Michael Powell

Congress is going big on broadband. It has appropriated more than $20 billion to spend on broadband in just the last several months. That is a huge amount compared to past efforts, equating to almost 25% of the annual revenues of the entire fixed broadband industry. And, in the wings is an infrastructure bill that could deliver another whopping $100 billion in spending. As legislators begin to sign more broadband stimulus checks, it is imperative that they establish critical safeguards and avoid classic traps that have undermined past programs.

We debut a tool that will allow the public and policymakers to track the growth in traffic during the pandemic and get a weekly snapshot of how cable broadband networks are performing during the pandemic.

For all the fire and fury over network neutrality, the debate is increasingly irrelevant. No matter how it is resolved—if it is ever resolved—it will have little real-world impact. Because while we are mired in an intractable squabble, technology and the issues we must face are swiftly moving on. Net neutrality policy does not remotely address the issues companies and consumers are facing today and likely will face in the future.

[Commentary] Internet providers have long offered an open internet experience. Along with web companies like Facebook and Google, internet service providers support open internet rules preventing blocking, throttling or unfair discrimination of online traffic. There is little objection to these common-sense consumer protections, but widespread resistance to the fiction that the government needs to impose outdated public utility regulation to assure openness. What we object to is regulating dynamic internet networks in the same way we regulate failing infrastructure like electricity, water, roads and bridges. Public utility regulation has failed America, and it’s foolish to apply it to the internet, the one infrastructure bright spot that has fueled America’s global competitiveness. The Federal Communications Commission is right to work toward restoring light-touch regulation before the information superhighway becomes marked with potholes.

[Powell, a former chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, is president and chief executive of NCTA, the Internet and Television Association]

[Commentary] In the ongoing air wars over net neutrality, personal attack and comedic fodder have sadly obscured an accurate portrayal of the issues now confronting the Federal Communications Commission in the wake of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit’s decision in Verizon v. FCC.

Instead of following the old adage of “when in danger, when in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout,” perhaps we ought to take a breath and refocus serious attention on the task before the agency.

First, we ought to see that inflammatory attacks claiming that the FCC is about to “wreck” net neutrality are nothing but hyperbolic hot air. You can’t “wreck” rules that no longer exist.

Second, as parties seek to manufacture a continuing din of discontent, we ought to acknowledge what we are not fighting about. Though it’s seldom reported, it’s worth remembering that the cable industry has long supported an open Internet and, in fact, supported the 2010 Open Internet rules adopted by the FCC.

Allowing the net-neutrality conversation to be hijacked into a peering debate is a mistake that will only cloud the commission’s ability to move forward in the Open Internet proceeding. Netflix’s peering gambit is primarily about improving its own economics and says more about Netflix’s power than about any ISPs.

We should stay focused on the last-mile issues that gave rise to the Open Internet rules in the first place, and ensure a clear path forward to reinstate new rules in line with the court’s direction.

[Powell is president and CEO of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association]