FCC Getting Thousands of Broadband Reclassification Comments
The FCC received thousands of filings this week in response to its inquiry seeking comments on reclassifying broadband transmission under Title II of the Communications Act, making broadband subject to common carrier regulation. Comments were due Thursday. The FCC remains sharply divided, with few signs that the FCC’s three Democrats, who support reclassification, or two Republicans, in sharp opposition, have moderated their views.
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The inquiry may be the last opportunity for the public to comment. The FCC General Counsel indicated last month that the FCC may approve reclassification through an interpretive order without first proposing and taking comments on a rulemaking (CD June 21 p1).
"The comments in that proceeding just came in today. We're relatively early in a comment cycle,” FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said during a press conference following Thursday’s FCC meeting. “There’s very broad consultation with all stakeholders. I can’t predict where it’s going to come out. What we're focused on is making sure that we drive U.S. leadership in broadband.”
Most of the early comments were short and follow what appears to be a form letter. “I rely on the Internet as a public platform for free speech, equal opportunity, economic growth and innovation,” many of the comments said. “Without vital Net Neutrality protections, companies like Verizon and Comcast, which have a commercial incentive to limit the free-flowing Web, can decide whether I will have a voice online. These companies should not have the power to determine my fate on the Internet.” As of late Thursday, the FCC’s website said the commission has received 11,204 comments in docket 10-127, the reclassification docket, in the past 30 days.
A few more substantial comments have already been filed. Few surprises are expected since most groups and companies have already laid out a clear position either for or against reclassification and FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski’s “third way” reclassification proposal.
"The Commission’s ‘Third Way’ proposal would be harmful to broadband innovation and investment, and, lacking evidence of market failure or any pattern of consumer abuse, it makes no sense in today’s dynamic competitive market to go backwards,” said the Free State Foundation. “The Commission’s regulatory treatment of wireless voice provides absolutely no basis for reclassifying broadband Internet service. Indeed, the Commission has classified wireless broadband as a minimally regulated information service, and it has treated wireless voice providers as non-dominant carriers whose rates and practices are presumptively reasonable. This treatment is very much unlike what the Third Way plan entails.” Adoption of Genachowski’s third way proposal is necessary given the Comcast decision, which undercut the FCC’s authority to “achieve America’s most important broadband goals,” Free Press said.
"The commission should pursue a genuine ’third way’ built on the Internet’s successful model of self-governance based on technical standards and best practices, with the government serving as a backstop on a case-by-case basis in the event industry mechanisms prove unable to resolve the issue,” Verizon said in a statement. “While the commission’s proposal would be harmful and unlawful with respect to broadband Internet services generally, it would be particularly irrational and damaging in the wireless context."
"TIA believes that … Genachowski’s proposal to reclassify broadband under a new regulatory regime would imperil American jobs as manufacturers face an uncertain regulatory climate, dampening investment in an industry that has been tapped by President Obama and Congress as a driver for economic recovery,” the group said. “U.S. global competitiveness would suffer, as would American consumers of broadband services and broadband-enabled technologies.”