Historic Net Neutrality Vote: Watch The FCC's Meeting LIVE

FCC: Yup, we're going to stop "paid prioritization" on the 'Net
The Federal Communications Commission is releasing the details of its new Net Neutrality Order in stages. Although the FCC's new ban on "unreasonable Discrimination" for wired ISPs allows certain kinds of traffic discrimination (not all bits need be equal), the agency made clear after today's meeting that "paid prioritization" deals with Internet companies are unlikely to be allowed. Critics had worried that the new Order would only affect outright website blocking, leaving paid prioritization u...

Why we should be worried about "net neutrality"
The FCC's decision yesterday to grab for itself the power to regulate the Internet through so-called "Net Neutrality" rules is the latest grab for Federal Government power over private industry. There wasn't any big demand for such Regulation. The Internet has grown from the small source it was in the beginning to be the wonderful source that it is today through private companies investing and competing with each other. But that isn't good enough for the Democrats on the FCC. They want more cont...

FCC Approves Net Neutrality Order, But Will It Stick?
In a split vote, the Federal Communications Commission approved Tuesday the nation's first Legislation aimed at addressing the way that phone, cable and Internet companies interact when it comes to Internet traffic. But despite the commission's historic 3 to 2 vote to pass the Net Neutrality order, Congress or the courts may end up unraveling the work. And for proponents of Net neutrality, a less than optimal situation could get worse. Net neutrality supporters are already less than thrilled b...

FCC Votes Itself Judge Dredd of the Internet
In a Speech delivered on January 19, 2010, Julius Genachowski, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, declared that transparency “is particularly important for Consumer Protection and Empowerment.” He praised “access to information” as “essential to properly functioning markets” and stated that “policies around information disclosure...can be enormously helpful in ensuring that markets are working.” Does Genachowski believe it’s less imp

Internet Freedom on the Line
Sen. Al Franken (D-Minnesota) On Tuesday, the Federal Communications Commission voted on new rules that critics say could allow media conglomerates to decide whose content gets to be seen on the Internet and whose doesn’t. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski is said to have the votes he needs to pass Net Neutrality Regulation. Internet freedom advocates are blasting Genachowski and the Obama Administration for reneging on a campaign promise that Candidate Obama made, saying he would protect th...

Sleepy Agency Causes Stir
The FCC is in many ways a typical federal agency that makes decisions impacting all of our lives but doesn't draw much public attention until it does something Controversial. Tuesday's unanimous decision to improve and expand 911 services to include text messaging and video streaming was buried by a contentious 3-2 ruling placing greater Regulations on Internet providers. Chairman Julius Genachowski tried his best to downplay any disagreement over the commission's Net Neutrality order. "Today,...

Internet Access Is Not a Civil Right
Wednesday, December 22, 2010 By Michelle Malkin When Bureaucrats talk about increasing our "access" to x, y or z, what they're really talking about is increasing exponentially their control over our lives. As it is with the government Health Care takeover, so it is with the newly approved government plan to "increase" Internet "access." Call it Webcare. By a vote of 3-2, the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday adopted a Controversial scheme to ensure "Net Neutrality" by turning una...

FCC approves Web rules
The 3-2 vote Tuesday marks a major victory for FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, who spent more than a year trying to craft a Compromise. The FCC's three Democrats voted to pass the rules, while the two Republicans opposed them, calling them unnecessary Regulation. The new rules are likely to face intense scrutiny on Capitol Hill once Republicans take over the House. Meanwhile, public interest groups decried the regulations as too weak, particularly for...

Isakson condemns FCC over decision to implement Net Neutrality
Paulding County, Georgia - In Paulding County, there are a few media reporting entities of various types including the Paulding County Republican Examiner, The Paulding Sentinel, and a few blogs and the FCC’s decision today may have a far reaching impact on their operation and what is and what is not reported or spoken about. With today’s announcement of the FCC decision to implement “Net Neutrality”, the question several are asking is, “What will the impact b...

Divided FCC adopts Internet rules
By Jasmin Melvin WASHINGTON | Tue Dec 21, 2010 7:09pm EST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A divided Federal Communications Commission banned Internet service providers like Comcast Corp from blocking traffic on their networks, provoking warnings the rules would be rejected in the courts and threats from Republican lawmakers to overturn them. The 3-2 decision on Tuesday highlighted a huge divide between those who say the Internet should flourish without Regulation and those who say the power of high-sp...

FCC adopts net neutrality rules
Federal Regulators have issued new rules that ultimately will affect how Americans access videos over the Internet and how carriers charge for content. The 3-2 vote by the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday strikes a balance between Silicon Valley content creators, who use digital networks to deliver their virtual wares, and the cable and telephone companies that want to sell their own content and services to customers in addition to hooking them up to the World Wide Web. The new rul...

The FCC: A Regulatory Vigilante
In a bold move that will be taken by many as a refudiation of the message of Limited Government voters in the Midterm Elections sent to Washington, The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Tuesday, by a 3-2 vote, adopted rules of “Net Neutrality” to regulate the Internet despite there being considerable doubt whether it had the legal or statutory authority to do so. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said “it is essential” for a “strengthened FCC” to fulfi...

Net Neutrality
But what is known is that today’s developments will have far-reaching effects. Good or bad? Hard to say. It’s very difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff on this issue, since all sides seem to have compelling arguments to make. Our readers know that we subscribe to the general principle that “that government is best which governs least” (or, as Doug Casey would contend, “governs not at all”). And this would seem to be especially true with regard to the...

Wednesday News Net (Non)Neutrality Edition
Good Morning Conflucians!! Big news this week is the FCC ruling on Net Neutrality or in this case, the lack of net neutrality. Yet another case of Obama handing over what is the people’s to the few rich and powerful. But before we get to that, another cowardly Obama move deserves notice. Namely how the administration is preparing for their own indefinite dentition order for “Terrorists”: The Obama Administration is preparing an Executive Order that would formalize indefinite ...

McConnell: Net neutrality? What the hell.
The Federal Communications Commission today adopted a neutered version of Net Neutrality, over the dissent of its Republican members. This means that Internet service providers will not be able to block access to lawful content and websites. It does not, however, mean that ISPs wouldn't be able to establish tiered pay-for-priority systems (e.g., an extra $5 per month to get video to stream faster). The new rule also is fairly weak with regards to mobile service providers, even though the future ...

Divided FCC Adopts Rules to Protect Web Traffic
Tuesday, December 21, 2010 By Joelle Tessler, Associated Press In this file photo made March 12, 2010, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski is interviewed at his office in Washington. New rules aimed at prohibiting Broadband providers from becoming gatekeepers of Internet Traffic now have just enough votes to pass the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2010. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, file) Washington (AP) - A divided Federal Communications Commission has approved new rules ...

Liberals Lash Out at "Fake Net Neutrality"
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski (Credit: CBS) The Federal Communications Commission vote on "Net Neutrality" would seem to be good news for supporters of an open Internet: It will "prohibit phone and cable companies from abusing their control over Broadband connections to discriminate against rival content or services, such as Internet phone calls or online video, or play favorites with Web traffic," as the Associated Press puts it. But open Internet supporters say the net neutrality agreeme...

Divided FCC adopts Internet rules
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A divided Federal Communications Commission banned Internet service providers like Comcast Corp from blocking traffic on their networks, provoking warnings the rules would be rejected in the courts and threats from Republican lawmakers to overturn them. The 3-2 decision on Tuesday highlighted a huge divide between those who say the Internet should flourish without Regulation and those who say the power of high-speed Internet Providers to discriminate against competitors ne...

FCCs Net Neutrality Ruling Gives Government Power to Regulate Web
A landmark ruling by the Federal Communications Commission Tuesday has given the U.S. Government the power to regulate the Internet. The FCC’s Net Neutrality ruling was passed with a vote of 3-2, with the two dissenting Republicans giving very vocal opposition to the move. Get the full story, plus pictures and video below! Under the premise of protecting the freedom of the internet from ever-expanding Internet Providers, the commission laid out rules to prohibit access p...

The FCCs 2010 Hollywood Blockbuster Extravaganza
(The following is re-posted by permission from Info Tech and Telecom News. IT&T News is a project of the Heartland Institute.) By Bruce Walker An epic of Hollywood proportions has been playing out in Washington DC this year, with the climax due next week when the Federal Communications Commission convenes for its final 2010 monthly meeting. This epic traverses several cinematic genres and includes equal parts spaghetti Western, horror, Science Fiction, political intrigue, courtroom drama,...

Breaking: FCC Passes Net Neutrality Rules
Update 2, 11.35 am Pacific: On a 3-2 vote, the FCC passed “Controversial” rules on Net Neutrality today. From Politico: Led by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, the Democrats on the panel voted Tuesday to approve the first enforceable Net neutrality rules, which will prohibit Internet service providers such as AT&T, Verizon and Comcast from blocking access to lawful content and websites. The small print: no public copy of the rules “until later in the week.” The rumo...

FCC passes new net neutrality rules
The Federal Communications Commission passed a set of rules Tuesday “to preserve basic Internet values,” but advocates of Net Neutrality say the new rules do not go far enough. Sen. Al Franken called the measures “simply inadequate,” while Republicans have vowed to push to Repeal the new framework. Under the new rules, telecommunications companies cannot discriminate in what internet content they allow to their customers to access. Net neutrality advocates have said that...

FCC adopts net neutrality rules
Federal Regulators have issued new rules that ultimately will affect how Americans access videos over the Internet and how carriers charge for content. The 3-2 vote by the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday strikes a balance between Silicon Valley content creators, who use digital networks to deliver their virtual wares, and the cable and telephone companies that want to sell their own content and services to customers in addition to hooking them up to the World Wide Web. The new rul...

Analysis: FCC plan feared stunting Internet TV services
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Internet TV services planned by Microsoft, Google and Amazon could be held back by imminent rules that would allow phone and cable companies to charge consumers based on usage, media executives told Reuters. The Web traffic rules, due to be voted on by the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday, could tip the economics away from consumers watching TV over Internet lines if they help cable companies charge more versus their own television offerings. Said one executive a...

FCC Gives Greenlight to Net Neutrality Plan
The FCC on Tuesday adopted sweeping new rules of the road for the Internet, marking a turning point in a contentious and Controversial debate to ensure that Broadband service remains open to all. Simply put, the plan that was adopted on Tuesday in a 3-2 vote will prohibit Broadband providers from blocking access to lawful content, apps and services and from discriminating against sites, giving priority to some players over others. But the rules distinguish between the wired Internet and wireless...