FCC, Broadband Providers Hold More Broadband Reclassification Talks

On July 27, AT&T Executive Vice President James Cicconi and National Cable and Telecommunications Association CEO Kyle McSlarrow met with Federal Communications Commission Chief of Staff Edward Lazarus and Zachary Katz, deputy chief of the FCC's Office of Strategic Planning & Policy Analysis to discuss a regulatory framework for the Internet; prohibitions against blocking lawful Internet content; standards for preventing harm to consumers or competition; and avenues for addressing complaints regarding Internet openness.

The cable and telecommunications industries want to head off an FCC Title II reclassification declaratory ruling -- the FCC would not need to issue a rulemaking -- but have long argued that legislative network neutrality mandates, particularly a too-heavy handed nondiscrimination rule, could prevent them from reasonably managing their networks, discourage investment and actually work against the broadband deployment that is currently the FCC's prime directive.