Internet/Broadband

The Bundesnetzagentur prohibited certain aspects of the "StreamOn" add-on option offered by Telekom Deutschland GmbH (Telekom) with its "MagentaMobil" mobile tariff. The decision ensures that the provisions of the European Regulation on roaming and net neutrality are being complied with. "Telekom can continue to offer StreamOn. But in the interest of consumers, adjustments have to be made to the arrangement," explained Jochen Homann, Bundesnetzagentur President.

Now that the Federal Communications Commission has jettisoned its rules banning internet service providers from blocking or discriminating against lawful content, the issue is heading for Congress. And if the activists who first brought the issue into the limelight have a say, it will become an issue in the 2018 election campaign. Sen Edward Markey (D-MA) already announced plans to introduce a joint resolution to reverse the FCC's decision. Several advocacy groups, including Demand Progress, Free Press, and Fight for the Future are calling on Congress to pass it.

[Commentary] Oregonians may recall that Portland was on the front lines of defending an open internet when cable companies first planned high-speed "broadband" in the late 1990s.

Now that the Federal Communications Commission has repealed net neutrality, it may be time to brace for the arrival of internet "fast lanes" and "slow lanes." Queried about their post-net-neutrality plans, seven major internet providers equivocated when asked if they might establish fast and slow lanes. None of the seven companies — Verizon, AT&T, Comcast, Charter, Cox, Sprint and T-Mobile — would rule out the possibility.

As of Dec 20, 26 US senators have pledged to vote for a resolution that would overrule the Federal Communications Commission's net neutrality repeal through the Congressional Review Act. Senators who have signed on to the resolution now include Ron Wyden (D-OR), Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).

When Chairmen Thune and Upton released their draft net neutrality bill in 2015, I called it a legislative wolf in sheep’s clothing, offering select few safeguards while taking away the FCC’s future authority over broadband. Congresswoman Blackburn’s bill is even worse. This legislation doesn’t just rip authority away from the FCC to protect consumers, it goes further to undermine the very spirit of net neutrality by allowing broadband providers to establish internet fast and slow lanes.

Once tax reform is signed into law, AT&T plans to invest an additional $1 billion in the United States in 2018 and pay a special $1,000 bonus to more than 200,000 AT&T US employees — all union-represented, non-management and front-line managers. If the President signs the bill before Christmas, employees will receive the bonus over the holidays. [AT&T announced on November 8 that it would step up US investment by $1 billion if a tax bill passed.]

Letters from rural carriers have been pouring into the Federal Communications Commission to urge the commission to close the broadband Alternative Connect America Cost Model (A-CAM) funding gap before the end of 2017. It was just about a year ago that more carriers than expected chose to participate in the A-CAM broadband program, which will pay part of a carrier’s costs to bring broadband to unserved areas based on a cost model.

The most recent chapter in the debate over net neutrality has been, like previous chapters, cacophonous. One notable difference this time around, though, was the relative quiet of many large tech companies. In previous years, these firms had been outspoken about the issue. What changed? Netflix’s net-neutrality journey is an illuminating example. The reality is that Netflix and other large tech companies, such as Facebook and Google, have grown so dominant that net neutrality has become a nonissue for them.