Stop us if you've heard this one before: Telcos try to kill net neutrality A group of US telcos has formally asked the courts to overturn the Open Internet rules put in place by the FCC, America's broadband nanny. A series of petitions filed by the likes of AT&T, CTIA and the National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA) asked the court to throw out a June verdict from a district court …
Claiming that we should be able to charge more for different packets. Just as we charge more for Dave to send mail instead of Jane. Just like we charge more for you to go through a toll booth if you drive a Toyota instead of a Ford. Just like we charge more if you are sending a DVD in the mail with a movie compared to sending that DVD of backup emails.
See, makes perfect logical sense and is not price gouging at all.
>Won't somebody think of the profits!?
They sure didn't think of incumbent telecoms profits when they allowed the cable companies get away with monopolies without common carrier (unlike the telecoms). Then again some these same telecoms (many M&A later) are the ancestors of the original telecom (AT&T) that took gouging to a whole new level with their monopoly and their guts to only allow you to have one of three home phones. In short, just the fact that public for profit utilities with government mandated monopolies exist without common carrier means your system is crony capitalism not true capitalism. Wheeler is only trying to make it less obvious.
"In short, just the fact that public for profit utilities with government mandated monopolies exist without common carrier means your system is crony capitalism not true capitalism."
Crony capitalism is a NATURAL extension of true capitalism. Capitalism says you employ whatever leverage you can bring to bear, and if that means buy out or blackmail the government (like the robber barons did in the Gilded Age and the big oil companies do now), then you bring them to bear before someone else undercuts you. If it's cheaper to bribe inspectors than it is to actually "do the right thing," guess what happens?
Based on that, it's just not possible for Americans to have nice things. Either the government smothers us, or private enterprise exploits us. Either way, the average guy loses.
>Either the government smothers us, or private enterprise exploits us. Either way, the average guy loses.
Wow well said. One of the truest and saddest sentences I have ever seen. Oh well on the bright side I guess I don't have cholera, or dysentery and I don't have to wait in bread lines to eat so compared to 95% of human existence (include even a large part today) life is grand indeed.
I like how you went AC just to poke the old timers.
I think you'll find that the American robber barons actually preceded the boomers by a few generations. Not to mention it's also boomers who are writing the laws these guys are opposed to. (Tom Wheeler born 1946)
Can't say which generation you think would do a better job of running things, but as a generationX I'll say "Not mine."
The many tens of millions of American citizens who are ambivalent and ignorant about this ongoing fight by the large telecoms/Internet backbone carriers to have free rein over charging what "they" decide for Internet access and transmissions will rue the day they do not strongly and vocally, and legislatively support the current FCC ruling limiting the excessive greed demonstrated by these crass organixations.
Every other developed nation (and some less developed), repeat every one knows the critical importance of equal, fair and freedom of access to the Internet, in that these countries have mandated by law such freedoms.
Not so in the USA, where every aspect of life is left to commercial , capitalistic decisions and gains. it is most likely that the money grubbers will prevail, probably sooner rather than later, particularly with the backing of dozens or even hundreds of Congressional politicians in their pockets.
At that point, the whole country educational system loses, other than filthy rich institutions, along with populace and every community organization as well as small business.
So much for the "greatest" political mantra being spouted incessantly at each recent US Presidential party convention.
Exactly my thoughts.
Then all your internet HTTP/HTTPS traffic will be injected with Adverts by the ISP. These will subvert and replace the Ads that currently appear on the website UNLESS the operators of the websites PAY the ISP to block the Ads they will inject.
Who pays the piper the most wins.
Then the ISP will notice that you are using an Ad-blocker. That will lose them revenue so they will add a fee 'Ad-blocker permission' to every bill. $9.99/month seems to be the going rate for just about everything in the US at the moment. They'll to the same to let you use a VPN, FTP etc etc
There are some sites in the USA that are already impossible to use because of the overpowering adverts. This will only get worse.
One of the petitions [...] argues that the FCC is misusing decades-old rules intended to apply to the early days of radio and television.``The [Open Internet] Order subjects broadband for the first time to a regulatory paradigm adopted 80 years ago for telephone monopolies, modeled on a regime first created for railroads,'' the petition reads.
o Worked for the railroads
o Worked for radio
o Worked for television
o Worked for the telephone
o Looks like it'll work for packets
Maybe they got it right over a century ago?
Yes, BUT:
That was then (the era when government was seen as at the very least a "brake" on untrammeled and out of control corporate greed), and this is now.
Gordon Gecko may be forgotten (it wasn't that good a movie) but he nicely summed up the drastic change in business vs government in the USA - and by default elsewhere in Western Civilization. And don't think you Eurocrats get away with playing dumb either. Just because you didn't start the latest run on the Bank of Humanity, doesn't mean you weren't the cause of the original sin a few hundred years ago.
And so now it all comes down to who owns you - and us. The Government (a wholly owned subsidiary of, well, make your own list) or the Corporations. Some of those corporations are so intertwined with our governments that it would take a chicken sexer to divide them up. And even then, I suspect there'd be some problems with certain chickens...
Don't stop fighting, arguing and pissing into the wind. It might make a difference. And if it doesn't, then you've had a lot of fun at somebody else's expense.
"Do you think they will apply the same logic to the American constitution? It as written a long time ago before the "modern" world so should be irrelevant."
*ding ding ding* Give the lady a doll!
What do you think's happening now? Power dictates the rules, full stop. Nothing you try to do beforehand can have any real effect on the machinations that go on now. If you have power, REAL power, then you by definition have the ability to squelch your enemies and competition. You ARE the law, and anything beforehand is just ink on a page.
We'll just boycott the companies paying dues to the NCTA, courtesy their site.
Now which drawer did I leave the rabbit ears and flip phone in?
A+E Networks
Accenture
ActiveVideo Networks, Inc.
Advanced Digital Broadcast, Inc. (ADB, Inc.)
Africa Channel
Alcatel-Lucent
Alticast, Inc.
Altice USA
Altice USA/Suddenlink
AMC Networks Inc.
Anthem Sports & Entertainment Corporation
ARRIS
AXS TV
Baker Hostetler, LLP
Beechwoods Software, Inc.
Blonder-Tongue Labs, Inc.
Bond & Pecaro
Bortz Media & Sports Group, Inc.
Broken Bow TV
Cadent Technologies
Canoe Ventures, LLC
Carlsen Resources, Inc.
Casa Systems
Castalia Communications Corp.
CEA Associates, LLC
Charter Communications
Cim-Tel Cable, Inc.
Cisco Systems
Clear Creek Mutual Telephone
Coaxial Cable TV Corp.
Coblentz, Patch, Duffy & Bass LLP
Colontel
Comcast Corporation
CommScope, Inc.
comScore
Conax As
Conklin-Intracom
Consolidated Cable Solutions
Cox Communications, Inc.
C-SPAN
Davis Wright Tremaine LLP
Deluxe Digital Distribution
Discovery Communications, Inc.
Disney Media Networks
DOGTV
Duff & Phelps, LLC
Eagle Cablevision, Inc.
Eagle Communications
eClerx
Entropic Communications, Inc.
Ericsson
Espial
Euronews
EWTN Global Catholic Network
FamilyNet, Inc.
Fox Networks Group
Fuse Media
Gainspeed, Inc.
GCI Cable Inc.
Hallmark Channel (Crown Media Holdings)
Hamilton County Cable TV Inc.
Hogan Lovells US LLP
Home Box Office (HBO)
Home Shopping Network
Hood Canal Cablevision
Horowitz Associates, Inc.
HSN
IBB Consulting Group
iconectiv
Incognito Software
iN DEMAND
Inspiration Networks (INSP)
Intraway Corporation S.R.L.
ION Media Networks
itaas, Inc
Juniper Networks
Keene Valley Video, Inc.
Kennedy Network Services, Inc.
KPMG
LG Electronics USA Inc.
MCTV
Mav'rick Entertainment Network, Inc.
McGuire Wood LLP
Mediacom Communications Corporation
Mediamorph
Metrological Media Innovations
Midco
Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky & Popeo, P.C.
Moultrie Telecomm. Inc.
Mountain Zone TV
NAPCO Security Technologies, Inc.
National Geographic Channel (NGC)
Navigate Corporation
NBCUniversal
Nelson County Cablevision Inc.
NetCracker Technology
NEUSTAR, Inc.
Olympusat
ONE World Sports
Ovation TV
Penthera Partners, Inc.
pivot
PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
QVC, Inc.
Rasenberger Media LLC
RBC Daniels
ReelzChannel
Rentrak Corporation
Retention Solutions LLC
Retirement Living TV, LLC
REVOLT Media & TV
RFD TV
Rovi Corporation
S3 Group, Ireland
Sand Cherry Associates
Scripps Networks Interactive
Service Electric Cablevision
SES
Sherman & Howard L.L.C.
Showtime Networks
Sjoberg's, Inc
Smartvue Corporation
Smithsonian Networks
SomosTV LLC
SonLife Broadcasting Network
Sony Movie Channel
Starz Entertainment Group
Synacor, Inc.
TBN - Trinity Broadcasting Network
Television Cable Co. of Andalusia
The Sportsman Channel, Inc.
ThinkAnalytics
This Technology, Inc
TiVo, Inc.
Turner Cable Networks
TV One
Universal Electronics, Inc.
Universal Remote Control, Inc.
Univision Communications Inc.
UP
UXP Systems, Inc.
Veronis Suhler Stevenson
Viacom Media Networks
Viamedia
Visual Advertising Sales Technology
Vivicast Media, LLC
Vozzcom, Inc.
VUBIQUITY
Vyve Broadband
Waitsfield Cable Company
Waller Capital Corporation
Weather Channel, Inc., The
WeTek, LLC
White & Case LLP
WideOrbit Inc.
Womble Carlyle Sandbridge & Rice
Zodiac Interactive
I got news for you. That pretty much covers practically all the TV in the country.
INCLUDING the big broadcasters.
Disney (on the list) is the owner of ABC
Comcast (on the list) is the owner of NBCUniversal, also on that list itself.
Viacom (on the list) changed its name to National Amusements in 2006. It's is the majority owner of CBS.
And you've probably noticed the Fox Networks Group.
The only way you can effectively boycott is to get the Nielsen participants to unplug their TVs.
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