Network Neutrality

[Commentary] In 2015 the Federal Communications Commission under then-President Obama launched Network Neutrality putting broadband under the same Title II regulatory framework as telephone companies a century earlier. In an open letter that year President Obama wrote; “Today’s FCC decision will protect innovation and create a level playing field for the next generation of entrepreneurs…” The word innovation doesn’t often come to mind when you’re talking about a regulated utility which is just what the government wanted to achieve with the FCC decision.

Backers of a new plan to upend “net neutrality” policies tout the proposal as a free market approach to internet oversight—one that will encourage an abundance of web content delivery, innovation, and investment, with no more government regulation than is necessary. But some school officials and education organizations are deeply skeptical that the plan will protect educators’ access to online sources, or nurture innovation by K-12 entrepreneurs.  In K-12 circles, two of the biggest worries about Pai’s proposal boil down to the following:

David Callicott needs to be online to run his small company, GoodLight Natural Candles in San Francisco.  A proposal on Tuesday by the Federal Communications Commission would undo so-called net neutrality rules that barred high-speed internet service providers from adjusting website delivery speeds and charging customers extra for access.

[Commentary] From #BlackGirlsCode and #BlackMenSmile to #BlackLivesMatter and #BlackTwitter, the black internet is part of the 21st-century movement for dignity, rights and freedom—and it’s under attack. Since the Trump administration seems hell-bent on silencing black voices in the United States, it shouldn’t come as a big surprise that Trump’s Federal Communications Commission Chairman and former Verizon executive Ajit Pai circulated a draft order to repeal net neutrality just two days before Thanksgiving.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai says the FCC needs to ditch its network neutrality rules because they’re hindering investment. But there’s no evidence to prove Pai’s argument. In fact, the data that Pai points to doesn’t show anything close to a marked decrease in broadband investment. Instead, it shows that while broadband investment has risen and fallen a little bit over the years, it has been mostly flat since 2013.

[Commentary] Ending network neutrality — leaving broadband providers to chase profits without public obligations — would be a disastrous reversal of communications policy that dates to the founding of the country and ensures the equal access to information that democracy needs to function. Especially in this era of steep inequality, corporate control and rising authoritarianism, the open Internet is a foundational necessity to hold the powerful to account.

If you think Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google already have monopolistic power, just wait until the FCC rolls back net neutrality rules. One thing is certain. Allowing internet companies to boost their power will not benefit consumers, only hurt them. FCC commissioners will vote on lifting net neutrality rules on Dec. 14, and the repeal will likely pass on a party-line vote. After that, big business will control the internet like never before.

[Commentary]  Once again, the [open Internet] rules are being rewritten.  Once again, the pitchforks and torches are in hand.  And once again, the only real and effective solution is being ignored:  legislation from Congress, versions of which have been floating around Capitol Hill for almost a decade. 

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai’s proposal — which is expected to be formally approved next month in a party-line vote — would render the FCC powerless to stop internet service providers like Comcast, AT&T and Verizon from slowing down or creating paid “fast lanes” for certain sites. And that could produce some big winners and losers throughout the industry.

Winner: Big Internet Service Providers

Loser: Netflix and YouTube 

Winner: Yahoo — and other services owned by ISPs 

Loser: Upstart streaming companies

Loser: Innovators