Wednesday, July 12 was the Internet-Wide Day of Protest against what some claim is the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) effort to deregulate internet access. Under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934, telecommunication companies are classified as common carriers, somewhat like a utility. Net neutrality has become the common term for unrestricted access to the internet. Western Iowa Networks’ (WIN) Chief Financial Officer, Kevin Skinner, explains what this means.
The legislation seeking to alter net neutrality, called the Restoring Internet Freedom Act, was introduced in the U.S. Senate in May and states it would, “prohibit the [FCC] from reclassifying broadband Internet access service as a telecommunications service and from imposing certain regulations on providers of such service.” Opponents claim this would allow for ISPs to pick and choose which sites their customers could access or allow for them to charge extra for certain services. Skinner does not believe this will be the case.
He does not foresee WIN ever throttling or restricting access in the future if their common carrier status is retracted. Skinner says many of the regulations stifle growth and investment into infrastructure. WIN has no intention of charging extra for certain services but would like to see some regulations lifted.
The FCC opened public commentary on the Restoring Internet Freedom Act on April 26, and since then, nearly 7.4 million remarks have been submitted regarding the legislation. A link to voice your opinion to the FCC for or against the legislation can be found included below.
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https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/search/filings?proceedings_name=17-108&sort=date_disseminated,DESC
