More Major Decisions Coming on Net Neutrality
[Source: The San Francisco Chronicle; April 8, 2010]
Internet service providers such as Comcast, Verizon and AT&T won a major court fight to run their data pipes as they want. It was a legal drubbing for the concept of net neutrality, or equal treatment for all Internet traffic.
But it may be only one battle in a bigger war over rule making and oversight of the Net, now a communications mainstay. The stakes are simply too big to let an appeals court decision be the final word on how customers are treated in the digital world.
The dispute is built on a growing reality about Internet use. Not all of the players are the same size. Watching movies, listening to music or sharing software soak up more bandwidth than reading e-mail or perusing Facebook. Internet service providers have a case when they argue that some users hog too much space and should be charged more.
There's an additional factor as the Internet morphs into a business marketplace. The big service providers may charge allies less for quicker service while setting rates higher for rivals. Comcast, which brought the successful court challenge, is seeking federal approval in a $30 billion bid for a majority stake in entertainment giant NBC Universal. Such an acquisition, critics say, would introduce all kinds of reasons for Comcast to favor NBC features over other media firms that now have equal play on the Web.
The court decision isn't likely to be the final word on Internet regulation. The Federal Communications Commission had put down the net neutrality rules that led Comcast to sue. The court decision found that the federal commission didn't have the watchdog power to invoke its directives.
Open-access groups - and allies in the White House and Congress - may push for new rules that would explicitly give Washington oversight. There are other pressures that will complicate this effort. For example, the Obama administration is pushing to expand high-speed service nationwide along with consumer protections on Internet service. Republican forces, who generally favor a hands-off attitude on Web regulation, will have their own agenda. Major telecom firms will argue that more regulation will chill billion-dollar upgrades that could improve response times.
The Internet can't be appropriated by big operators to the advantage of their enlisted allies. The major players may be entitled to bill for extra bandwidth service, but there must be equal access to the Internet. If the courts find there aren't sufficient rules on the books to assure fair treatment, then Congress should provide them.
