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| Home Front: Culture Wars |
| U.S. government to regulate Internet |
| 2010-12-22 |
| [Wall Street Journal] Federal telecommunications regulators approved new rules Tuesday that would for the first time give the federal government formal authority to regulate Internet traffic, although how much or for how long remained unclear. A divided Federal Communications Commission approved a proposal by Chairman Julius Genachowski to give the FCC power to prevent broadband providers from selectively blocking web traffic. The rules will go into effect early next year, but legal challenges or action by Congress could block the FCC's action. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) on Tuesday called the FCC's action "flawed" and said lawmakers would "have an opportunity in the new Congress to push back against new rules and regulations." The new FCC rules, for example, would prevent a broadband provider, such as Comcast Corp., AT&T, Inc. or Verizon Communications Inc., from hobbling access to an online video service, such as Netflix, that competes with its own video services. The rules would also require Internet providers to give subscribers more information on Internet speeds and service. Broadly, the rules would prohibit Internet providers from "unreasonably discriminating" against rivals' Internet traffic or services on wired or wireless networks. The rules would allow phone and cable companies to offer faster, priority delivery services to Internet companies willing to pay extra. But the FCC proposal contains language suggesting the agency would try to discourage creation of such high-speed toll lanes. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #2 Good thing we're not like Venezuela,huh? . |
| Posted by: OregonGuy 2010-12-22 16:07 |
| #1 In Oct or so Comcast threatened/promised to up the charge on streaming video (except for Comcast content video). This has been hanging over companies like Blizzard and Netflix and Blockbuster which make $ from customers buying video. This is, IMO, not so much a R vs D or left vs right contest as one between one type of business and another although the issues of interstate commerce, public purpose, etc. also arise. |
| Posted by: Lord Garth 2010-12-22 14:45 |