Sprint CEO calls network neutrality 'a hard concept to get my head around'

"Regulatory issues" are apparently a vexing problem for Sprint’s Dan Hesse right now, which makes sense as he's the CEO of a major wireless company with ambitions to launch a service that competes with wireline broadband providers. When asked if Sprint would consider offering data plans that looked more like those available abroad, Hesse said he was interested.

Specifically, the topic on the table was "Zero Rating," which is industry parlance for an app or service that doesn't count against a customer's data cap. Could Sprint start making deals with the likes of Netflix, Facebook, or others for Zero Rating service? Here's Hesse: “My belief is yes, that there are a number of business models. Whether it's ... service providers [who pay] for better throughput through your network [or something else]. There's gotta be a business model for it. Things like Zero Rating, which is nothing but a benefit, actually, what's not to like if you have a special relationship with a particular application developer?” Hesse may see it that way, but whether regulators at the Federal Communications Commission would too is an entirely different matter. Hesse, as you might expect, isn't a fan of network neutrality at all -- at least as it applies to wireless services. He went to far as to put the phrase in scare quotes as he spoke on the subject: “[Wireless spectrum] it is a finite resource ... but again I'm a carrier guy so it's hard for me to even understand, it truly is and I've been looking at ‘Net Neutrality’ for a long time. It's actually a hard concept for me to get my head around. It's like telling the airlines you can't sell first class seats.”