This FCC Rule Will Matter More Than Net Neutrality Will

[Commentary] The Federal Communications Commission’s decision in favor of municipal broadband networks does more than “open Internet” rules ever could to increase competition in a broken market.

If there were more competition among broadband providers, it seems unlikely that we would need rules specifically guaranteeing an “open Internet,” aka net neutrality. Even now there isn’t really evidence that huge ISPs such as Comcast abuse their power by favoring their traffic over, say, Netflix’s. But the best argument in favor of net neutrality is that because there are so few broadband providers in any given market, ISPs could abuse their position and consumers would be hard-pressed to protest by taking their business elsewhere. One way the big ISPs show anticonsumer tendencies is by vigorously opposing cities and towns that want to build their own broadband networks as an economic development tool. The companies complain that city-run Internet services, which don’t have to earn a profit, amount to unfair competition. It’s a weak argument, given all the schools, insurance companies, transportation providers, and other private entities that manage to compete with services run by governments. Nonetheless, telecom companies have persuaded 19 state legislatures to block or restrain municipal networks.