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2/24/2015 3:39 pm  #1


Democratic FCC commissioner balks at net neutrality rules

Democratic FCC commissioner balks at net neutrality rules

Read the full story here:
http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/233626-fcc-dem-wants-last-minute-changes-to-net-neutrality-rules

A Democrat on the Federal Communications Commission wants to narrow the scope of new net neutrality rules that are set for a vote on Thursday, The Hill has learned.Mignon Clyburn, one of three Democrats on the FCC, has asked Chairman Tom Wheeler to roll back some of the restrictions before the full commission votes on them, FCC officials said.
The request — which Wheeler has yet to respond to — puts the chairman in the awkward position of having to either roll back his proposals, or defend the tough rules and convince Clyburn to back down.It’s an ironic spot for Wheeler, who for months was considered to be favoring weaker rules than those pushed for by his fellow Democrats, before he reversed himself about backing tougher restrictions on Internet service providers.Wheeler will need the votes of both Clyburn and Democratic Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel to pass the rules since the two Republicans on the commission are expected to vote against anything he proposes.  Clyburn’s changes would leave in place the central and most controversial component of Wheeler’s rules — the notion that broadband Internet service should be reclassified so that it can be treated as a “telecommunications” service under Title II of the Communications Act, similar to utilities like phone lines.Proponents of net neutrality have said that move is the surest way to prevent Internet service providers from interfering with people’s access to the Web.However, she wants to eliminate a new legal category of “broadband subscriber access services,” which was created as an additional point of legal authority for the FCC to monitor the ways that companies hand off traffic on the back end of the Internet.

Last edited by Common Sense (2/24/2015 3:39 pm)


 “We hold these truths to be self-evident,”  former vice president Biden said during a campaign event in Texas on Monday. "All men and women created by — you know, you know, the thing.”

 
 

2/24/2015 3:56 pm  #2


Re: Democratic FCC commissioner balks at net neutrality rules

Anyone "balking" at the Net Neutrality rules is a moron.

Go back to the late 90's when the FCC deregulated telecom. What did we get? We got cheaper phone service, more competition in the marketplace, and innovataion like voice over IP which companies like Comcast, who directly benefitted from this deregulation, took advantage of and made a boatload of money from.

This is what the FCC can accomplish by putting the broadband comapies under Title II. Right now, they are essentially monopolies. Companies like Comcast and TWC consistently have the poorest customer satisfaction ratings and yet seem to be able to increase their rates, fees, and surcharges year over year. 

Add to that a company like Comcast buying up a major TV network like NBC and now you have a single company controlling both content and delivery. Hence, even less incentive for competition and increased incentive to prioritize one set of internet traffic over another, as we saw with Comcast throttling Netflix traffic last year.

Twitter's blog had a great post on why we should all support net nuetrality. I recommend reading it. 

<all emphasis mine>

The United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is poised to act on a “net neutrality” proposal that will put vital consumer and competitive protections back on the books to ensure an open Internet and continue U.S. leadership in Internet policymaking.

Safeguarding the historic open architecture of the Internet and the ability for all users to “innovate without permission” is critical to American economic aspirations and our nation’s global competitiveness. These rules also have important implications for freedom of expression.

Empowering “lesser” or historically less powerful voices to express themselves and be heard globally is at the core of Twitter’s DNA. Under net neutrality principles, consumers decide which lawful content, applications, and services they want to create, access or share with others. Currently, the Internet provides an almost frictionless experience for an individual to communicate with the world, and it also provides the lowest barrier to competitive entry for businesses the world has ever seen. It serves as a great equalizer in the access to information and in reaching a global audience. If you have an opinion or a new innovative web-based service, you don’t have to get permission to share it with the world at large.

This openness promotes free and fair competition and fosters ongoing investment and innovation. We need clear, enforceable, legally sustainable rules to ensure that the Internet remains open and continues to give everyone the power to create and share ideas and information instantly, without barriers. This is the heart of Twitter. Without such net neutrality principles in place, some of today’s most successful and widely-known Internet companies might never have come into existence.

Through The Internet Association, Twitter has joined other leading Internet companies to urge the FCC to promulgate common sense net neutrality rules. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has proposed securing the legal foundation for these rules in Title II of the Communications Act (along with other statutory authority). We strongly support ensuring that such rules include prohibitions against blocking or throttling of sites and services as well as the paid prioritization of some traffic over others. These rules should govern Internet service whether users are at their desk at home or on their smartphone across town.

In moving forward, the FCC is also wisely avoiding unnecessary and overly burdensome regulation. The Commission is embracing the same kind of “light touch” regulatory approach that the Congress and the Commission has pursued with respect to wireless services since the 1990s. We’re also pleased that in recent weeks on Capitol Hill, we’ve seen a return to bipartisan support for net neutrality rules. We welcome the discussion of possible statutory rules that could codify these principles.

Smart Internet policies in the U.S., including net neutrality principles, have spawned innovation, investment, and job creation – a “virtuous circle” of innovation driving user adoption, leading to network investment, leading to inevitable continued innovation. This in turn has enabled the worldwide connectivity of millions of users as well as businesses and nonprofits large and small. The continuation of this wildly successful Internet policy approach is vital. In this way the U.S. provides global leadership – critical because many countries look to the U.S. for guidance around Internet policymaking.

Twitter and its millions of users are counting on Washington to reaffirm net neutrality rules for their obvious and myriad benefits to the Internet ecosystem, to the economy, and to freedom of expression. For all these reasons, we strongly support the FCC taking action.

 


I think you're going to see a lot of different United States of America over the next three, four, or eight years. - President Donald J. Trump
 

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