The top US telecom regulator on Wednesday proposed to regulate broadband Internet service providers as “public utility” carriers, in a renewed effort to enforce “net neutrality” rules.
US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler unveiled the plan which aims to prevent Internet providers from playing favorites or blocking some services or allowing others to pay for “fast lanes.”
The new proposal comes a year after a federal court struck down the FCC neutrality rules, saying it lacked the authority because Internet providers were not “common carriers” under US telecom law.
The plan, which is expected to unleash a fresh legal and political battle, aims to resolve the impasse by reclassifying Internet service providers as regulated entities under the 1934 Telecommunications Act.
“The Internet must be fast, fair and open,” Wheeler said in an essay in Wired magazine.
“That is the message I’ve heard from consumers and innovators across this nation. That is the principle that has enabled the Internet to become an unprecedented platform for innovation and human expression,” he said.
Wheeler said his plan — to be submitted to the five-member commission for a vote later this month — would call for “the strongest open Internet protections ever proposed by the FCC.”
He would ban “paid prioritization,” which would allow services to pay for faster connections, as well as “blocking and throttling of lawful content and services.”
The move comes after US President Barack Obama voiced support in November last year for a similar plan, saying online services that do not pay extra fees should not be in a “slow lane.”
The Wheeler plan would reach deeper into the Internet, beyond consumer-facing offerings to “interconnection” services and allow the FCC to investigate alleged discriminatory practices at that level.
Wheeler said he would apply the rules to the mobile Internet for the first time as well.
Critics of the approach say that the 1930s-style regulation would choke off investment in the Internet and stifle innovation.
However, a senior FCC official said the move represents a “light touch” effort that uses only some segments of the 1934 law without imposing fees or other types regulation.
Wheeler pledged “no rate regulation” or tariffs and said his plans “can encourage investment and competition.”
The “neutrality” rules aim to ensure that all services have equal access to the Internet, so that a provider such as Verizon or AT&T could not block a service such as Netflix and favor a rival like Hulu.
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