Government as Infrastructure Support, ISPs as Creator Support, Youth

Summary

In this submission to the Digital Economy Strategy inquiry I outline six areas of focus to maximize the economic and social benefits of ICT growth for Canadians.

My Policy ideas are:

1. The Government of Canada taking a larger role, both through investment and regulation, in the ICT infrastructure of the country with the objective of high standard information access for all populated areas of the country.
2. The Government of Canada regulating privately controlled network service providers and demanding of them monetary support for the creation of content, in the same way broadcasters and other like entities are required to do so.
3. The Government of Canada providing matching investment funds for ITC projects in all phases in order to attract investors, including venture capital and private equity firms.
4. The Government of Canada providing tax alleviation and incentives for ITC projects and companies of all sizes and phases.
5. The Government of Canada promoting, through incentives, both companies and ITC talent to have a wider regional distribution, including remote areas of the province and attracting diverse and international ITC talent to all parts of the country.
6. Hiring and promoting younger members of the workforce, whom have ITC as part of their everyday skill set.

Submission

Innovation Using Digital Technologies

Should Canada focus on increasing innovation in some key sectors or focus on providing the foundation for innovation across the economy?

Canada should focus on both increasing innovation in key sectors as well as providing the foundation for innovation across the economy. Canada must first gain more control over ICT Infrastructure through policy or purchase, and then take at least partial responsibility for the continuous improvement of that infrastructure. Any investments beyond infrastructure must be focused on key sectors, and other strategic elements, and these concepts should be revisited at appropriate intervals.

Which conditions best incent and promote adoption of ICT by Canadian business?

• Solid infrastructure and fair access to that infrastructure.
• Privileged access to limited resources, i.e. ICT Infrastructure, licensing, etc.

What would a successful digital strategy look like for your firm or sector? What are the barriers to implementation?

A successful strategy would see:

• Monetary support for creators both through
  • privileged access to limited resources, i.e. ICT Infrastructure, licensing, fair usage etc.
  • government subsidy supported by the increased regulation of privately controlled network providers

Once copyright, anti–spam and data breach/privacy amendments are in place, are their other legislative or policy changes needed to deal with emerging issues?

Regulation of privately controlled network service providers.

How can Canada use its regulatory and policy regime to promote Canada as a favourable environment for e–commerce?

In regulation of privately controlled network service providers (or ISP's) Canada would be following a similar route to the one that has served them well in Radio and Television:

• ISP's benefit as much as any sector from intellectual property, both Canadian and International intellectual property, but currently do not contribute to a Canadian Media Fund / Music Fund / Digital Fund etc. ISP's should be required to carry a license which includes a commitment to supporting Canadian Music, Media, Films, Games, Interactive Content, etc. For reasoning beyond this one can look to all of the arguments setting up other funds in Canada.
• In return Canada must provide more support to build the ICT infrastructure that the ISP and the digital economy need. This includes building high–speed internet access to our entire populated geography, a build that makes no sense based on economy alone, but one which will make access a right, as well as provide a backbone for remote entrepreneurs, resource developers and creators.

Digital Infrastructure

What speeds and other service characteristics are needed by users (e.g., consumers, businesses, public sector bodies) and how should Canada set goals for next generation networks?

Canada's main goal for next generation networks should be that they are scalable to the best standard at the time.

What steps must be taken to meet these goals? Are the current regulatory and legislative frameworks conducive to incenting investment and competition? What are the appropriate roles of stakeholders in the public and private sectors?

Public private partnership in building these networks, and a large increase of public funding to build these networks is required.

How best can we ensure that rural and remote communities are not left behind in terms of access to advanced networks and what are the priority areas for attention in these regions?

As mentioned above these are priority regions, there is no economical model that will prove this case and that is why the public sector must both finance and regulate in order to build these networks. These efforts can easily be justified with every Canadian and Canadian business' right to state–of–the–art networks.

Growing the ICT Industry

Do our current investments in R&D effectively lead to innovation, and the creation of new businesses, products and services? Should we promote investments in small start–ups to expand our innovation capacity?

Canada must increase the visibility, accessibility and velocity of investment in the ITC sector, and yes this includes supporting startups. But this must be balanced with strategic , large scale, long–term investments in successful initiatives.

What is needed to innovate and grow the size of the ICT industry including the number of large ICT firms headquartered in Canada?

All of the items mentioned above in addition to Tax alleviation for ICT business, perhaps targeted at large ICT companies.

What would best position Canada as a destination of choice for venture capital and investments in global research and development mandates?

Government Matching programs, and all of the above.

What efforts are needed to address the talent needs in the coming years?

Demographically we will have enough graduates but it will be more of how to keep the best graduates. Incentives, internships and match making programs for successful graduates are necessary and perhaps the same for international talent.

Canada's Digital Content

What does creating Canada's digital content advantage mean to you?

It means supporting creators, it means experimenting and it involves a willingness to accept failure as a possible outcome.

What elements do you want to see in Canada's marketplace framework for digital media and content?

International market access programs, especially to developing economies.

How do you see digital content contributing to Canada's prosperity?

Our digital content will be a large part of Canada's brand over the next 30+ years. The better the content, the better the brand and this will not only spur the sale of digital content but the sale of Canada as a trade partner, a place to find talent and a great place to work and do business.

What kinds of infrastructure investments do you foresee making in the future? What kinds of infrastructure will you need in the future to be successful at home and abroad?

Network upgrades, hardware upgrades, software upgrades, additional ICT staff, new requirements for employees to have ICT experience.

How can stakeholders encourage investment, particularly early stage investment, in the development of innovative digital media and content?

Promoting the willingness to fail, the creative process and selling that process and engaging investors in the process. From single person investors to private equity firms, the enjoyment of investment in the development of creative content can be sold and accessed at a much higher rate.

Building Digital Skills

What do you see as the most critical challenges in skills development for a digital economy?

Multi–platform literacy, lack of standards and standardization among sectors and across sectors, obsolescence. Never has serving stale relationships been more costly.

What is the best way to address these challenges?

Standardization policy on one hand and the constant updating and refreshing of the people and bodies in control of these policies.

What can we do to ensure that labour market entrants have digital skills?

In major centres you will have more labour market entrants with digital skills than you can possibly handle, the question is how to find them jobs and what to do with the rest of the labour market (i.e. the aged).

Matching the infrastructure strategies mentioned above, and the startup of ITP SME's in regional and remote areas there may be a way to provide incentives for these, as well as international, workers to go to regional and remote areas to more correctly balance the ICT workforce.

What is the best way to ensure the current workforce gets the continuous upskilling required to remain competitive in the digital economy? Are different tactics required for SMEs versus large enterprises?

Replace them with the large workforce that is coming with the appropriate skills and offer incentives for enterprises to be reimbursed for supporting the training and education in ICT for their workers.

How will the digital economy impact the learning system in Canada? How we teach? How we learn?

Ironically it will make personal relationships and social skills and emotional IQ even more rare, the items that cannot be taught remotely, and are difficult to test.

What strategies could be employed to address the digital divide?

Employment of a new generation of workers.

Improving Canada's Digital Advantage

Should we set targets for our made–in–Canada digital strategy? And if so, what should those targets be?

• Most extensive and advanced ITC infrastructure in the world.
• Most public support per capita for creators in the world.
• Highest matching support for ITC business per capita in the world.
• The most creator–supportive ISP infrastructure in the world.
• Youngest workforce in the developed world.
• Most diverse and regional distribution of ICT workers in the developed world.

What should the timelines be to reach these targets?

All before 2021.

Michael Murray, BMus (Hon) Music Technology, MBA
Popular & World Music and Arts Service Organizations Officer
Telephone: 416–969–7439
Toll–free: 1–800–387–0058 ext. 7439
Website: Ontario Arts Council