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March 01, 2006
Net Neutrality in the US Senate:
Sen. Wyden, who is no longer on the Senate Commerce Committee but who gave a most impassioned plea for Net Neutrality at the Committee's Net Neutrality Hearing a few weeks back, is now poised to introduce a stand-alone bill for Net Neutrality. Given that all recent rumors indicate that any discussion of Net Neutrality will be stripped from the House discussion on Communications Policy reform, a stand-alone bill such as the one we believe Sen. Wyden is likely to introduce is essential to focus the debate on what is probably the single-most important concept to protect the nature and viability of the open Internet. We believe the House will likely only consider relief efforts (e.g., local franchising relief) for broadband-delivered video (e.g., IPTV).
What confuses me is that the underlying principle that should guide Congress as it determines whether to free the Bells of Title VI cable obligations, is why isn't the logic for unregulation of broadband-delivered video the same as the argument that we are trying to wage for broadband-delivered voice - that is to say that IP-delivered voice OR video is just an application - geographically boundless and best guaranteed through simple implementation of swift and certain Net Neutrality rules?
Why aren't the disruptive voice and the disruptive video application providers uniting on this issue? As we expand "VON" from "Voice on the Net" to "Voice and Video on the Net", I think it is time for all of us who are working to transform the nature of all forms of communications come together and recognize our common interest in preserving the open Internet to allow users to maximize their Internet and communications experience. And perhaps, just perhaps, there is a way to bring the Bells into the debate as our allies.
Tags: voip, US Senate, Net Neutrality, VON, Jeff Pulver
(c) 2006 Jeff Pulver. All Rights Reserved.
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Posted by jeff on March 1, 2006 01:53 PM | Permalink
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Comments
Jeff,
As someone who has used technology and the markets to such great accomplishment, I am dismayed to see you falling into the Washington trap. The RBOCs are baiting everyone into the Washington arena on this net neutrality issue and everyone is biting. The Washington arena is the RBOCs’ home turf, a place they completely dominate. The “disruptive voice and video application providers” fair much better in the market place. You have to resist the urge to take them on in Washington and craft a strategy that takes them on in the market place. A Washington solution is illusory at best and most likely harmful. You will never get the rules you want and the RBOCs will always have an escape hatch.
Posted by: Paul Kouroupas at March 2, 2006 11:42 AM