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from: Consumer Affairs

Congress Moves Quickly To Satisfy Telecom Demands

House Scraps Net Neutrality, Gives Telecoms Free Ride to Enter Cable Business

By Martin H. Bosworth
ConsumerAffairs.Com

The House of Representatives has passed its version of the most sweeping updates to telecommunications law in a decade, making it easier for telecom companies to compete with cable franchises, addressing issues of municipalities developing Wi-Fi networks tinkering with the Universal Service Fund that all telecoms pay into.

Supporters of net neutrality, the principle of keeping Internet content free and open to access equally, were dealt another defeat when the House, bowing to the powerful telecom lobby, voted down most of the amendments that would have codified net neutrality principles into law.

The House voted 321-101 to pass the "Communications, Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement" (COPE) Act, authored by House Commerce Committee chairman Joe Barton (R-TX), who frequently carries the water for Texas-based AT&T, formerly SBC.

An amendment presented by Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) that would have prevented network service providers from unlawfully blocking content was defeated, 269-151.

Josh Silver, executive director of the Free Press media coalition, credited the telecom companies' "skilled spinmeisters" for their lobbying efforts, and noted the "lopsided" amounts of spending on lobby efforts by telecom companies such as Verizon and AT&T.

"The telecoms have massive lobby clout in Washington," Silver said in an interview with ConsumerAffairs.Com. "The United States Telecom Association (USTA) spent over $27 million in lobbying efforts last year."

The House bill does contain an amendment that would grant jurisdiction over network content disputes to the FCC.

Barton said that "the bill… seeks to strike the right balance between ensuring that the public Internet remains an open, vibrant marketplace and ensuring that Congress does not hand the FCC a blank check to regulate Internet services."

Another net neutrality bill, sponsored by House Judiciary Committee chairman James Sensennbrenner, would have put network access disputes under the control of antitrust law. Sensenbrenner's bill was not cleared by the House Rules Committee to be voted on in the full House, and he himself voted against the COPE Act.

The House bill must be reconciled with a very different version of telecom legislation in the Senate, sponsored by Senate Commerce Committee chair Ted Stevens (R-AK), before it can become law.

The Stevens bill differs significantly from the Barton bill on issues relating to broadband development, and supporters of net neutrality in the Senate are looking to add their provisions to the mix.

Silver said that "the grassroots push for net neutrality will be stronger in the Senate." He credited Senators Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Olympia Snowe (R-MI) with crafting a strong bill that supports network neutrality protections. "The Senate's showing signs of life," he said.

"It Will All Come Through Broadband"

Besides guaranteeing the telecom companies immunity from net neutrality, the House handed them a huge plum: the right to roll out new video franchises with only a 30-day waiting period, far faster than the regulatory hurdles existing cable companies have dealt with for decades.

Cable trade associations, although they publicly supported the Barton bill, oppose the regulatory changes move as proof of telecoms' desires to monpolize consumer services.

Perhaps anticipating a shift in the regulatory climate, and under heavy influence from telecom lobbyists, the California State Assembly recently passed a bill that would enable cable and telecom companies alike to negotiate individually with each franchise region they wish to offer services into, with much shorter waiting times.

The bill must still be ratified by the Senate and signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger before it becomes law. Other states have passed or are considering similar measures, though they could well be pre-empted by whatever Congress delivers to its masters.

Silver saw as ominous the passage of accelerated telecom entry into cable without net neutrality protection.

"In the future, your TV will come through your broadband connection," he said. "Your Internet, your television, your phone…it will all come through the same channel. That's why network neutrality is so important," Silver said. "If the net neutrality supporters win, Every [Web site] URL will become a TV network or content provider."

"If we lose, cable and phone companies will become the gatekeepers of the Internet. It'll be just like cable TV," Silver said. "You'll have a few big Internet service providers determining what you can watch, when you can watch it, and how much they can charge you for it."