Friday, May 07, 2010



FCC announces plan to seize control of Internet

A new maneuver:
"U.S. regulators will claim authority over companies offering Internet access in a setback for AT&T Inc. and Comcast Corp. and a win for Web content providers such as Google Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and EBay Inc.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski plans to say tomorrow that the agency will extend rules used for telephone service to Internet providers, a commission official, who declined to be identified, said today in an e-mailed statement.

The agency will pledge to stop short of provisions such as the authority to control rates.” [Good of them!]

Source

No doubt this too will end up going to SCOTUS

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

With this Marxist government in power, it's all about CONTROL!

Anonymous said...

Man, every time I turn around these clowns are trying to take over or control something else.

Anonymous said...

According to CNet ( http://news.cnet.com/8301-30686_3-20004313-266.html?tag=nl.e498 ) the FCC announced a third "middle ground" option that will require broadband companies to not throttle or control site delivery. I believe that is a step we can all agree with.

The FCC then took the step of saying that they will not "not regulate the Internet, including Web-based services and applications, e-commerce sites, and online content."

If the FCC lives up to this, it seems to be a fair. I would prefer that this be codified into law rather than a FCC regulation which can be changed with political winds, but this is not a bad move.

The main objection for regulation toward net neutrality is that it gives the government a foot in the door to regulate content. This new step seems to be a middle ground we can all live with.

Anonymous said...

They just got shot down by the Supreme Court a few weeks ago. Now they're going through the back door. This government takover crap has got to stop.

Anonymous said...

all starts with the kenyan mullato mutt in the white house..
GOD BLESS ARIZONA

Anonymous said...

Anon 4:41,

Excellent post comrade! er, just two problems. First, its only a step everyone can live with because we have no other choice (at least until November), and second, one step will lead to another and then another.

Bobby said...

The Internet works perfectly fine without the FCC meddling.

Anonymous said...

Anon 9:29 PM,

There are a couple of options here. The FCC can switch the internet into realms which it can regulate. The FCC can leave the internet and providers alone, in which case you might be cut off from this site and others that might criticize an ISP. There is the third, middle step, which allows the FCC to guarantee that companies provide access to all of the internet and leave content alone.

That is the step they have taken.

I understand and appreciate your "slippery slope" argument. I too have concerns about this. That is why I said I would prefer that this was codified instead of an FCC rule which can change with political winds.

We all want an internet that is free to exchange information and is wide open. Companies that can and already are limiting access to certain areas of the internet are contrary to that idea. Companies that drive a person to use one search engine over another are contrary to that idea. This rule will stop that.

Governments that want to control content such as China, are also contrary to the idea of the internet. That is a concern here but if the FCC lives up to the agreement, it is not an issue at this time.

If you have a way that guarantees that companies won't restrict access to the internet and a way that guarantees that the government won't restrict access, there are millions of people that would love to hear your idea. Doing nothing won't work. Doing too much won't work either.

Anonymous said...

the internet has gotten along fine without the FCC. 'nuff said?

Anonymous said...

the internet has gotten along fine without the FCC. 'nuff said?

Except with the changes in access that ISP's are proposing, that internet will not be the same.