[opendtv] Re: Multichannel News: New York Governor Mandates Net Neutrality in Contracts
- From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 29 Jan 2018 02:34:31 +0000
John Shutt wrote:
Gee, Bert, you responded to every one of my questions except this one:
"With all of the hand-wringing over Chairman Pai's action, it's a
wonder the internet ever made it to 2015 in the first place."
I thought the answer to that was entirely subsumed in the other explanations,
John. And in an endless series of previous posts, addressing this subject. But
okay, here's an unvarnished summary.
First, it is not at all a wonder that the Internet became what people have
accepted it to be, i.e. open and neutral, because from 1981 or so to 2000, it
was accessed over Title II telephone lines, it was carried over Title II trunk
lines. This was true even before ISP service to homes became prevalent. We were
using Bell Atlantic lines for Internet access well before the WWW era began. So
no, John, there is no wonder that the Internet became what people want it to
be. It was simply following on the same path as the telephone network.
When the broadband era began, ADSL was STILL regulated under Title II,
rightfully so, but the cable companies got an entirely unfair freebie. Now, I
can understand that a cable company, with a culture of making deals under the
table with content owners, with a culture of charging users different rates for
different content, would have been loath to see Title II slapped on them. But
let's wake the hell up. The cable TV companies were getting into serious
telecom business here, and that carries with it certain obligations and
responsibilities that MVPD service does not have.
The PROBLEMS began happening precisely because the cable companies thought they
could get away with the same non-neutral, "I'm the gatekeeper and the boss"
attitude that they had practiced for decades, also when operating as Internet
broadband access service. There are many examples of misbehavior that I
provided links to, but three that come to mind are Vonage, BitTorrent, and
Netflix. So it is totally disingenuous to pretend that the Internet did just
fine without Title II neutrality. Quite the opposite. And it's the FCC's JOB to
understand these realities, and not to play ignoramus dumbass, as any clueless
joe on the street might be.
So, aside from the lies and corrupt behavior, misrepresentation of facts, and
apparent myopia in understanding the subject matter, all meant to favor
exclusively 3 or 4 big companies, the other aspect of this Chairman's position
that should really piss people off is the idea that ISPs should now play the
same sort of gatekeeper role they played as MVPDs. This Chairman even
encourages that behavior. So I'll repeat, unless you're in the employ of these
3-4 companies, or being paid under the table by them, or don't know what the
Internet is, there's simply no way we should sit by and watch this Chairman
attempt to degrade our telecoms. None.
Bert
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