyone downloads music so why should everyone across the country have to pay for something you want?
I agree there. You need to find something everyone uses/wants.

Now would all the music be in .flac or .mp3? I would gladly pay $5 a month for all the .flac files you can download.

I would love to see this get pushed. Maybe the record labels would drop their prices from $15 a CD to $5.

[sunexplodes]

This is one of the silliest things I have ever heard. Five dollars a month for a privaledge that I would never use? No thanks. It sounds nice when they explain it, "Oh yeah, 60 dollars a year and you have access to all the music you want." However, it is 5 dollars a month on EVERY account with a wireless or internet provider. In my family alone we have 6 cellphones and 2 internet connections. That's an extra 40 dollars a month that I'm pretty sure my parents won't be wanting to pay.

Also, by charging EVERYBODY it gives people the feeling that you are accusing them of something. Whether people download music or not they are still getting charged the 5 dollars just because they have the capability to download music. When I go into my local 7/11 they don't charge me 5 dollars at the door just because I have the ability to steal a chocolate bar or something.

Most downloaded music quality is terrible anyways. I might be inclined to pay the 5 dollars if I could go grab any CD I wanted at the closest record store for free. :P

This complaint could be leveled against anything tax dollars go towards. "oh, I never go to the doctor, why should my tax dollars go to health care?", "oh, I'm gainfully employed, why should my taxes go to welfare and other social programs?", "I never ride the bus, so why should my money help support public transit systems?".

[pcostanza]

So where does the money actually go? I wouldn't call an internet tax a fair tax but then again, things are different in Canada than the states and the US certainly doesn't have many 'fair' taxes either.

Why don't they tax things everyone needs to live such as water? How stupid would that be? You get the idea!

[blastus]

This complaint could be leveled against anything tax dollars go towards. "oh, I never go to the doctor, why should my tax dollars go to health care?", "oh, I'm gainfully employed, why should my taxes go to welfare and other social programs?", "I never ride the bus, so why should my money help support public transit systems?".

You can't be serious can you? Have you ever heard of the concept of social responsibility?

[GiantRobot]

This complaint could be leveled against anything tax dollars go towards. "oh, I never go to the doctor, why should my tax dollars go to health care?", "oh, I'm gainfully employed, why should my taxes go to welfare and other social programs?", "I never ride the bus, so why should my money help support public transit systems?".

Well, not really. Because where is the money going in this case? The article never stated but I can assume that the general plan is to somehow transfer the money to the artists or record labels...somehow. So who does this benefit? It's the record companies or artists. Where does my tax money go? I like to think most of it makes it back into the community.

To expand a little on your analogy, I'm not against paying tax money so that some people can use public transit at affordable prices. But this 5 dollar thing is more like upping the price for a bus ride just because too many are skimping out on 10 cents when paying for a ride. Which might be justified but there are ways around simply upping the bus fare.

[jespdj]

What a stupid idea. I don't understand the extra charge on blank media, that we also have here in the Netherlands, either. It means that you are paying for something illegal that you could be doing. You pay for a crime you did not commit and paying doesn't make it allowed either. That's totally screwed up!

Here in NL, downloading is not illegal, but offering (uploading) is.