Has anyone been following the Net neutrality issue? Here is some news that does not bode well for the future. Comcast is now entitled to break the neutrality rule and treat Net content as varying in priority, for example, if you pay them more, they will deliver your email. For our readers or those of other astrology services who are wondering where your Comcast email goes, they may already be up to these tricks. We highly recommend that both subscribers and sample list readers register a Gmail email account with us so you get your posts dependably. Here is the original from Cecelia Kang’s blog in the Washington Post.
FCC loses Comcast’s court challenge, a major setback
for agency on Internet policies
Comcast on Tuesday won a legal challenge against the Federal Communications Commission, in a ruling by a federal court that undermines the agency’s ability to regulate Internet service providers.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that the FCC lacked the authority to require Comcast, the nation’s biggest broadband services provider, to treat all Internet traffic equally on its network.
The so-called net neutrality rule, imposed by former FCC chairman Kevin Martin, comes just days before the agency accepts final comments on a separate open Internet regulatory effort this Thursday. And the agency will be faced with a steep legal challenge going forward as it attempts to convert itself from a broadcast- and phone-era agency into one that draws new rules for the Internet era.
The FCC earlier this month released a sweeping national broadband plan, of which some recommendations would be affected by the court’s ruling.
Comcast said it was reviewing the court’s order and didn’t offer immediate comment.
Yes, when you could acquire a broadcast license for $10 called a domain, from Go Daddy. We are and have been in an golden age of net neutrality. If we don’t work to keep it we will miss it when it’s gone.
Enough to make you wonder if we’re going to look back on this as the golden age when anyone could be equal on the Internet….
Well, this is The US of A. Where the justice you receive is the justice you can buy. Where freedom (of speech, movement, etc) you have is the freedom you can buy. How else would we expect this to play out? The Chinese do it their way. This is how it is done in the USA. The objective is the same. The means and method are the only difference. Until we can put our own satellites in orbit without the auspices, aegis or blessings of our government – now THAT would be a game-changer (for a little while at least). Anybody got a spare rocket?