US: FCC’s Wheeler may regulate the Internet like phones

The Federal Communications Commission has continued to controversially explore the idea of Net Neutrality and how to regulate the Internet as FCC Commissioner Tom Wheeler said officials are now considering regulating the Internet like phones.

According to reports, the FCC is considering ruling the Internet like phone companies are regulated to limit Internet service providers’ ability to offer paid priority content delivery.

The consideration follows a federal appeals court decision earlier this year that struck down the FCC’s 2010 open internet rules that ensured all Internet traffic would be treated equally, an idea known as Net Neutrality. According to reports, the courts twice struck down the proposed rules not because of Net Neutrality, but because they meant that the FCC would illegally be treating broadband providers different than phone companies.

More than 1.1 million public comments have been submitted to the FCC regarding Net Neutrality and the regulation of the Internet, and there are more to come as the FCC decided to extend the public comment period.

According to a letter sent by Wheeler to a group of Democratic senators, the Commissioner is “seriously considering” regulating the Internet as a phone company, though a new round of rules will not be submitted until the public comment period concludes later this year.

Full content: US News

Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.