Q&A: Explaining the fight over U.S. ‘net neutrality’ regulations

[longknife]

I really don’t understand all the technological points of this. What I do know is that I don’t like having any government in charge of the internet. The internet has done just fine without government controls. Here’s one part of the article:

What is in the proposal and what happens next?

The FCC, an independent U.S. government agency that regulates interstate and international communications by radio, TV, wire, satellite and cable, has three Republican commissioners including Pai and two Democrats and is all but certain to approve Pai’s proposal. That would undo regulations put in place in 2015 at Democrat Obama’s urging that treat ISPs like public utilities to guarantee the open nature of the internet. It would also roll back the FCC’s significant oversight over the providers and their conduct.

Pai’s proposal would require ISPs to disclose if they allow content blocking, slowing though so-called throttling, or paid prioritization in which a third-party owner pays an ISP to have their content move more quickly. It would also eliminate the internet conduct standard that gives the FCC broad discretion to bar ISP practices it deems improper.

The new rules could into effect as early as January, although a court challenge is expected.

Full piece @ Q&A: Explaining the fight over U.S. ‘net neutrality’ regulations | One America News Network

 

[longknife]

And here’s the other side: (from the guy who chaired the FCC under Obama)

The FCC’s net neutrality proposal: A shameful sham that sells out consumers

The only word that can describe the Trump FCC’s behavior is shameful. They have given those they are supposed to regulate everything they want. The Communications Act mandates the FCC to protect consumers of telecommunications services. This proposal neatly steps away from that responsibility by redefining internet service as not being a “telecommunications service.” It is a legal sleight-of-hand and those who proposed this and vote for it should be ashamed of themselves.

Full statement @ The FCC’s net neutrality proposal: A shameful sham that sells out consumers

 

[longknife]

How the FCC's move on net neutrality could impact consumers @ How the FCC's move on net neutrality could impact consumers

Julian Sanchez, a senior fellow at the libertarian think tank Cato Institute, said broadband providers would “presumably … try some things consumers don’t like and others that prove to be popular.” But he dismissed the notion of predicting just what exactly providers would do should the regulations be scaled back.

“There’s plenty of scaremongering around steps broadband providers could take in the absence of neutrality regulation — blocking off certain sites, or charging extra fees to access certain services — but not a ton of reason to think they would do these things, which would antagonize customers, be technically tricky to enforce against sophisticated users, and invite the re-imposition of regulations,” Sanchez told Fox News.

“What’s more realistic is the introduction of plans that provide higher speeds for specific bandwidth-intensive services,” he said, pointing to streaming high-definition Netflix videos as an example of such a service. “Or, similarly, content providers might end up subsidizing higher-speed access to their services for subscribers who’ve only paid for slower all-purpose Internet access.”

 

[longknife]

The FCC just decided to repeal net neutrality. Here’s why that’s really, really bad. @ The FCC just decided to repeal net neutrality. Here’s why that’s really, really bad.

And so the arguments go on and on and on and …..

 

[ThunderKiss1965]