The cable lobby is co-opting Netflix’s argument on net neutrality

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Months ago, Netflix argued that it was paying an unfair fee to Internet providers just so that its videos could reach you and me unmolested. That claim wound up contributing to a key part of the federal government's new network neutrality rules, which seek to prevent Internet providers from interfering with your Web traffic. Now, some cable lobbyists are arguing that it's really the Internet providers that need federal protection from content companies. Why? Online video companies, they said in a regulatory filing, could decide to charge cable companies a toll for accessing their exclusive content -- effectively cutting off your viewing pleasure if the cable companies don't pay up.

If it sounds crazy, that's because it's the same argument Netflix put forward in 2014, just in reverse. The claim sounds insidious because so many cable companies hold an effective monopoly over their Internet subscribers. As gatekeepers, those providers can determine which audiences content companies can reach. That's a lot of power -- and as Netflix found out, the cable companies are more than willing to exercise it. But it starts to make a little more sense if you think about it this way: Netflix isn't the only provider of online videos. You've also got more traditional television programmers such as Disney, Fox, CBS and Viacom. And it's powerful, established companies like these that have some in the cable industry very worried.


The cable lobby is co-opting Netflix’s argument on net neutrality