FCC's Wheeler Says That If These Lame Net Neutrality Rules Don't Work, He'll Implement The Real Rules Next Time

from the oh-really? dept

Following his weak attempt to diffuse concerns about his bogus "open internet" rules, FCC boss Tom Wheeler has decided to try again, by basically repeating what he said last week with slightly stronger language about how he won't let broadband providers violate net neutrality. Of course, as many people have explained, the problem is that the new rules clearly aren't strong enough, and leave open all sorts of ways to kill off basic neutrality online. Of course, the real problem is that the original 2010 "open internet" rules (which were really crafted by the telcos in the first place) didn't really protect net neutrality in the first place, and the new rules are basically an even weaker version of those rules. But, have no fear, claims Wheeler, if these rules don't work, he promises he'll actually pull out the big gun, Title II, and reclassify broadband players as telco services rather than information services, allowing the FCC to put them under common carrier rules.
...all regulatory options remain on the table. If the proposal before us now turns out to be insufficient or if we observe anyone taking advantage of the rule, I won’t hesitate to use Title II. However, unlike with Title II, we can use the court’s roadmap to implement Open Internet regulation now rather than endure additional years of litigation and delay.
There is some truth in what he's saying. Basically, the appeals court ruling that rejected the previous rules did lay out a roadmap for rules that would be deemed more acceptable under the current classification, and Wheeler's plans appear to be to do exactly what the court suggested. And, to some extent he's right that this is the fastest way to get some kind of rules in place. But considering that they're even more watered down than the original, with the new "required" language leaving enough loopholes to make them meaningless, it almost seems like why bother. The best we could hope for is that Wheeler is actually trying to use the Ed Felten-like concept of "the best form of net neutrality" being one where there aren't any actual rules, but a constant threat of rules being enforced if the broadband providers stray too far.

But there's a problem there... in that the broadband providers have already started going too far, and they seem to keep pushing the boundaries further and further each time, without the FCC doing anything, (and in ways that don't directly impact those "open internet" rules). Also, while Wheeler is right that going the Title II route would create a legal (and political) shitstorm leading to many years of litigation and delay, the same may be true of his new rules. After all, he's only putting them forth after a four-year legal battle over the old rules.

But the biggest issue is that the FCC still doesn't seem to realize how the broadband providers have been increasingly chipping away at net neutrality anyway, without any pushback at all. As DSL Reports details, the FCC seems to think that all network neutrality violations are big and obvious, when the reality is quite different:
...the problem is that these days -- net neutrality violations are significantly more clever, and usually come dressed up as market innovation or security or network integrity efforts. Historically, if the FCC can't simply and cleanly prove without a shadow of a doubt that an ISP is acting anti-competitively, the agency simply doesn't bother doing much of anything (see Verizon Wireless's anti-competitive behavior on any number of issues or AT&T's ability to block legitimate video services as prime examples).

What's considered "commercially unreasonable" is also going to be open to immense ambiguous interpretation. Wheeler for example seems perfectly ok with the increasingly ugly interconnection and peering fights arising between Verizon, Comcast, AT&T and Netflix, and has stated these won't be included in the rules. He also seems similarly tone deaf to the potential pitfalls facing wireless courtesy of concepts like AT&T's Sponsored Data, which critics charge will result in deep-pocketed companies (like ESPN) getting a huge leg up on smaller companies that can't afford AT&T's toll to be listed as "cap free" content.

Wheeler's comments to date strongly suggest his threshold for what's going to be considered anti-competitive behavior will be stratospherically-high, and as is the case now -- carriers will still be able to get away with anti-competitive behavior provided they're relatively clever about it.
Promising to pull out the Title II gun is talking big for a government agency that has been big on talk, but has little history of action. And thus, it's a threat that doesn't seem to have much weight.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team

Filed Under: fcc, net neutrality, open internet, title ii, tom wheeler


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  1. icon
    Violynne (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 10:31am

    In the meantime, All 12 of the major ISPs in the US get a free payday from Netflix, Facebook, and YouTube while customers wonder how their $20/mo subscription just ballooned to $200/mo.

    ISPs should be reclassified. Not as a telco, and not as a utility, but as a data transmission service, which is completely new and can be regulated how the FCC deems fit.

    Because there's no difference in data when it's all digital.

    Oh, and this means we can stop paying up to 3x for the same service from those ISPs.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    boom boom, 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:09am

    Should just drag him out in the street and shoot him in the back of the head. he SHOULD know he's representing the people. Nut apparantly he doesnt.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    Michael, 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:14am

    Re:

    regulated how the FCC deems fit

    because they have done such a great job regulating things in the past?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:22am

    This is the same thing I tell my wife when she asks if I cleaned the toilet.

    I totally will next time if the dog licking it doesn't clean it...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    Michael, 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:28am

    Re:

    Think about that comment the next time your dog licks your face.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  6. icon
    Coyne Tibbets (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:31am

    Later

    Later... "But we can't change the rules now, because so many companies depend on the current rules."

    link to this | view in thread ]

  7. icon
    Alien Rebel (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:34am

    I Dunno

    Aren't Americans required to try all the wrong solutions first until finally getting to the right one? Maybe Wheeler is just following the established protocol.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  8. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:36am

    Re: Re:

    Pretty accurate description of Comcast Customer Service, if you ask me.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  9. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:37am

    Remember this is the organization that said it couldn't do it's job of protecting peoples privacy concerning the NSA. wikipedia
    Let's face it, Wheeler is first and foremost a lobbyist, so I would assume sucking up to anyone who'll fill his pockets post-FCC is going to be his biggest concern.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  10. icon
    Internet Zen Master (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:38am

    Re: Re:

    Where is that sad but true button when you need it?

    Seriously, the USA's greatest regulator in history, Theodore Roosevelt, would be outraged if he saw what was going on with the cable industry today.

    Pity there aren't many politicians/officials like him these days.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  11. identicon
    stryx, 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:39am

    Wheeeeeler

    "We intend to bring certainty to the market by imposing a vague & untried regime full of loopholes, enforced at the whim of the Chairman."

    link to this | view in thread ]

  12. icon
    Roger Strong (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:46am

    So...

    So Verizon, Comcast and AT&T are on Double Secret Probation?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  13. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Apr 2014 @ 11:54am

    Re:

    While I agree with most of what you say, I don't trust the FCC to regulate the ISP's properly, given how the people currently running the FCC are already acting like their puppets in lots of ways.

    Classifying them as a utility makes more sense. Much of the regulation for how to handle a utility is already written. And like the old utilities of electric and water companies, it's very expensive, time consuming, and difficult to set up your own competing ISP. That's why there's been a severe lack of competition among the ISPs.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  14. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Apr 2014 @ 12:04pm

    i presume that 'next time' means when/if he gets a big enough slice of the 'encouragement cake'?

    man has been told what to do here and it sure as hell aint to help the people/customers!!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  15. icon
    JWW (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 12:05pm

    Re: I Dunno

    Yet another comment yearning for the "sad but true" mod.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  16. identicon
    Michael, 30 Apr 2014 @ 12:09pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    Pity there aren't many politicians/officials like him these days

    yup - dead.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  17. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Apr 2014 @ 12:17pm

    In other words...

    Dear telecom companies, someone offer me access to 'the revolving door' so that I can do what you want and leave the FCC to avoid any fallout.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  18. identicon
    Michael, 30 Apr 2014 @ 12:49pm

    Re:

    No.

    'Next time' is referring to a time after he has left the FCC for his retirement position on the board of a telco.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  19. icon
    decrement (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 1:34pm

    Title II (?)

    Can someone elaborate on the Telecommunications Act of 1996?

    According to Wikipedia Title I is "Telecommunication Services", not Title II as referenced in the article.

    Title II is defined as "Broadcast Services", which sounds a lot like the bundling of channel packages we see on cable tv. Bundling of website packages from isp's is not the direction I would like to see the internet move toward.

    The distinction of Title I or Title II has huge implications -- I'm pretty sure we want Title I.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  20. icon
    Mason Wheeler (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 2:00pm

    Re: Re:

    Exactly. This is what I've been saying for years. In today's society, broadband service shares certain characteristics with electricity and water: everyone (within epsilon) uses it, losing service would have an immediate adverse impact on quality-of-life, and technical and economic factors tend toward natural monopolies with high barriers to entry.

    Let's call a spade a spade. ISPs fill the role of public utilities; let's legally recognize (and regulate) them as such.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  21. icon
    Ehud Gavron (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 2:12pm

    Not going to happen

    I've said it before so here it is again.

    The established telcos will never allow ISPs to be given the rights of common carriers. They will $$$lobby $$$hard.

    Because of that ISPs will never be common carriers. Hence the FCC will never regulate them.

    I used the word never on purpose. It upset my ex-wife. It upsets me. It should upset you. It's still fact.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  22. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Apr 2014 @ 2:30pm

    Major ISPs are already violating net neutrality by allowing their interconnects with Tier 1 ISPs to saturate and refusing to upgrade their bandwidth capacity. Even after Tier 1 ISPs, such as Cogent, have offered to pay for Comcast's and Verizon's network upgrades for free, and Comcast and Verizon still refuse to upgrade their networks!

    http://www.cogentco.com/en/news/press-releases/631-cogent-offers-to-pay-capital-costs-incur red-by-major-telephone-and-cable-companies-necessary-to-ensure-adequate-capacity

    So the violations of the FCC's new rules, or lack thereof, are already occurring before Wheeler can even write up the new FCC net neutrality 'rules'.

    Chairman Tom Wheeler, is a former lobbyist for the wireless and internet broadband companies. His current actions strongly suggest he never left that lobbying position.

    How can we expect a lobbyist to not turn a deaf ear to complaints about net neutrality violations? I don't trust his pinky swear promises asking us to 'trust him now' and 'maybe I'll do something positive in the future'. Their nothing but empty promises from a lobbyist as he swings around in the revolving door or corruption.

    We're screwed!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  23. identicon
    Anonymous, 30 Apr 2014 @ 3:22pm

    Re: Re:

    One reason I'm a cat person.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  24. icon
    toyotabedzrock (profile), 30 Apr 2014 @ 8:32pm

    The new rules enshrine anti net neutrality.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  25. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 1 May 2014 @ 5:22am

    Re:

    He doesn't represent the people. You don't vote for him and you don't get any influence over his decisions. That's part of the problem.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  26. icon
    nasch (profile), 1 May 2014 @ 9:27am

    Re: Not going to happen

    It's still fact.

    No, it's a prediction.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  27. identicon
    AC, 2 May 2014 @ 1:28pm

    He needs to go.

    The whole board needs to go.

    link to this | view in thread ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.