Barack Obama wants more regulation of Internet providers
Washington: President Barack Obama on Monday embraced a radical change in how the government treats Internet service, coming down on the side of consumer activists who fear slower download speeds and higher costs but angering
This approach is exactly what industry lobbyists have spent months fighting against. While Internet providers say they support the concept of an open Internet they want flexibility to think up new ways to package and sell Internet services. And, given the billions of dollars spent to improve network infrastructure, some officials say it's only fair to make data hogs like Netflix bear some of the costs of handling heavy traffic.
AT&T on Monday threatened legal action if the FCC adopted Obama's plan, while Comcast Corp. said reclassifying broadband regulation would be “a radical reversal that would harm investment and innovation, as today's immediate stock market reaction demonstrates.”
Similar statements were released by Time Warner Cable Inc., Cox Communications and several industry groups including CTIA-The Wireless Association, USTelecom, the Telecommunications Industry Association and Broadband for America.
Many Republicans including House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell swung behind industry in denouncing the plan as government overreach.
The Internet Association, which represents many content providers like Netflix, Twitter, eBay and Google, applauded Obama's proposal.
On Monday, as the Standard & Poor's 500 index edged up slightly, stock prices fell for big cable companies, including Time Warner Cable, Comcast, Cablevision and Charter Communications.
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, a former industry lobbyist and venture capitalist, said he welcomed the president's comments, but suggested that his proposal was easier said than done.
“The more deeply we examined the issues around the various legal options, the more it has become plain that there is more work to do,” Wheeler said.
The FCC isn't under a deadline to make a decision.