How Is the FCC Protecting Consumers in the Digital Age?

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[Commentary] Speeches by Federal Communications Commission chairmen and commissioners don’t often get big headlines, so you’ll be forgiven if you missed the news of two interesting speeches by key FCC staffers recently that address the commission’s role in protecting consumers. Both speeches highlight the need for the FCC’s expertise in overseeing telecommunications – and working with the other agencies with jurisdiction in this area. On September 24, Gigi Sohn, Counselor to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, was in Providence, Rhode island, to deliver a speech titled, Consumer Protection in the Broadband Era: The Role of the FCC. Sohn highlighted what Chairman Wheeler sees as the two core responsibilities of the FCC: 1) to facilitate dynamic technological change and world-class networks that drive innovation, economic growth and improvements in the lives of the American people; and 2) to ensure that our networks reflect core values: universal access, public safety, and consumer protection. On September 25, FCC General Counsel Jon Sallet visited the Telecommunications Policy Research Conference to deliver a keynote, The Federal Communications Commission and Lessons of Recent Mergers & Acquisitions Reviews. Sallet’s aim was to give insight into the FCC’s thinking as it considered the suggested Sprint-T-Mobile merger, AT&T’s acquisition of DIRECTV, and Comcast’s abandoned bid to buy Time Warner Cable.


How Is the FCC Protecting Consumers in the Digital Age?