Tag: F.C.C.

Network Neutrality: An Update

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Yesterday (30.08.2017) will be marked as a watershed day by observers for Network Neutrality. The issue is being hotly contested in arguably the world’s most capitalistically advanced jurisdiction for telecom and the internet (U.S.A.) as well as the jurisdiction with potentially the biggest telecom and internet market, both by the number of users as well as revenue (India) and yesterday was an eventful day in both.

In India, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (T.R.A.I.)  held and concluded an Open House Session in New Delhi on the issue of Network Neutrality. Unfortunately, being bed – ridden with a fracture, I was unable to attend it myself, but I am informed that all parties were “extremely vocal” with their opinions. T.R.A.I. is likely to publish its recommendations by October. On a side note, Certain telecom companies also complained against SIM-locked handsets coupled with a tariff plan and said that a limited access to certain applications through such devices was as good as a “walled – garden” and against Network Neutrality (No prizes for guessing who they’re talking about).

At the opposite end of the globe, yesterday was the last day to file comments on the Federal Communications Commission plan to deregulate broadband service and roll back net neutrality rules, and at least 21.9 million comments have been confirmed to have been received. Voting by the F.C.C. on the issue is not expected anytime soon, as the Commission is known to take it’s time with decisions after such commentary periods.

Here’s to waiting and watching and hoping for the best.

December 4, 2015: D – Day for Network Neutrality.

 

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Sri Srinivasan, Stephen F. Williams and David S. Tatel are the three Judges of the U. S. Court of Appeals for the D. C. Circuit who will hear the challenge to the F.C.C.’s Network Neutrality Order on December 4th, 2015.

For a brief profile of the three Judges by Brian Fung of The Washington Post, Click here.

Also, see here the Hindustan Times coverage of Sri Srnivasan (Any surprise considering the obsession of India with famous PIO’s who may or may not even relate to our Country ?!?! 😀 )

What Goes Around, Comes Around.

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VERIZON’S HUGE VICTORY IS ABOUT TO TURN INTO A HUMILIATING DEFEAT.

(Ya the Justin Timberlake image may not be the most appropriate. 🙂 )

The Speed Limit Debate

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As the Network Neutrality debate rages in the U.S. over the Comcast – Time Warner Merger, here are two interesting pieces on the flak which Comcast is receiving. It goes without saying, Comcast isn’t happy and it seems to have started losing it’s cool over the issue.

 

The first is an article on how Network Neutrality is already being subverted through the indirect route of the broadband network. This is not surprising, as the potential for this abuse was already pointed out some time ago by Susan P. Crawford in the Yale Law and Policy Review.

 

The second is a novel solution (and one which I really liked) by BitTorrent, Inc. CEO Eric Klinker on reaching a middle ground on the Network neutrality debate and torrent websites: pay the torrent websites to slow down rather than the websites paying the network provider for equal treatment at par with other websites.  Interestingly, BitTorrent, according to the post, “has voluntarily remained in a “slow lane” of sorts for several years because of the uTorrent Transport Protocol (uTP), which reduces the speed of data transmissions when they might harm other applications. BitTorrent and its users don’t get paid for relying on this protocol, of course, but Klinker suggested they should.”