The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition a coalition of groups representing consumers, seniors and anti-poverty activists is calling on the CRTC to force industry players to expand access to high-speed Internet for low-income households and those living in rural areas. The Globe's Christine Dobby writes the CRTC is reviewing what constitutes "basic telecommunications service," and one of the biggest questions will be whether to include broadband, or high-speed, Internet in that definition. The coalition is asking the regulator to address two central issues related to broadband: accessibility and affordability. The groups filed a lengthy intervention along with survey and expert evidence for the first phase of the CRTC's consultation. They want a new funding mechanism that requires telcos to contribute to the expansion of Internet service in areas that lack coverage and a monthly subsidy for low-income households to spend on telco services. The idea is that "everyone gets access to a bare minimum of broadband speeds," said Geoff White, lawyer for the Public Interest Advocacy Centre. Is broadband essential? "There's absolutely no question in this day and age that it is," Mr. White says.