Net Neutrality Update

On Thursday, May 6, 2010 FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski came out with a proposal entitled The Third Way: a Narrowly Tailored Broadband Framework, with an outline for a newer, stricter type of regulatory authority over companies that provide broadband Internet access.

Genachowski released his proposal following a decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals in April 2010 that invalidated the looser regulatory authority of the FCC. The two goals of his plan include creating a competitive broadband network partly by redirecting a fund established to ensure universal telephone service into fostering broadband deployment, and secondly, to ensure net neutrality, requiring service providers to treat data moving along these lines equally.

Two of his fellow FCC commissioners, Robert M. McDowell and Meredith A. Baker, issued a joint statement opposing Genachowski’s move, wanting a more bipartisan approach. Some members of Congress have also expressed their displeasure with the proposal, stating that the plan gives more power to the FCC than Congress has granted. Others are supportive of allowing the FCC to regulate broadband access sold by telephone and cable companies as telecommunications service, rather than as information service.

According to Congressional Quarterly, reaction from providers is split, as well. Telecommunications providers such as Verizon are urging Congress to dictate a solution with legislation. Internet companies such as Google and Amazon.com do not want cable and phone companies to be able to discriminate in their broadband access policies.

One thing to agree upon is that no serious legislative move will make it to the floor this year – either to give the FCC more power or stop it from doing what it wants. Turning the proposal into adopted formal regulations would take at least several months, and there is still immigration reform and an energy bill that is forecasted to go before the Senate.

The Chamber’s Technology Business Council closely tracks Net Neutrality and other federal policy important to the technology and life science industries. For more information on this subject, or other issues, please contact Amy Gibson at agibson@dallaschamber.org or 214-712-1937.