FCC Calls for Rules to Enforce Net Neutrality and Tame ISPs
Julius Genachowski, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has appealed to authorities to formulate net neutrality rules to govern the way in which internet service providers (ISPs) carry internet content. The FCC already has a set of policies on open internet, and the new rules will further enforce these strategies to prevent the ISPs from discriminating against certain content or applications when they carry the data across their networks.
The FCC’s call comes in the wake of fears that the US telecoms giants, who double up as the ISPs, can act as internet censors to stop the traffic from their competitors or block content they dislike. The FCC wants to prevent such misuse of powers by these companies, and wants new regulations for both fixed and mobile broadband operators. The Commission has enough reasons to be apprehensive, because the past years have seen cases where the ISPs have not supported the use of certain applications like VoIP services and peer-to-peer software; even a case of political content blocking has been noticed. All this reflects the need for stringent legislation that would enforce neutrality in the internet services.
Genachowski said internet should be used as a tool for economic growth, competition, innovation and democratic engagement. He added that the FCC was committed to working towards preserving the free and open nature of internet.
However, the legislation will face opposition from certain quarters, which believe restrictions to control the manner in which broadband providers (click for broadband
