Net neutrality advocates to FCC: Put the kibosh on internet freebies

Representatives from Fight the Future, the Center for Media Justice and Free Press on June 24 hand-delivered a 6-foot tall package containing 100,000 letters of complaint to the Federal Communications Commission. They ask the agency to take action against AT&T, Comcast, T-Mobile and Verizon for violating the agency's Open Internet order by offering so-called zero-rating service plans.

Zero-rating is a practice in which wireless and broadband providers exempt certain applications or services from monthly data caps. T-Mobile's Binge On service, which allows customers to stream unlimited video from certain services, is one example. Verizon's FreeBee program allows content owners to pay for a customer's data usage while using their service. While the practice offers some benefits to customers, critics say it violates the agency's Net neutrality principles, which requires all services on the Internet be treated the same. They claim it puts smaller competitors at a disadvantage and highlights the fact that data caps are unnecessary. Carriers say they are simply experimenting with new business models that will make their service more affordable for consumers.