[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: This is the first of two items in the
news today regards Telus' decision to discontine their adult
offerings. PAT]
Source URL: http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/feb/07022102.html
LifeSiteNews.com
By Gudrun Schultz
VANCOUVER, B.C., February 21, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Telus
announced yesterday the company would cancel pornography sales through
its cellular phone service, CanWest News Service reported earlier
today, after losing contracts and receiving hundreds of customer
complaints.
Jim Johannsson, director of media relations for Telus, said the volume
of individual complaints played a significant role in the company's
decision to withdraw the service.
Beginning in January, adult customers were offered a porn delivery
service that allowed them to download images or video clips for $3 or
$4 dollars each. Several thousand users had registered for the
service, according to Johannsson.
Numerous LifeSiteNews.com readers issued complaints to Telus via the
contact information provided by this news service.
Archbishop Raymond Roussin, of the Vancouver Catholic archdiocese,
actively opposed the Telus program by directing nearly 130 Catholic
parishes and schools to cancel their contracts with Telus Mobility.
The B.C. Catholic newspaper, published weekly by the archdiocese,
included a 12-page special section covering the issue in this week's
edition. A front page editorial criticizes Telus for "hitching its
financial future to the abuse-ridden and pain-filled pornography
industry."
In a statement issued Tuesday, Archbishop Raymond Roussin said he was
pleased and grateful that Telus is amending its decision. This is for
the greater good of the community as a whole and I'm glad Telus is
recognizing it," the Archbishop said.
Telus officials had defended the company decision to offer what it
referred to as "adult content" by pointing out that most cell phones
are capable of accessing the Internet, allowing users to download
hard-core pornographic material at will. The Telus service limited
images to full or partial nudity and avoided more explicit content.
Archbishop Roussin said last week that Telus' defense was "inadequate."
"So pervasive is the problem of pornography in our society today and
so lucrative are the profits from this segment of the industry, that
mobile phone providers are willing to take substantial risks in terms
of their image."
"They do so by turning a blind eye to the enormous and widespread
problems resulting from pornography: the abuse of countless vulnerable
persons -- including children, women, and men -- who view pornographic
material, those who are portrayed in sexually explicit material, and
those who suffer from the behavior of their loved ones."
Johannsson told CanWest the company had "taken to heart" the concerns
expressed by customers. "(Providing adult content) is not a business
our customers want us to be in."
"Some of our corporate customers, too, have called to try and
understand the direction we were going," Johannsson said.
Gordon Keast, who runs a communications company in Surrey, B.C., is
suing Telus over the company's refusal to cancel his three-year
cellphone contract, after he objected to the new pornography service,
CanWest reported.
"At the time I renewed my contract with Telus in November they didn't
market and sell pornography. Now they do, and as a subscriber I don't
want my fees to underwrite their pornography business," said Keast. He
filed suit yesterday in small claims court, seeking $3,000 for alleged
breach of contract.
"Consumers have the power to shape the marketplace," Archbishop
Roussin said, in his directive to churches and schools. "I strongly
urge you to use your influence to protect our society from the
destructive effects of the proliferation of pornography."
See coverage by The B.C. Catholic:
http://www.rcav.org/media/
http://bcc.rcav.org/07-02-19/Pornography_and_Sex_Addiction.p...
See previous LifeSiteNews coverage:
BC Archbishop Considers Cancelling Telus Contract Over Porn Sales
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/feb/07021205.html
Copyright 2007: LifeSiteNews.com is a production of Interim Publishing.
[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: There were two items on the newswire
today regards this decision by Telus to discontinue its newly-formed
'adult information' business. The second report comes from Reuters
and follows immediatly. PAT]
Gudrun Schultz (lifesite@telecom-digest.org)