Network Neutrality meetings for Facebook and Google

Facebook and Google executives recently met with top officials at the Federal Communications Commission to discuss their opposition to “fast lanes” on the Internet.

Two of the FCC’s five commissioners -- Jessica Rosenworcel and Michael O’Rielly -- held separate meetings with top Facebook officials. Rosenworcel’s meeting included Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg. She also met separately with Google executives. Facebook stated that the company would like to see the Internet remain “free and open” and urged the FCC to enact rules against “fast lanes." It warned against the notion that websites should have to pay Internet service providers like Comcast or Cox for faster service — a prospect that would seem to be allowed under the proposal from FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. Google’s filing made clear that it feared the FCC could allow companies to create “scarcity and congestion” on Internet networks in order to force websites to pay for quicker access to Web users.