Senate Chair Takes on FTC in Net Neutrality Fight

SENATE CHAIR TAKES ON FTC IN NET NEUTRALITY FIGHT
[SOURCE: PC Magazine, AUTHOR: Chloe Albanesius]
Sen Byron Dorgan -- Chairman of the Senate Interstate Commerce, Trade and Tourism Subcommittee -- tangled with the Federal Trade Commission Wednesday, calling into question the agency's hands-off approach to Internet regulation. "We're headed toward a circumstance where big providers that have a lot of muscle … will set up different lanes and freeways" over the Internet and provide quicker download times or site access for those willing to pay for it, he said. "We're concerned that regulating prematurely and perhaps on such a broad basis … really could serve to squelch this market in a way that's harmful to consumers," responded FTC Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras. Regulating the Internet "will prevent business models from developing," according to Chairman Majoras. Sen Dorgan disagreed, pointing to the entrepreneurs behind Google. "Would two guys in a dorm room have access to consumers in X, Y or Z city if big interests" demanded an Internet toll to reach certain Web users, he asked. "We created this Internet system through innovation [and] if we get to a point where we say now there's no non-discrimination rules," consumers could miss key aspects of the online experience, he said. Chairman Majoras was not convinced. Because the Internet is "so dynamic", there's no way a provider like Verizon will be able to successfully quash online access without a backlash, she said. "There will be a cry like no tomorrow" if consumers are cut off and providers will "lose a lot of customers," Chairman Majoras said. "I can't imagine consumers tolerating not getting the content that they want." Chris Murray, senior counsel with the Consumers Union, questioned where these aggrieved customers might go. "I live two miles south of the White House and [have the] choice of one provider," he said. "I can't get a cable modem in my neighborhood. When I hear that 90 percent of consumers have a choice [with ISPs], I find that difficult to believe when here I am in downtown D.C., in a relatively affluent neighborhood, and I don't have the choice." Murray also pointed to the difficulty in policing discriminatory practices by ISPs.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2182534,00.asp