US: Lawmakers seek Net Neutrality promises from Comcast

The head of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which oversees mergers and various antitrust issues, is reportedly calling on Comcast to preserve Net Neutrality as the company looks to acquire Time Warner Cable.

Senator Patrick Leahy, head of the committee, is asking Comcast to vow never to allow so-called Internet fast lanes, which allow Internet service providers like Comcast to accept payments from content providers for faster, priority delivery. Leahy wants Comcast to commit to never allowing such agreements through 2018, say reports.

The Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Comcast’s proposed takeover of Time Warner Cable, and the Department of Justice and Federal Communications Commission are in the midst of reviewing the deal. But reports say Senator Leahy sent a letter to Comcast with the requests for Net Neutrality “regardless of whether” the merger is approved.

”I ask Comcast to pledge that it will not engage in paid prioritization,” the letter says. “These types of arrangements pose a significant threat of dividing the Internet into those who can afford to compete and those who cannot.”

Full content: NYTimes

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