FCC’s Proposed Ban on Bulk Billing

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel proposed a highly controversial rule change that would ban bulk billing practices in MDUs (multi-dwelling units). The justification for the proposed ban is that residents are required to pay for broadband or cable TV service even if they don’t want to buy the service or would prefer to buy from somebody else. The FCC proposal would allow tenants to opt out of any bulk-billing arrangements. From a tenant perspective, it’s not hard to understand folks who would rather not pay for traditional cable TV as part of the rent. Broadband is trickier. A large majority of tenants want broadband. The biggest problem I see with the proposed rules is that the FCC wants to create a universal rule to apply to a widely divergent market. There are landlords who provide super-fast broadband at an affordable rate, and there undoubtedly are landlords who charge high rates for inferior broadband. There are no rules I can imagine that would satisfy all situations.