Like its British and US rivals, it is homing in on "opinion leaders" around the world by dishing up a diet of news, features and discussion.

But those viewers, Pouzilhac claimed, have become increasingly "sceptical of the world vision offered by the Anglo-Saxons like BBC World and CNN International."

Instead, he asserted, they "are looking for contradictory opinions - which is what France 24 is proposing by relying on French values."

He did not define what those values were in the interview, beyond saying that the channel would highlight "diversity (and)... confrontation, without forgetting the culture and French art of living."

BBC World, the privately financed international arm of Britain's public broadcaster, has 250 staff and an undisclosed budget. CNN's US and international divisions employ 4,000 people and revenues of US $860 million (EUR 730 million).

Additionally, other players have entered the market, most notably the Arab network Al-Jazeera, which has just started an English-language service.

But Pouzilhac insisted there was room for the French channel.

"From its launch, France 24 will potentially reach 250 million individuals," and will be pumped into 500 hotels in 64 countries, he said.

It will be offered throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East and in the US cities of New York and Washington. Later, it plans to extend its broadcasts to all of North and South America and to Asia.

Staffed by 380 people - including 170 bilingual journalists - it will be relying in part on video footage and reporting provided by its managing companies, the TF1 private network and the state-owned France Televisions, as well as from partner organisations such as AFP and Radio France Internationale.

France 24 was conceived years ago as a pet project of President Jacques Chirac, who in February 2002 called for a "big international news channel in French able to rival the BBC and CNN."

The US-led invasion of Iraq pushed the project forward, because Chirac was reportedly miffed by the way CNN and the BBC presented France's opposition to the war.

Some reports in US media inaccurately stating that "Paris is burning" during the 2005 riots around France also nettled his government.

Chirac has said he hoped the channel would place France "at the forefront of the global battle of images".

The European Commission gave the green light to the French channel in June, but media commentators have highlighted internal problems in the company caused by forcing TF1 and France Televisions - aggressive competitors in the national market - to work together.

The head of France Televisions, Patrick de Carolis, had unsuccessfully lobbied to have TF1 jettisoned from the project, and relations between the two remain frosty.

In American Zionist publications, there are no limits and no boundaries to how far one goes in order to serve the interests of Zionist occupation. This John Lahr, who has the writing skills of contributors to People magazine, has decided that mocking and ridiculing a dead young woman is quite appropriate. Notice that he does not even review the play as a play; he forgot about his original task in order to bash the dead young woman and mock her. Like a the typical sexist writer, he invoked the word "hysteric" to describe her. That sums her entire life for this guy. Imagine if she was a victim of an Arab army tractor: imagine how this Lahr and his editor at that lousy magazine would have lionized her. No Lahr and no Remnik and no Zionist in the US can tarnish the image of Rachel Corrie. No matter how hard they try, and no matter how vulgar they are.

The Quebec company will invest $300-million this year as its average customer uses four times more bandwidth than just a year ago, Depatie said Tuesday in a speech at a telecom conference.

He called it unfair for studios and companies like Apple and Amazon.com to use that extra service without cost - which he compared to free shipping.

What they mean by "provider pays" is of course "consumer pays...
These were the same clowns willing to hand over private customer...
Don't be fooled, this idea is extortion. We must keep the Net...
depatie's logic leaves much to be desired. if videtron is unable...
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"If the movie studio were to mail a DVD . . . they would expect to pay postage or courier fees," Depatie said.

"Why should they not expect a transmission tariff?"

With Ottawa looking to deregulate the communications industry, all the major players - from telephone companies, to wireless providers and the cable industry - are lobbying to have their voices heard.

In an interview later, Depatie said he merely wanted to put the tariff idea on the table and offered few clues about how his revenue-sharing proposal would work. It's unclear whether such a tariff would be passed on to consumers through higher download fees.

But Depatie said he's against raising rates for Internet service and that it's only fair for content providers to help foot the infrastructure cost.

"We build the network, renovate the network, spend the money on marketing to get customers, we invoice and service those customers. We pay a great deal of money," he said in an interview.

"(For producers) it's just a free ride - 'Let's provide movie downloads. It's the telcos that will pay for it.' " As for cellphone coverage, Depatie raised his concern that Canada lags far behind in pricing competitiveness and technology because the regulatory regime discriminates against new providers like Videotron.

"We pay 60 per cent more than Americans for services that are less advanced technologically," he said.

"3G (third generation) services were deployed in Asia in 2001, in Europe in 2002 and even the Americans with a late deployment in 2005 are now way ahead of us.

"How competitive is that? ... Canadian consumers have become two-time losers by having to pay more for less advanced services."

Videotron recently launched a cellphone service, and Depatie says his company would be prepared to pay more established providers for access to their towers.

Such a system, he said, would benefit all cellphone users by eliminating the gaps in coverage that exist even on the outskirts of major Canadian cities.

Depatie suggested that consecutive minority governments have not helped Canada modernize its communications environment.

Though the Tory government promises to release its telecom review soon, federal politicians are also gearing up for what could soon be their third election in less than three years.

Depatie said the cable TV industry is also crying out for less stringent rules. Videotron agrees with the status quo on Canadian content, he said.

But he lamented the 200 CRTC guidelines that decide what stations he's allowed to offer, that can force him to assign certain channel numbers, and that consume bandwidth by requiring him to offer the same station in high definition, digital and analog mode.

Videotron, a Quebecor subsidiary, is present in 1.5 million Quebec households with about 3.3 million customers for its cable TV, telecom and Internet services. It also provides residential and business telephone services to more than 283,000 customers in Quebec.

If no Divine Laws exist in the minds of the world's people, the elitists have no higher authority, and in fact become the highest ruling authority - becoming god-like themselves through the invention of an elite government based upon their benefits, desires, and profits.

Then imagine the legal system that would have to set into place to protect these elitist families from 99% of the world's population, as their on-going problem would be to maintain such power. A constant and loyal or highly paid army and a constant state of threat would be in order to hold authoritarian power over global humanity. Try to fathom this kind of power.

It would seem that we have described a scientific fictional tale, but, in fact, that fiction is the world's living reality. The elite have, in fact, purchased and claimed terrifying powers over the world's people, and are, in fact, implementing their custom made legal/control system of governance. So, let us begin by assuming that the bulk of humanity does not understand the power or threats behind a technocratic world owned and controlled by elitists who know no higher authority than self-omnipotent power achieved through criminally absconded wealth.

Let us assume that "commoners" are insects that take up space and property, mass produce, and who are ill-prepared and disinclined to enrich the lives of these elite families on a year-by-year basis. Let us also assume that the elites have, in their creation of a global and self-serving legal system, invented ways to take and control everything the insects have or may attain in the future. Imagine a legal system where the insects are disallowed private property, votes, mobility, access to food, water, and shelter, and whose money is actually game money - like Monopoly dollars - that are actually and only certificates of permanent debt. Again - the money issued and paid to the insects in exchange for their labors is not actual money - but actually certificates of debt to elite families. Then add to this equation elite legislative authority to spy upon the insects in stores, gas stations, and 90% of all public places; in their homes, schools, places of employment, and via all communication services that the insects are required to purchase - including Internet service and email, the Postal Service, and telephone/fax and cell phone services.

Alas, a picture evolves before your eyes, and it's called the United States of America. It's also called England, France, Germany, Canada, Mexico, and 90% of the rest of the world's nations. The big picture is called World Governance custom designed by the rich - a government of the rich, for the rich, and by the rich.

So, my fellow insects, as another rigged election rounds our caged corners, we are asked by our televised masters to continue to vote for their custom made agendas and form of government. Their simplification of our decision into "press red or press blue" buttons certainly catered to the brainlessness our species, while our masters also eliminated all potential Third Party competition by disallowing those in opposition to be seen/heard on their communications networks, whereby controlling all political information that we the insects receive.

What is sad - truly sad - is that we the insects realize our dilemma. We also realize that the purpose of "drugs" has evolved into social control of mass producing bugs. I believe the term is extermination when used in the context of pests or genocide in the context of the human being. Either way - same result.

And so it appears that another Dark Age has befallen our planet - an age full of crisis, sickness, ignorance, deceit, manipulation, threats, and violence. But in historical uniqueness, we have also entered into the age of full-blown technological manipulation and technologically staged realities. As such, we the insects are afraid and confused and search blindly for familiar patterns in our managed realities. So we vote as if we lived in the old world - pretending that life as we once knew it existed. In our fear, we pretend that our politicians represent our interests and needs though, in fact, we know that they moved on decades ago in total representation of a government they invented specifically for the protection of themselves.

Go ahead. Vote for the red and the blue politicians. I'm sure you feel safer doing so. However, you might want to consider just drinking the arsenic. It will be a quicker and more humane death. It will also make the politicians you voted for quite pleased with your civic obedience and your global consciousness. After all - the less of us, the better - for "their" sustainable futures. Your new governors will be far safer once the insect population lies and dies down.