The FCC: A Regulatory Vigilante

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 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...

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...

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...

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 ...

Senator Jim DeMint Calls For Repeal Of FCC's Internet Takeover
Only so much Rhetoric or a vow the senator can keep? From this source , quoting Senator DeMint:“The Obama Administration has ignored evidence that this federal takeover will hang a millstone of regulatory and legal uncertainty around the neck of a vibrant sector of our economy. "Proceeding on its own liberal whims rather than facts, this FCC has chosen to grant itself broad authority to limit how businesses can bring the Internet to consumers in faster and more innovative ways. “Americans...

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...

'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...

FCC Ignores Net Neutrality Ruling
When Julius Genachowski’s FCC board voted to regulate the Internet, it did so without regard for a Federal Court’s ruling that the FCC didn’t have the authority to regulate the internet . Here’s what the AP is reporting on the FCC’s attempted powergrab: A federal court threw the future of Internet regulations and U.S. Broadband expansion plans into doubt Tuesday with a far-reaching decision that went against the Federal Communications Commission. The U.S. Court of...

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...

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 ...

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...

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...

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

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...

They're Calling It Net Neutrality, But It Isn't
It's no exaggeration to say that this decision marks the beginning of the end for the Internet as we know it. Senator Al Franken laid out what's at stake with this ruling, saying: "The FCC's action today is simply inadequate to protect consumers or preserve the free and open Internet. I am particularly disappointed to learn that the order will not specifically ban paid prioritization, allowing big companies to pay for a fast lane on the Internet and abandoning the foundation of net neutralit...

They're Calling It Net Neutrality, But It Isn't
It's no exaggeration to say that this decision marks the beginning of the end for the Internet as we know it. Senator Al Franken laid out what's at stake with this ruling, saying: "The FCC's action today is simply inadequate to protect consumers or preserve the free and open Internet. I am particularly disappointed to learn that the order will not specifically ban paid prioritization, allowing big companies to pay for a fast lane on the Internet and abandoning the foundation of net neutralit...

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...

Republicans roar 'No' to net neutrality
WASHINGTON, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- Republicans in Washington Wednesday vowed to take action to strike down the Federal Communication Commission's just-passe Net Neutrality rules. The FCC board, in a partisan 3-2 vote Tuesday, approved rules guaranteeing unbiased service from Internet providers. In effect, the rules say an Internet carrier cannot slow or block consumer access to Web sites that produce legal content, PC Magazine reported Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, the incoming House Majority Leader, sa...

Former Googler leaving White House (Politico)
Andrew McLaughlin, who for the past year has handled Internet policy issues in the White House, is resigning to launch two start-ups. McLaughlin was Google’s head of global Public Policy before assuming the role of Deputy Chief Technology Officer in the White House, working on a number of high-level Internet issues, such as Net Neutrality, cybersecurity, online Privacy and the nation’s Broadband strategy. Before joining the White House, he worked on Obama’s transition team. M...

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 ...

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 ...

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...

No constituency for Network Neutrality compromise
As much as I support it, I freely admit that Net Neutrality is never going to be an issue that will rank highly in the minds of voters. It just won’t. People certainly care about access to the Internet, but Internet specific regulartory practices will never appear on any list of top national priorities. Ever. The only people who will care about Net Neutrality to the point of translating their beliefs into electoral Activism are highly engaged consumer Activists and corporate interest grou...