Probably not but in another amazingly corporate friendly decision a Federal appeals court struck down the FCC ability to prevent Comcast from punishing it’s own internet users. The court vacated a 2008 “net neutrality” ruling that guaranteed users access to all legal net traffic. Comcast had complained that it’s users who prescribed to BitTorrent used too much bandwitdh because it prevented other users from gaining as much bandwith. What the article and Comcast won’t tell you is that Comcast has an inherent bandwith problem with it’s cable modem technology where if you have allot of users on a particular local hub it slows down internet traffic for everyone unlike DSL technology.

BitTorrent was the softest target to attack because peer-to-peer networking has been under a barrage of lawsuits for years by the RIAA, Movie and Software industies. But this is not about peer-to-peer networking this is about internet providers who eventually want to team up with content providers like Google does now with Verizon as an example. Some day in the very near future if you use Comcast you may have to use Bing instead of Google because they have an exclusive contract. Furthermore this sets a very dangerous precedent where internet providers can limit or prevent streaming content like Pandora, Live365, Hulu and even C-SPAN.

Furthermore in their strategically evil way the right wing has been fighting the concept of “net neutrality” under the guise that it is an evil conspiracy by the FCC and allows illegal content even under Bush. They are trying to conflate it with the old media “fairness doctrine” but they are totally unrelated. What Republicans are really trying to do is use right wing paranoia to give their minions another reason to vote against their self interests.

Click here to read the whole story on Wired.

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PatsyT
Member

Anyone remember these Comcast Commercials?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1NkRaU-5xw

PatsyT
Member

From my email today,
a little light reading.
This is from the Color of Change.

The Internet has made amazing things possible, like freeing the Jena 6, electing President Obama, even creating ColorOfChange. None of it could have happened without an “open” Internet: one where Internet service providers are not allowed to interfere with what is seen and by whom.

Now, Comcast, AT&T, and Verizon

dildenusa
Member

I don’t know a lot of the legal logic in telecommunications, however, I have worked in the industry and because of the way cable companies distribute internet services they do come under the FCC umbrella. Generally, phone companies when distributing through land lines, have different regulations regarding the internet, than cable companies. It seems to me that these partnerships like with Verizon and Google, might be only in broadband wireless services to smartphones or netbooks.

Obviously, Comcast has deep enough pockets that they can hire the big bucks lawyers so that they can get what they want.

Blues Tiger
Member
Blues Tiger

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AdLib
Admin

There may be a silver lining here…

With so much at stake, the FCC now has several options. It could ask Congress to give it explicit authority to regulate broadband. Or it could appeal Tuesday’s decision.

But both of those steps could take too long because the agency “has too many important things they have to do right away,” said Ben Scott, policy director for the public interest group Free Press.

The more likely scenario, Scott believes, is that the agency will simply reclassify broadband as a more heavily regulated telecommunications service. That, ironically, could be the worst-case outcome from the perspective of the phone and cable companies.

“Comcast swung an ax at the FCC to protest the BitTorrent order,” Scott said. “And they sliced right through the FCC’s arm and plunged the ax into their own back.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/06/net-neutrality-us-court-r_n_526972.html

nellie
Member

I hope this is true. I may not understand the issue entirely, but I’ve never known phone companies to seek control over internet content. I suppose we’ll find out where this is going soon enough.

nellie
Member

I’ve been dreading this bad decision. And now, here it is.

As someone who is about to purchase an iPad, I can only hope the days of cable are numbered.