The digital divide refers to the ever-widening gap between people who have adequate access to the Internet and those who do not. In many cases, the divide exists along geographic and socioeconomic lines; that is, there are millions of rural, low-income, and remote Canadians with little to no broadband access, while urban centers remain the focus for affordable upgrades and fast connections. The Internet is a crucial medium for free expression, with the result that Canadians who fall on the wrong side of the digital divide see their ability to express themselves restricted.