There is a new net neutrality bill doing the rounds and one that has a faint chance of making it into law. For many it will not go far enough but it will stop the FCC from reclassifying broadband as a Title II service, something many factions are fervently opposed to, despite the FCC’s promise that it will be done with broad exemptions.
The new proposed net neutrality bill would also keep its hands off the cellular sector for the most part, not going beyond making it illegal to block a particular site. The proposer is Republican Henry Waxman, the chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
It looks like Waxman’s entire rationale is to put forward something politically acceptable to a wide range of interest groups so it can get through the House of Representatives before the midterm elections in November. It would then have to be passed by the Senate after those elections.
The draft proposes that wireless internet providers would be barred from blocking consumers from accessing any lawful website, subject to “reasonable network management”; nor would they be able to block “lawful applications that compete with the provider’s voice or video communications services in which the provider has an attributable interest, subject to reasonable network management.”
In addition, they would be required to offer accurate, plain language information to consumers on their pricing, network performance and network management policies (such as data caps), so that users could make informed choices of providers.
Waxman’s bill will not go far enough for most net neutrality campaigners, but it would prevent the FCC from reclassifying broadband as a Title II service, which would have opened the way for the regulator to impose its own net neutrality conditions. The proposal would effectively remove the FCC’s authority over wireline broadband ISPs though it would allow it to examine any net neutrality violations on a case-by-case basis and impose fines of up to $2m.
The FCC itself will have until December 31 2011 to report back to Congress on whether it needs more authority to implement its national broadband plan. According to The Wall Street Journal, FCC chairman Julius Genachowski has said he would welcome a legislative compromise to resolve the deadlock on net neutrality. Broadband providers are trying to avoid reclassification and wireless broadband operators additionally argue that their networks must be a special case because of the constraints of spectrum. A few weeks ago, the FCC invited public comment on which rules should apply to wireless networks, and how.