Regulatory classification

[Commentary] Anyone doubting the power lobbyists still hold in Washington need only look at the ongoing, shameful net neutrality travesty.  It was bad enough that Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai, a former Verizon lawyer, engineered the repeal of President Barack Obama’s landmark rules prohibiting Internet Service Providers from blocking or slowing down the internet or giving preference for certain online content.

Along with pursuing lawsuits over irregularities in the Federal Communications Commission network neutrality comments process (like millions of fake citizen comments being submitted), several states are crafting their own net neutrality laws, which they will start debating as new legislative sessions commence in Jan. They would prohibit internet service providers from blocking or hindering access to legal online content sources, or from offering premium-bandwidth “fast lane” deals to others.

The Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal network neutrality rules on December 14, but the FCC is still making edits to the repeal order and hasn't released the final version. The final order should be similar to the draft released by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai three weeks before the vote, but some changes will be made. "The goal is to release it as soon as possible," an FCC spokesperson said. The spokesperson said he can't discuss any changes made to the draft order until a final version is released.

Here are five fights the tech world will be watching closely in 2018:

1. Net neutrality
2. Election transparency
3. AT&T-Time Warner merger
4. Cryptocurrency
5. Sex-trafficking

Internet users are complaining more about net neutrality-related issues since the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal the existing net neutrality rules earlier this month, according to the FCC's consumer complaint data. As of Dec 23, consumers filed 2,388 in December, a sharp increase over the 157 complaints filed in October. The FCC voted to reverse the net neutrality rules on Dec. 14.

Democrats see an opportunity to capitalize on the massive backlash to the Federal Communications Commission’s decision to repeal its network neutrality rules. The question is whether the outrage on Reddit forums can translate into votes for Democratic candidates next fall given the fact that younger people engaged on the issue are often the least reliable voters — particularly in midterm elections.

How soon can you win a legal victory and end this nightmare? The soonest Free Press can file in court is after the order is published, either by the Federal Communications Commission itself or in that Federal Register. (There are some complicated timing rules that can apply differently to different parts of the FCC’s vote, so that’s why there’s some flexibility.) Once that publication happens, we’ll file within 10 days — a timeframe set for making a first appearance and starting the process to determine which federal appeals court will hear the case.

On December 14, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission voted 3-2 to dismantle the agency’s 2015 net neutrality rules. As a long-standing champion of net neutrality and one of the two FCC Commissioners who vociferously objected to the decision, Commissioner Clyburn believes it is important for consumers and small businesses to understand what happens next.

What protections will I lose online as a result of the FCC majority’s repeal of net neutrality? Once the FCC’s net neutrality repeal action goes into effect, broadband providers will be allowed to:

On the same day the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal its 2015 network neutrality rules, the Walt Disney Company announced a deal to buy most of 21st Century Fox. The all-stock transaction is valued at roughly $52.4 billion. If approved, Disney would go from being “a juggernaut to being a megajuggernaut.” Disney hopes the acquisition of Fox’s sports and entertainment content will give it new market power in the growing online distribution market (streaming services). The FCC’s move is not unrelated.

House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) announced that she introduced the “Open Internet Preservation Act,” which she claims would “ensure there is no blocking” and “no throttling,” of internet traffic. However, critics fear that Blackburn’s bill would only enhance some of the fears internet activists have had before and after the Federal Communications Commission voted, along party lines, to dismantle the 2015 Open Internet Order, essentially killing net neutrality rules.