Klint Finley

The Covid-19 Pandemic Shows the Virtues of Net Neutrality

Rather than rendering network neutrality obsolete, the Covid-19 crisis reminds us why it’s such an important principle. The crisis shows that even in dire circumstances, internet companies can provide a neutral network. In Dec 2017, Net neutrality opponents claimed that regulating internet providers like telephone companies had hurt broadband infrastructure investment and that dropping the rules would spur more investment. Other critics warned that broadband providers needed to be able to prioritize certain types of content to prevent internet slowdowns.

When School Is Online, the Digital Divide Grows Greater

This digital divide has always left children and adults alike with fewer educational and economic opportunities. But with schools, libraries, and workplaces closed during the coronavirus pandemic, those without broadband are struggling to access schoolwork, job listings, unemployment benefit applications, and video chat services that others use to keep in touch with friends and family. For those on the wrong side of the digital divide, working from home isn’t an option.

The Internet Is Fine—for Now

Netflix says it will lower the quality of its video streams in Europe in an effort to preserve bandwidth for more essential online activities. But early data shows that most US broadband providers, and many elsewhere, are standing up to the surge in internet traffic generated by the many people stuck at home amid the Covid-19 pandemic. At least for now. 

Who Should Control the Internet's .Org Addresses?

The organization managing .org addresses is Public Interest Registry (PIR). It’s one of several so-called top-level registrars managing the internet’s address book on behalf of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). Now, PIR could be sold to a for-profit company that’s attracted protesters and the attention of California’s attorney general. Since its creation in 2002, PIR has been part of a nonprofit called The Internet Society.

AT&T Consumer 5G Begins: The Slow Rollout of Super-Fast 5G

AT&T is launching its new 5G service Dec 13 in 10 cities, including Los Angeles (CA), San Francisco (CA), and San Jose (CA). Notably, the service is based on real 5G standards, unlike AT&T’s earlier "5G Evolution" offering, which in reality was just a variety of 4G. Still, AT&T concedes that the new service for now will only deliver speeds comparable to “5G Evolution”—about 158 Mbps, or roughly similar to the fastest available 5G service in the US offered by competitor T-Mobile.

Schools and Phone Companies Face Off Over Wireless Spectrum

The Federal Communications Commission recently published a plan to auction off unused wireless spectrum originally set aside for schools. Only about half of this chunk of spectrum, now known as the Educational Broadband Service (EBS) has been licensed to schools or educational organizations. Education groups and the wireless industry have been asking the FCC to license the rest for years. Under the new plan, schools and educational organizations that already have EBS licenses will be able to keep them or sell them to commercial carriers.

Former FCC Chair Tom Wheeler Says The Internet Needs Regulation

A Q&A with former Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler. 

A Year Without Net Neutrality: No Big Changes (Yet)

It's been one year since the Federal Communications Commission voted to gut its net neutrality rules. The good news is that the internet isn't drastically different than it was before. But that's also the bad news: The net wasn't always so neutral to begin with. Broadband providers didn't make any drastic new moves to block or cripple the delivery of content after the FCC's order.

Can the FCC Really Block California's Net Neutrality Law?

Does California have authority to impose net neutrality rules? Both the US Department of Justice and the broadband industry claim that the inherently interstate nature of the internet means that only the federal government can regulate broadband services. A second, even thornier question is whether the Federal Communications Commission was within its rights when it effectively banned states from adopting net neutrality rules. At its heart is this conundrum: In repealing the Obama-era rules, the FCC said it didn’t have authority to impose net neutrality regulations.

The One Telecom Group That *Does* Support Net Neutrality

Charles "Chip" Pickering, a conservative Republican former member of Congress and CEO of a telecommunications-industry group called Incompas, supports net neutrality. Under Pickering's leadership, Incompas has been a steadfast defender of 2015 rules adopted by the Federal Communications Commission that ban broadband providers like Comcast and Verizon from blocking or discriminating against lawful content. That’s placed it at odds with other industry groups working to undermine efforts to mandate net neutrality.Incompas  itself is something of a paradox.

FCC Offers Small ISPs a Boost, but a Bigger Setback Looms

Small internet service providers (ISPs) expect a helping hand from the Federal Communications Commission August 2, a move that could spur competition and perhaps lower prices. But the FCC is also considering a more sweeping proposal that would hurt upstarts to the benefit of industry giants like AT&T. Both issues revolve around how much access upstarts should have to facilities and equipment owned by their bigger rivals. The vote is about arcane rules for moving wires on utility poles.

The FCC's Net Neutrality Rules Are Dead, but the Fight Isn't

Although net neutrality protections end June 11, don't expect to see huge changes right away.

Does It Matter If China Beats the US to Build a 5G Network?

Why exactly is it so important for the US to build 5G networks before China? The benefits of 5G are obvious, but today the US doesn't have the fastest home broadband speeds, nor the fastest or most widely available 4G networks, and often lags countries such as Finland, Japan, and South Korea in such metrics. Why would the US's economic strength erode if it's a bit late to the 5G party?

Big Tech's Fight for Net Neutrality Moves Behind the Scenes

You might not be hearing much from big tech on net neutrality lately. But the likes of Google and Facebook are still invested in the fight behind the scenes. The Internet Association joined a legal battle to overturn the Federal Communications Commission's decision to revoke the Obama-era rules, as did the industry group Incompas, which includes smaller telecommunications companies as well as tech companies including Facebook, Netflix, Microsoft, and Twitter.

Your Favorite Websites are Rallying in a Last-Ditch Effort to Save Net Neutrality

You might be seeing a lot of red on the internet May 9. Many sites, including Etsy, Reddit, and OKCupid will adorn their pages with “red alerts” asking readers to tell their representatives to save net neutrality.

The Comcast-NBC Merger Offers Little Guidance for AT&T-Time Warner

On the surface, the AT&T-Time Warner deal bears a strong resemblance to Comcast's 2011 acquisition of NBC Universal. Both AT&T and its opponents have already invoked the Comcast-NBC Universal merger in support of their case. In its response to the Department of Justice's lawsuit, AT&T argued that the government’s 2011 decision to approve the Comcast deal, with conditions, set a precedent that should be respected.

Why Net Neutrality Will Be A Campaign Issue in 2018

Now that the Federal Communications Commission has jettisoned its rules banning internet service providers from blocking or discriminating against lawful content, the issue is heading for Congress. And if the activists who first brought the issue into the limelight have a say, it will become an issue in the 2018 election campaign. Sen Edward Markey (D-MA) already announced plans to introduce a joint resolution to reverse the FCC's decision. Several advocacy groups, including Demand Progress, Free Press, and Fight for the Future are calling on Congress to pass it.

FCC Plan to Kill Net Neutrality Rules Could Hurt Students

Video plays a growing role in the education of students who turn to videoconferencing, streaming lectures, and other forms of high-tech distance learning to complete or extend their educations. But the looming end of net neutrality could make life harder, or at least more expensive, for such students. 

The FCC Says Net Neutrality Cripples Investment. That's Not True

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai says the agency's net-neutrality rules are discouraging investment, leaving consumers with fewer, and less robust, choices for internet service, and potentially widening the digital divide. Broadband providers' own financial reports tell a different story. The nation's largest internet provider actually increased its spending during 2015 and 2016, as did several other companies. Others cut spending, but said the drops stemmed from completion of longer-term plans.

How to Make Sense of Net Neutrality and Telecom Under Trump

First, the Department of Justice sued to block AT&T's proposed $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner. The next day, the Federal Communications Commission unveiled a proposal to loosen the limits on the number of television and radio stations a broadcast company can own, the latest in a series of moves that pave the way for Sinclair Broadcasting's proposed $3.9 billion acquisition of Tribune Company. The same week, the FCC unveiled its plan to overturn net-neutrality rules that ban broadband providers, including AT&T, from blocking or discriminating against legal content.

What an Internet Analyst Got Wrong About Net Neutrality

In a recent article, respected technology industry analyst and blogger Ben Thompson argued that he supports net neutrality, but thinks the Federal Communications Commission is right to repeal rules that ban broadband providers like Comcast and Verizon from blocking, slowing down, or otherwise discriminating against legal content. Thompson argues that designating broadband providers as common carriers is a "heavy-handed” way to enforce net neutrality, echoing industry voices, and FCC chair Ajit Pai.

Here's How the End of Net Neutrality Will Change the Internet

Internet service providers like Comcast and Verizon may soon be free to block content, slow video-streaming services from rivals, and offer “fast lanes” to preferred partners. For a glimpse of how the internet experience may change, look at what broadband providers are doing under the existing “net neutrality” rules. When AT&T customers access its DirecTV Now video-streaming service, the data doesn’t count against their plan’s data limits. Verizon, likewise, exempts its Go90 service from its customers’ data plans.

Internet Democracy Is Great … in Theory. Just Ask the FCC

The Federal Communications Commission says it wants to hear from you about the future of net neutrality. But in opening its virtual doors to the public, it’s also opened them to spammers and trolls, some of whom might have even managed to knock the FCC’s site offline this past week.

On the one hand, these problems are mere hassles: The FCC’s site was only down for a few hours, and the flood of spam was easy to identify. On the other hand, they show just how hard it is to turn the web into a platform for democratic participation. Just look at any comments section on the internet.

Here’s What Comes Next in the Fight to Save Net Neutrality

Once Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai’s notice of proposed rulemaking is approved, which is likely to happen at the FCC’s open meeting May 18, the public will have 60 days to file comments. Then people will have another 30 days to respond to the comments. The FCC’s staff will then have to turn all that feedback into a final order that commissioners will vote on. That process could take months, but based on Pai’s eagerness to re-reclassify broadband providers, you can expect action on that sooner than later.

Senior FCC officials told reporters during a press call that they won’t necessarily be swayed by public opinion. The call for comments is not, they said, a public opinion poll. Fair enough: Sometimes federal agencies have to make unpopular decisions. And if the FCC does vote to scrap net neutrality, it could be a very unpopular decision indeed. Despite growing polarization, a poll conducted by the University of Delaware found that the majority of both Democratic and Republican voters support some form of net neutrality protections.

Net neutrality advocates may have better luck in court than the FCC. Federal agencies must explain sudden policy reversals. If the courts decide that the FCC has acted in an arbitrary or capricious manner, the Title II reversal could be struck down. FCC staff, however, say they are confident that won’t happen. Pai has offered up data suggesting that companies are spending less money building and maintaining their broadband networks as a result of the Title II reclassification, which they believe should be enough to satisfy any legal challenge. Whether those controversial investment stats will be enough to sway the courts remains to be seen.