Published at LXer:

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski claimed power to regulate companies that provide Internet access, opening a fight with cable and telephone companies and sparking opposition from Republicans. Comcast Corp., Time Warner Cable Inc. and Cablevision Systems Corp., cable operators that sell Web connections, fell more than 5 percent in New York trading. Genachowski’s proposal lays a foundation for net neutrality rules to bar Internet service providers from interfering with users’ traffic. The plan provides “only the modest authority” needed after a U.S. court stripped its power over the Web, Genachowski, a Democrat, said today in a statement.

[Not directly FOSS related but of interest to our readers I think. - Scott]


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This is potentially good news for net neutrality. Big corporations and politicians that are in their pockets are trying to raise FUD about the government 'butting in'. Still I think that even ordinary people might have forgotten the ACTUAL GOOD the FCC has done them. Lest we forget that decades ago, MA-Bell had a stranglehold on the phone business, right down to the equipment used. You could only buy from them, thus they had the monopoly and the power to charge whatever, until the FCC stepped in.

I guess we will just have to wait and see.