Vox

The Trump administration labored to clarify on Jan 29 that it currently has no plans to build its own ultra-fast 5G wireless network, despite publication of a memo that suggested the idea was under consideration. At issue is a proposal put forth by an unnamed official at the National Security Council, a White House-based body that advises the president on critical U.S. and foreign policy matters. The document called for the U.S. government to effectively nationalize a portion of the telecom sector — a radical departure from current policy — in a bid to combat Chinese influence.

Burger King is blasting the Federal Communications Commission's decision to scrap network neutrality rules in a new ad released Jan 24, using its signature sandwich to do it.  The fast food chain posted a video illustrating what it would be like if its restaurants implemented a policy of "Whopper neutrality," in which customers had to pay more to receive their burger faster. Customers ordering Whoppers were given the option to pay for various MBPS — "Making Burgers Per Second" — rates. The slowest rate cost only $4.99, but came with a long wait time.

Government rules for the internet have been debated for nearly as long as the internet has existed, even before a professor coined the term “net neutrality” 15 years ago. The internet has changed our lives and grown beyond what anyone could have imagined. And it’s done so, for the most part, with very few—but often changing—rules. Regulators under four different presidents have taken four different approaches. Courts have overturned regulatory decisions. Regulators have reversed their predecessors.