Net neutrality: Will the FCC's new Internet policy help consumers?

FCC Net Neutrality Ruling: What Does It Mean For You?
Are some versions of the Internet more equal than others? The Federal Communications Commission passed its first-ever Regulation of the Internet today, in a Net Neutrality Compromise that saw its 3-2 vote split sharply along party lines. The full text of the new regulations will not be published until later this week, but the broad strokes of the deal are now known. There will be two sets of regulations governing the way an Internet service provider is allowed to control your access, depending o...

FCC adopts net neutrality rules
Federal Regulators have issued new rules that ultimately will affect how Americans access videos over the Internet and how carriers charge for content. The 3-2 vote by the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday strikes a balance between Silicon Valley content creators, who use digital networks to deliver their virtual wares, and the cable and telephone companies that want to sell their own content and services to customers in addition to hooking them up to the World Wide Web. The new rul...

The Real Story behind Net Neutrality
I hesitated about writing about Net Neutrality. It seemed to be covered by everyone. However, this is nothing less than shocking. I urge everyone to read the expose in its entirety. Click on the Wall Street Journal link embedded in the story. Behind the innocent-sounding name and expressed aims of the FCC’s Net Neutrality initiative, voted in by the Commission yesterday by a 3-2 partisan vote, is a very sinister leftist agenda. John Fund of the Wall Street Journal has done excellent work r...

Obamas FCC: Move aside, peasants, were in charge [Darleen Click]
John Fund points out this is just the beginning The Net Neutrality vision for government Regulation of the Internet began with the work of Robert McChesney, a University of Illinois communications Professor who founded the liberal lobby Free Press in 2002. Mr. McChesney’s agenda? “At the moment, the battle over network neutrality is not to completely eliminate the telephone and cable companies,” he told the website SocialistProject in 2009. “But the ultimate goal is to ...

FCC Approves Net Neutrality Order, But Will It Stick?
In a split vote, the Federal Communications Commission approved Tuesday the nation's first Legislation aimed at addressing the way that phone, cable and Internet companies interact when it comes to Internet traffic. But despite the commission's historic 3 to 2 vote to pass the Net Neutrality order, Congress or the courts may end up unraveling the work. And for proponents of Net neutrality, a less than optimal situation could get worse. Net neutrality supporters are already less than thrilled b...

FCC adopts net neutrality rules
Federal Regulators have issued new rules that ultimately will affect how Americans access videos over the Internet and how carriers charge for content. The 3-2 vote by the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday strikes a balance between Silicon Valley content creators, who use digital networks to deliver their virtual wares, and the cable and telephone companies that want to sell their own content and services to customers in addition to hooking them up to the World Wide Web. The new rul...

The FCC: A Regulatory Vigilante
In a bold move that will be taken by many as a refudiation of the message of Limited Government voters in the Midterm Elections sent to Washington, The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Tuesday, by a 3-2 vote, adopted rules of “Net Neutrality” to regulate the Internet despite there being considerable doubt whether it had the legal or statutory authority to do so. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said “it is essential” for a “strengthened FCC” to fulfi...

Why we should be worried about "net neutrality"
The FCC's decision yesterday to grab for itself the power to regulate the Internet through so-called "Net Neutrality" rules is the latest grab for Federal Government power over private industry. There wasn't any big demand for such Regulation. The Internet has grown from the small source it was in the beginning to be the wonderful source that it is today through private companies investing and competing with each other. But that isn't good enough for the Democrats on the FCC. They want more cont...

Net Neutrality
But what is known is that today’s developments will have far-reaching effects. Good or bad? Hard to say. It’s very difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff on this issue, since all sides seem to have compelling arguments to make. Our readers know that we subscribe to the general principle that “that government is best which governs least” (or, as Doug Casey would contend, “governs not at all”). And this would seem to be especially true with regard to the...

The Net Neutrality Coup
Human Events: The Federal Communications Commission has voted to impose the Controversial “Net Neutrality” Regulations on the Internet, by a vote of 3-2. It was a partisan vote, three Democrats against two Republicans. “Controversial” isn’t really the right word for Net Neutrality. “Reviled” would be more appropriate. As a Fox News op-ed from Americans For Prosperity president Phil Kerpen points out, the Regulations have no support in Congress, the American People

Wonkbook: Stopgap budget passed; America moves West; net neutrality rules move forward; food safety bill moves to Obama
The FCC has passed Net Neutrality rules, reports Cecilia Kang: "The Federal Communications Commission voted Tuesday to approve its first ever Internet access Regulation, which ensures unimpeded access to any legal Web content for home Internet users. The FCC's three Democratic members made up a majority of votes in favor of the so-called Net Neutrality Regulation, which was introduced more than a year ago by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. The rules have sparked intense debate and lobbying over...

Al Franken: The Internet as We Know it Is Still at Risk
In today's Net Neutrality action by the Federal Communications Commission there's good news and bad news. The good news is that, thanks to Commissioners Copps and Clyburn -- not to mention a nationwide network of Net Neutrality Activists -- the proposal approved today is better than the original circulated by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. For instance, the FCC has now stated that it does not condone discriminatory behavior by wireless companies like Verizon and AT&T; -- an important piece th...

Malkin Op-Ed: 'Net Neutrality' - Obamacare for the Web
When Bureaucrats talk about increas ing our "access" to x, y or z, what they're really talking about is in creasing exponentially their control over our lives. As with the government Health Care takeover, so with the newly approved government plan to "increase" Internet "access." Call it Webcare. By a vote of 3-2, the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday adopted a Controversial scheme to ensure "Net Neutrality" by turning unaccountable Democratic appointees into meddling online traffic c...

Obama and FCC approve net neutrality rules that mirror those in China and Iran
WASHINGTON - Yesterday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) gave Internet providers AT&T, Comcast and Verizon an early holiday present.  In a 3-2 vote, President Obama’s FCC signed a “Compromise” that ended the Internet’s Democracy and openness by selling it out to corporations, which will eventually result in a gated U.S. Internet system that rivals those in China or Iran.  However, these new rules are already being spun by the Obama administr...

McConnell: Net neutrality? What the hell.
The Federal Communications Commission today adopted a neutered version of Net Neutrality, over the dissent of its Republican members. This means that Internet service providers will not be able to block access to lawful content and websites. It does not, however, mean that ISPs wouldn't be able to establish tiered pay-for-priority systems (e.g., an extra $5 per month to get video to stream faster). The new rule also is fairly weak with regards to mobile service providers, even though the future ...

Wednesday News Net (Non)Neutrality Edition
Good Morning Conflucians!! Big news this week is the FCC ruling on Net Neutrality or in this case, the lack of net neutrality. Yet another case of Obama handing over what is the people’s to the few rich and powerful. But before we get to that, another cowardly Obama move deserves notice. Namely how the administration is preparing for their own indefinite dentition order for “Terrorists”: The Obama Administration is preparing an Executive Order that would formalize indefinite ...

'Net neutrality': ObamaCare for the Web
Michelle Malkin When Bureaucrats talk about increas ing our "access" to x, y or z, what they're really talking about is in creasing exponentially their control over our lives. As with the government Health Care takeover, so with the newly approved government plan to "increase" Internet "access." Call it Webcare. By a vote of 3-2, the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday adopted a Controversial scheme to ensure "Net Neutrality" by turning unaccountable Democratic appointees into meddli...

Sleepy Agency Causes Stir
The FCC is in many ways a typical federal agency that makes decisions impacting all of our lives but doesn't draw much public attention until it does something Controversial. Tuesday's unanimous decision to improve and expand 911 services to include text messaging and video streaming was buried by a contentious 3-2 ruling placing greater Regulations on Internet providers. Chairman Julius Genachowski tried his best to downplay any disagreement over the commission's Net Neutrality order. "Today,...

Divided FCC Adopts Rules to Protect Web Traffic
Tuesday, December 21, 2010 By Joelle Tessler, Associated Press In this file photo made March 12, 2010, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski is interviewed at his office in Washington. New rules aimed at prohibiting Broadband providers from becoming gatekeepers of Internet Traffic now have just enough votes to pass the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2010. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, file) Washington (AP) - A divided Federal Communications Commission has approved new rules ...

FCC: Yup, we're going to stop "paid prioritization" on the 'Net
The Federal Communications Commission is releasing the details of its new Net Neutrality Order in stages. Although the FCC's new ban on "unreasonable Discrimination" for wired ISPs allows certain kinds of traffic discrimination (not all bits need be equal), the agency made clear after today's meeting that "paid prioritization" deals with Internet companies are unlikely to be allowed. Critics had worried that the new Order would only affect outright website blocking, leaving paid prioritization u...

Rep. Marsha Blackburn Promises to Undo FCCs Internet Regulations
Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), a longtime advocate of Internet freedom, said she’s undaunted by the Federal Communications Commission’s decision to adopt Net Neutrality rules. Instead, she thinks the FCC’s action will be a catalyst for renewed commitment on the issue in the 112th Congress. “What we will do is first use this as a way to show how we’re going to keep that Pledge to America,” she said yesterday at The Heritage Foundation. “We said in the Pledge that an

Internet access is not a civil right
Meet the new Internet Traffic cops Internet access is not a “civil right” by Michelle Malkin Creators Syndicate Copyright 2010 When Bureaucrats talk about increasing your “access” to X, Y, or Z, what they’re really talking about is increasing their control over your lives exponentially. As it is with the government Health Care takeover, so it is with the newly-approved government plan to “increase” Internet “access.” Call it Webcare. By a vote of 3-2,

Net Neutrality Vote: Twitter Users As Divided As FCC
On Tuesday, the FCC voted to adopt a framework that aims to preserve an "open Internet" by prohibiting Internet service providers from discriminating in how they handle information traveling over their networks. "The rules," according to the AP, "require Broadband providers to let subscribers access all legal online content, applications and services over their wired networks -- including online calling services, Internet video and other Web applications that compete with their core businesse...

Economic Outlook: Policing terra digitalis
Published: Dec. 22, 2010 at 10:35 AM In modern times, it is hard to muddy unsullied waters, because, frankly, there aren't many unsullied waters left. There are footsteps on The Moon. That would be, some would say Wednesday morning, because Democrats have yet to establish a strong enough presence there to regulate the lunar surface. That will come, however. The latest frontier on terra firma is the Internet or the World Wide Web, capitalized because for esoterically minded editors (and who says ...

Internet Access is Not a Civil Right
Michelle Malkin, CNSNews.com When Bureaucrats talk about increasing our “access” to x, y or z, what they’re really talking about is increasing exponentially their control over our lives. As it is with the government Health Care takeover, so it is with the newly approved government plan to “increase” Internet “access.” Call it Webcare. By a vote of 3-2, the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday adopted a Controversial scheme to ensure “net ...