FCC to Propose Death of Net-Neutrality Rules

Arguing that the internet flourished under that framework, Carr voiced full support for returning to this approach.

Jay Stanley, senior policy analyst at the American Civil Liberties Union, said overturning the rules will hurt online speech.

“Internet rights are civil rights … gutting net neutrality will have a devastating effect on free speech online,” Stanley said Tuesday. “Without it, gateway corporations like Comcast, Verizon and AT&T will have too much power to mess with the free flow of information.”

Ronald Newman, director of strategic initiatives at the ACLU, said the proposal could be a blow to activists, especially.

“In a world without net neutrality, activists may lose an essential platform to organize and fight for change and small organizations may never get a fair shot to grow and thrive,” Newman said.

He added that Congress must take the reins here to put the brakes on any reversal.

Sen. Ron Wyden called the plans to shred net neutrality a thinly veiled favor to large communication companies.

“You’ve got to hand it to Chairman Pai – he really gets the job done for the titans of Big Cable,” the Oregon Democrat said. “Tearing down net neutrality is the crowning achievement of the most anti-consumer FCC chair in history. Consumers, rural Americans, small businesses and pretty much everyone except Big Cable executives will lose out thanks to this terrible proposal.”

Taking a similar stance, a consumer-protection and -privacy organization called the Center for Digital Democracy said Pai’s move to overturn net neutrality would “quickly transform the internet into an expensive toll road.”

“The FCC’s decision undermines democracy, erodes privacy, and consumer protection.  It will be vigorously fought in the courts,” Jeff Chester, executive director at the center, said in an email. “It will also unleash a growing protest movement that will undermine the reputation of AT&T, Comcast, Verizon and a few others.  They will find that rather than helping their companies, their support of killing network neutrality will significantly harm their bottom line.”

Pai boasted meanwhile that his unveiling is more transparent than the last administration’s efforts to adopt net neutrality.

Saying the FCC under former commissioner Tom Wheeler “refused to let the American people see that plan until weeks after the [its] vote,” Pai noted that his Wednesday release is scheduled for more than three weeks before the commission’s Dec. 14 vote.”

After the final vote, changes to the rules will officially take effect in 2018.

The shake-up comes at an opportune time for Comcast, America’s largest home internet provider. Per the terms of its 2011 merger with NBC Universal, Comcast is also banned from blocking content or slowing delivery speeds until 2018.

Verizon and AT&T both lobbied against establishing net-neutrality rules. Though the latter has not returned a request for comment, Verizon on Tuesday said the end of net neutrality will keep the internet “dynamic and competitive.”

“[The 2015 rule] undermined investment and innovation and posed a significant threat to the internet’s continued ability to grow and evolve to meet consumers’ needs,” Verizon said in a statement. “Now the FCC appears poised for a much needed return to the approach that fostered to many years of internet openness and innovation.”

Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., celebrated Tuesday's announcement, saying it was a signal that Pai understands the importance of a “light touch regulatory regime.”

“The past two years of heavy-handed regulation will be only a blip on the screen of a decades-long bipartisan equilibrium that successfully supported innovation and growth,” said Walden, who chairs the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Walden issued the statement with Rep. Marsha Blackburn, who chairs the Communications and Technology subcommittee.

“We also remain committed to ensuring clear, permanent net neutrality rules through the legislative process, encouraging investment in broadband buildout and closing the digital divide across America,” said Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican.

Ending net neutrality is only part of the December agenda.

Pai is also expected to reverse classification rules imposed on internet service providers. At present, ISPs are considered “common carriers” by the FCC and are treated like telephone companies. If an ISP is not considered a common carrier, it makes it far more difficult for commission to enforce any rules against slowing down access to sites or various applications. The classification was established by the FCC’s former Democratic chairman as a way to strengthen federal oversight on providers.

Wheeler touted the classification as a protection for consumers, but Pai sees the classification as a precursor for federal overreach. Pai warned that the rule, if left untouched, could open the door to government regulation of internet service.

While the rollback in December will likely be successful, it is also expected to face legal hurdles by those who want to see net neutrality rules left as is.

The proposal could also include guidance on transparency for providers, forcing them to inform consumers about their practices on service slowdowns. So far, Comcast has said it would not interfere with competitors’ streaming services.

Concerns over unfair competition will ultimately be the responsibility of another agency, the Federal Trade Commission.

The rollback would also allow Pai to make good on a promise offered in January before guests at The Free State Foundation, a conservative-leaning think tank in Maryland.

Saying the “regulatory underbrush at the FCC is thick,” Pai promised drastic measures would bear changes at the commission.

“We need to fire up the weed whacker and remove those rules that are holding back investment, innovation, and job creation,” he said.

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