Ali Breland

Sen Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced a bill to nullify the Federal Communications Commission’s network neutrality rules and prohibit the FCC from issuing a similar rule in the future. Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Rand Paul (R-KY), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Ben Sasse (R-NE), and James Inhofe (R-OK) co-sponsored Lee’s bill. The bill is unlikely to receive support from Democrats in the Senate.

Some of the biggest names on the internet are trying to stay out of the contentious, public fight over the future of the Obama-era network neutrality rules. Google and other household names encouraged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to enact the rules in 2015. But now with the regulations on the chopping block, those companies believe the change will have little effect on their bottom line and are trying not to get dragged in.

They could face pressure, though, from consumer groups and net neutrality advocates, who see them as crucial allies to saving the rules. Officials at several major tech companies said net neutrality isn't a priority anymore. Many of the companies that were once forceful advocates of the rules no longer think they will be harmed under repeal. Facebook, Google and Microsoft boast market valuations in the hundreds of billions, giving them new power relative to broadband providers.

[Commentary] Here are 4 ways the internet will change if Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai gets his way on net neutrality: 1) More free data plans, 2) Internet fast lanes, 3) Smaller internet service providers and internet startups could be in for a tough time, and 4) Shifting broadband regulation to the Federal Trade Commission.

A coalition of consumer advocacy groups is calling on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to oppose requiring foreign nationals to provide their social media passwords to enter the US.

In February, DHS Secretary John Kelly floated the idea of forcing citizens of certain countries to hand over their passwords as part of “enhanced vetting measures” supported by the Trump Administration. The groups, which include the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Daily Kos and Center for Media Justice are trying to solicit signatures for a letter to Kelly protesting collecting foreign nationals' passwords. Evan Greer, campaign director at Fight for the Future, another member organization of the coalition, argued that Kelly’s initiative wouldn’t get the results he wanted. "Asking people to hand over the passwords to their accounts will make all of us less safe, not more safe,” Greer said.

Google is paying a $7.8 million fine and agreeing to open up its Android mobile operating system to competitors' search engines in Russia. The settlement ends a two-year fight with Russian antitrust regulators.

The Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia (FAS) in 2015 found Google was violating competition laws by including its own search tool on the operating system. Google would preload its own apps, including the search engine, on phones running Android. Russian users didn't have the option of changing to a different search engine on those phones. Now, under the terms of the settlement, the Android operating system will no longer exclusively have Google apps preinstalled in Russia, and users will be able to pick their default search engines, according to the FAS. The $7.8 million fine is roughly 9 percent of Google's 2014 revenue in Russia. The decision will give an opportunity for the Russian search engine Yandex NV to increase its own market share in mobile search. Yandex had originally brought the complaint against Google.

The tech world is gearing up for a showdown over the Obama-era network neutrality rules. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai's plan could scrap that provision in exchange for companies voluntarily promising to uphold net neutrality principles. But consumer groups and Democratic lawmakers are fighting to save the rules, which they say prevent companies from playing favorites with websites and online content.

“I am going to be a part of that effort to make sure that this is a huge national debate,” Sen Ed Markey (D-MA) said. “There is going to be a national outcry when the Federal Communications Commission announces a plan to eliminate net neutrality as America’s communications policy. I think that they’re going to have a response unlike anything they’ve ever seen.” "People are increasingly engaged on consumer issues on the internet, and the coalition that was in favor of net neutrality is now reenergized,” said Sen Brian Schatz (D-HI).

Rhode Island and Delaware have the fastest internet speeds in the country, according to a new analysis from the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). The two states boasted mean internet speeds of 16.9 megabits per second (Mbps) and 16.5 Mbps, respectively. Both are over 2 Mbps over the 2015 national average of 14.6 Mbps, which saw an increase from the 2015 national average of 11.8 Mbps. At the opposite end, Kentucky and Idaho had the slowest internet speeds at 10.7 Mbps and 10.4 Mbps, respectively. The trade group's full analysis, dubbed the Innovation Scorecard, includes a comprehensive set of measures to assess how states are progressing with technology and how friendly they are to innovation.

Sens Deb Fischer (R-NE) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) praised the Federal Communication Commission’s efforts to expand broadband access to rural America but expressed concern about high internet costs that these communities are facing. In a bipartisan letter spearheaded by the two senators and signed by 54 of their colleagues, they noted that their constituencies are facing higher prices for telephone and internet bundles when many only want internet service. “We are still hearing frustration about the prices for and the availability of standalone broadband,” the senators wrote. “Many operators remain unable or unwilling to offer such broadband because their prices would still be unreasonably high even after the reforms. Other operators may offer standalone broadband, but the costs they are forced to recover from rural consumers far exceed what urban consumers would pay for the same service,” they continued.

Rep Kevin Cramer (R-ND) says he’s willing to release his internet browsing history. Rep Cramer, who voted in favor of repealing an Obama-era rule that would have prevented service providers from selling customers' information without their permission, told a North Dakota radio show that he'd be willing to release his own browsing history. "Oh, of course. Yes, absolutely. No problem," Rep Cramer said in response to a question. Rep Cramer did not clarify if he would be willing to release his data in a way that would make it identifiable to him, or if he would be willing to release it anonymously, akin to how many internet companies like Facebook and Google sell user data to advertisers. Cramer said that the information internet service providers would gain from consumers is “not worth a lot of commercial value," anyway.

Several Sens pressed the Trump Administration for details after reports that US officials tried to get Twitter to unmask an anonymous account that published tweets critical of President Donald Trump. “I am gravely alarmed by the summons that US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) transmitted to Twitter on March 14, 2017, regarding the Twitter account @ALT_USCIS," Sen Ron Wyden (D-OR) wrote in a letter to federal officials. "Not only was the summons blatantly inconsistent with the cited investigatory authority … it appeared to be a distributing threat to free speech and whistleblower protections,” he added.

Sens Mike Lee (R-UT) and Cory Gardner (R-CO) sent a separate letter to Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly inquiring about the administration’s alleged attempts to gain information on the anonymous Twitter.