FCC"s Vision for Broadband

Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Tom Wheeler testified in Congress recently during an Energy and Commerce Committee oversight hearing.  Although Wheeler spoke a wide range of issues facing the agency, the issue of net neutrality dominated much of the discussion.  Facing criticism from Democrats and Republicans alike, Wheeler defended his position and the FCC's handling of the issue.

42 Million Subscribers Now Face Broadband Usage Caps


Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA) summed up his position on net neutrality:

“I just want to say to you that I am opposed to any form of paid prioritization. Paid prioritization divides the Internet into ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’ and it will entrench the big companies at the expense of start-ups.”

Julius Genachowski's Assessment of US Leadership in Broadband: FCC Chairman: Broadband Goals Advanced, but Challenges Remain

In simplest terms, net neutrality is the tenet that all internet traffic should be treated equally. Net neutrality advocates believe that internet service providers should not be able to restrict certain types of internet traffic on their networks.  While seemingly a simple concept, the evolution of technology, applications, and devices and the ensuing voracious bandwidth consumption have forced the FCC to devise a strategy to ensure an open Internet for Americans, while providing a path for providers to manage their networks.  Specifically - ensuring Americans have unimpeded access to the broadband capacity purchased from a provider, while creating rules for "interconnection" or peering agreements between ISP's and content providers.

FCC Chair Julius Genachowski Appoints Director of Digital Learning: As Chairman Genachoski's Tenure Draws to Close Emphasis Placed on Adoption

While some Democrats were less pointed in their criticism, Republican members of Congress were more direct with their position:

Representative Greg Walden (R-OR)

“The modern communications landscape bears no resemblance to the world Title II was meant to regulate and application of Title II to the Internet is, at best, a poor fit. Worse still, the practical consequences of reclassification are to give the bureaucrats at the FCC the authority to second-guess business decisions and to regulate every possible aspect of the Internet”

Julius Genachowski's Assessment of US Leadership in Broadband: FCC Chairman: US Leads in 4G/LTE Deployment

Representative Fred Upton (R-MI)

“Attempting to reclassify it would be harmful to consumers, businesses and the future of the Internet as we know it.”

The proposed net neutrality rules go much further than the debate over an open Internet.  The rules will have transformational effects on the entire telecommunication industry. With large mergers such as Comcast/Time Warner and AT&T’s $48.5 billion purchase of DirecTV being considered by the FCC and state regulatory agencies around the country, Members of Congress wanted assurances that the public interest would be the FCC's top priority.

As Google Fiber Networks Expand, Raleigh Plans Their Own Network: North Carolina city announces plan to lay 125 miles of fiber

The FCC adheres to the four principles of network neutrality established almost a decade ago. This policy stated that consumers are entitled to:

• access the lawful Internet content of their choice.
• run applications and use services of their choice, subject to the needs of law enforcement.
• connect their choice of legal devices that do not harm the network.
• competition among network providers, application and service providers, and content providers.

Gigabit Cities Growing in Popularity: Demand Increases After Google Fiber Projects and FCC Gigabit City Challenge

While defending his position on net neutrality, Chairman Wheeler also lamented the fact that the FCC has been dealing with the issue well before he assumed his leadership well at the agency:

For over a decade, the Commission has struggled with the idea of net neutrality. There has been a bipartisan consensus, starting under the Bush Administration with Chairman Powell, on the importance of an open Internet to economic growth, investment, and innovation. But today we do not have any rules in place to protect the open Internet. In January, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that the Com mission has the legal authority under Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 to craft enforceable rules to preserve a free and open Internet as a level-playing field for all Americans. I immediately set the Commission on a path to do just that, committing to putting in place enforceable rules by the end of the year. And in April, I circulated specific proposals to my fellow Commissioners in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

Number of Fiber Connected Homes in North America Increases by 13%: 22.6 million Homes Now Passed by Fiber Connections

There is no doubt that the Chairman is defending the FCC's position on net neutrality while assuring members of the oversight committee and the American public that the current proposal is only the start of the dialogue surrounding the issue, and it will be some time before formal rules are established and enforced.