NNSquad - Network Neutrality Squad
[ NNSquad ] Re: Comcast likes the FCC Broadband Plan (and other reactions)
" Once taxpayer funds are involved, Weinstein added, there will likely be significant pressure on legislators to control content, just as pro-life activists fought to prevent public funding of abortions." I really don't think we can stress this point enough. The current Internet is like Sirius, and there will be a lot of pressure to make the government funded Internet be "clean" like radio. George Ou -----Original Message----- From: nnsquad-bounces+george_ou=lanarchitect.net@nnsquad.org [mailto:nnsquad-bounces+george_ou=lanarchitect.net@nnsquad.org] On Behalf Of Lauren Weinstein Sent: Monday, March 15, 2010 6:08 PM To: nnsquad@nnsquad.org Subject: [ NNSquad ] Comcast likes the FCC Broadband Plan (and other reactions) Comcast likes the FCC Broadband Plan (and other reactions) http://bit.ly/9xWxw3 (Broadcasting & Cable) The FCC Proposes, and Congress Disposes. In other words, assuming that anything Congress actually does in these regards will necessarily resemble the FCC Plan, is, uh, highly problematic. A number of people having problems accessing the associated site have asked me to quote my comments from the NewsFactor article. Here's the related text: ... "While activists for greater online access praise the FCC's interest in the availability of more spectrum, some see more regulation as potentially onerous and fear the program will be bogged down in Congress in the same fashion as President Barack Obama's health-care initiatives." A Contentious Issue "Getting part of the spectrum back from TV broadcasters is going to be very contentious and presumably lead to court action for many years," said Lauren Weinstein, cofounder of People for Internet Responsibility and an activist with several similar grassroots groups. "Anything Congress does in this area that is not trivial is going to be challenged." "Everyone agrees we need better access to broadband, just as everyone agrees we need better health care," Weinstein said. "But when you get down to the nitty-gritty ... you will find results hinging on specific issues of comparatively narrow focus." Once taxpayer funds are involved, Weinstein added, there will likely be significant pressure on legislators to control content, just as pro-life activists fought to prevent public funding of abortions. "People will say how can you spend taxpayer dollars on porn or on [unauthorized] downloading of movies?" he predicted. ... --Lauren-- NNSquad Moderator