tagged w/ FCC Net Neutrality
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The Obama administration on Monday threatened to veto a Republican effort to overturn the FCC's new net neutrality rules, just as House GOPers moved one step closer to bringing that repeal to a full-chamber vote.
A Statement of Administration Policy issued late Monday emphasized that the White House “strongly opposes House passage” of the resolution of disapproval, which would roll back rules the FCC enacted in December that require Internet providers to treat all traffic equally.
The administration described any Republican attempt to undo the FCC’s work as one that would “undermine a fundamental part of the Nation’s Internet and innovation strategy — an enforceable and effective policy for keeping the Internet free and open.”
“If the President is presented with a Resolution of Disapproval that would not safeguard the free and open Internet, his senior advisers would recommend that he veto the Resolution,” the statement said.
Obama’s veto threat isn’t exactly surprising, given the extent to which the so-called “Tech President” touched on net neutrality along the 2008 campaign trail.
The statement issued Monday is sure to fire up net neutrality supporters — many of whom supported his first bid for the presidency and urged the White House to take a more vocal role in the net neutrality debate.
But even the specter of a veto leading up to Monday had not deterred Republicans from bringing their resolution of disapproval to a floor vote. Late Monday, the House Rules Committee weighed the terms under which it would bring the measure to the floor this week.
Telecom subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden (R-Ore.) fiercely defended the resolution during the hearing, arguing the FCC’s rules represent a regulatory overreach by the FCC in area where it lacks authority.
He depicted a vote against his bill as tantamount to a vote for the FCC to move forward with regulation of the Internet as a common carrier, a designation that would subject providers to tough rules that already apply to phone companies. The FCC still has a proceeding open that could accomplish as much.
But Rep. Anna Eshoo of California, the top Dem on the telecom panel, called the legislation “hogwash” — saying it’s unlikely to go anywhere after the House votes on it. In particular, Eshoo took issue with Republicans for allegedly attacking government agencies’ ability to enact basic consumer protections.
“The majority doesn’t have a case” on this bill, she added.
Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) also defended the FCC’s work, citing Wall Street investment reports that suggest the commission’s rules have “eliminated any threat of regulatory overhang.”
Walden, though, later appeared flustered by the Democratic criticism — at one point saying that he “understands that the President is good friends with the chairman.”
For its part, the White House said the FCC’s process was highly collaborative, weighing input from consumer groups to top technology companies over the course of many months.
“Notably, the Federal Communications Commission’s rule reflected a constructive effort to build a consensus around what safeguards and protections were reasonable and necessary to ensure that the Internet continues to attract investment and to spur innovation,” the statement said.
An identical resolution is pending action in the Senate, though industry leaders expect chamber Democrats to scuttle the GOP effort long before it can reach the president’s desk.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0411/52525.html#ixzz1IehFurYaThe Obama administration on Monday threatened to veto a Republican effort to overturn... more
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Representative Greg Walden (R-Ore.) intends to attach an amendment to the “continuing resolution” in the House that would prohibit the Federal Communications Commission from using any funds to implement the Net Neutrality rules it passed last December. In a speech today before the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, Walden also said he and his Republican colleagues would seek to block the rules’ implementation through a Resolution of Disapproval under the Congressional Review Act.
The following statement was issued by Free Press Action Fund Political Adviser Joel Kelsey:
“This attack on Net Neutrality is a dangerous overreach that tries to hijack the budget process to punish independent regulators for making rules that big telecoms like Verizon and Comcast don’t like.
http://www.freepress.net/press-release/2011/2/15/walden-dislikes-rules-seeks-starve-refereesRepresentative Greg Walden (R-Ore.) intends to attach an amendment to the... more
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Its been a week since the FCC got its net neutrality rules out but the debate over it has just started. While republicans want to kill FCC's net neutrality rules, democrats
http://bit.ly/go1PWsIts been a week since the FCC got its net neutrality rules out but the debate over it... more
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Federal regulators are reconsidering the rules that govern high-speed Internet connections — wading into a bitter policy dispute that could be tied up in Congress and the courts for years.
Over the objections of the agency's two Republican commissioners, the Federal Communications Commission voted Thursday to begin taking public comments on three different paths for regulating broadband. That includes a proposal by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, a Democrat, to define broadband access as a telecommunications service subject to "common carrier" obligations to treat all traffic equally.
Genachowski's proposal is a response to a federal appeals court ruling that cast doubt on the agency's authority over broadband under its existing regulatory framework.
The chairman's plan has the backing of many big Internet companies, which say it would ensure the FCC can prevent phone and cable companies from using their control over broadband connections to determine what subscribers can do online.
"There is a real urgency to this because right now there are no rules of the road to protect consumers from even the most egregious discriminatory behavior by telephone and cable companies," said Markham Erickson, executive director of the Open Internet Coalition. The group's members include Google Inc., eBay Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and online calling service Skype Ltd.
Genachowski's plan faces resistance from the broadband providers themselves, including AT&T Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. They say it opens the door to onerous and outdated regulations that would discourage them from upgrading their networks.
"This FCC proposal could call into question the business assumptions underlying multibillion-dollar broadband investments," said Howard Waltzman, a former Republican staffer on the House Commerce Committee who is representing telephone companies as a partner with Mayer Brown LLP.
Many Republicans and even some Democrats on Capitol Hill also oppose Genachowski's plan. At least one House Republican, Rep. John Culberson of Texas, has proposed blocking funding for the FCC if it pursues the plan.
READ MORE AT LINK - COMMENT AT CIVICANIMAL.COMFederal regulators are reconsidering the rules that govern high-speed Internet... more
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The Federal Appeals Court has decided in favor of Comcast, and "ruled that the Federal Communications Commission lacks the authority to require broadband providers to give equal treatment to all Internet traffic flowing over their networks."
This is a huge blow to the proponents of Net Neutrality, and also a setback for F.C.C. and their national broadband plan, which would expand telecommunications and broadband speeds throughout America. The ruling of the appeals court could hamper F.C.C.'s plan.
This decision could further impact how consumers are able to access content via internet. It could let Comcast and other internet providers to charge users higher fees to access sites like Hulu, YouTube etc.
P.S.: Bye Bye HIgher BroadBand Speeds.The Federal Appeals Court has decided in favor of Comcast, and "ruled that the... more
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Federal regulators took an important step Thursday toward prohibiting broadband providers from favoring or discriminating against certain kinds of Internet traffic.
Despite the concerns of telecommunications companies and the agency's two Republicans, the Federal Communications Commission voted to begin writing so-called "network neutrality" regulations. Proponents say the rules would prevent phone and cable companies from abusing their control over the market for broadband access.
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said regulations are needed to ensure that broadband subscribers can access all legal Web sites and services, including Internet calling applications and video sites that compete with the broadband companies' core businesses.
"Internet users should always have the final say about their online service, whether it's the software, applications or services they choose, or the networks and hardware they use to the connect to the Internet," Genachowski said.
The FCC's two other Democrats voted to support his plan. The agency's two Republican commissioners voted merely to start the formal rule-making process, but said they are opposed to the substance of Genachowski's proposal.
Republican Commissioner Robert McDowell said he remains unconvinced that broadband providers are engaging in widespread anticompetitive behavior that requires government intervention.
"I do not share the majority's view that the Internet is showing breaks and cracks, nor do I believe that the government is the best tool to fix it," he said.
In addition, Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.) introduced legislation --The Internet Freedom Act of 2009--that would block the FCC from enacting net neutrality rules.
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"This government takeover of the Internet will stifle innovation, in turn slowing our economic turnaround and further depressing an already anemic job market. Outside of health care, the technology industry is the nation's fastest growing job market," a press release from McCain's office said, according to The Hill (http://thehill.com/hillicon-valley/605-technology/64325-mccain-seeks-to-block-fcc-rules).
Next up for the FCC is to actually craft the rules, with a vote on whether to adopt them expected to come by next summer.
That would culminate a five-year debate in Washington that has pitted Internet companies such as Google Inc. against some of the biggest phone and cable companies - including AT&T Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. and Comcast Corp.
The broadband providers insist they need flexibility, free from government intervention, to keep their networks running smoothly. They want to ensure that high-bandwidth applications such as YouTube videos don't hog too much capacity and impede other traffic, like e-mail and online searches. They also say that net neutrality regulations would discourage them from expanding and upgrading their networks.
"We continue to hope that any rules adopted by the commission will not harm the investment and innovation that has made the Internet what it is today and that will make it even greater tomorrow," Comcast Executive Vice President David L. Cohen said in a statement.
But companies such as Google, Amazon.com Inc., eBay Inc.'s Skype and Facebook Inc. argue that without such rules, the broadband companies will become online gatekeepers that can prioritize their own online services or those of their business partners - and potentially put others at a disadvantage.
Markham Erickson, executive director of the Open Internet Coalition, called Thursday's vote "the first step toward ... creating a framework that promotes innovation and consumer choice on the Internet."
The Open Internet Coalition represents public interest groups and big Internet companies, including Google, Amazon and eBay (http://www.openinternetcoalition.com/).Federal regulators took an important step Thursday toward prohibiting broadband... more
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