Panel Rejects Net Neutrality

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http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/062906O.shtml

 

 

Panel Rejects Net Neutrality

By Tom Abate

The San Francisco Chronicle

 

Wednesday 28 June 2006

 

The Senate commerce committee endorsed a sweeping overhaul of

telecommunications laws Wednesday moments after rejecting, in a

dramatic tie vote, an amendment that would have preserved the status

quo of equal pricing for all Internet traffic, an issue that has come

to be known as network neutrality.

 

The 15-7 final vote on the telecommunications reform bill

reflected the popularity of the measure's key provision, which is

designed to let telephone companies deliver digital video through

their wires to compete with cable television. A similar bill recently

passed the House, and congressional leaders still hope that a Senate

floor vote and a reconciliation of differences between the two

measures will send the matter to President Bush, whose signature would

be anticipated.

 

But just before the 22 senators on the committee endorsed the

television reforms and dozens of other changes, they deadlocked 11-11

and thus rejected an amendment that would have required the Federal

Communications Commission to write regulations to prevent phone and

cable companies from charging special fees for preferred delivery of

video content.

 

The coalition of Internet content companies and grassroots groups

that had campaigned for that amendment billed the tie as a moral

victory that would focus attention on the issue when the measure comes

to Senate floor.

 

" Every day and every week that goes by members of Congress hear

from their constituents and momentum moves in favor of net

neutrality,'' said MoveOn.org spokesman Adam Green.

 

Verizon, which said it needs a free hand to levy new charges on

big content providers to help upgrade Internet access to the home,

said the 15-7 vote on the final measure proved that legislators are

more concerned about unleashing competition in the paid television

market than over how to price Internet traffic.

 

" Net neutrality is clearly divisive and ill defined and many

senators do not want it (that issue) to stand in the way of consumer

video choice,'' said Verizon spokesman David Fish.

 

It wasn't immediately clear when the measure will come to the

Senate floor and, indeed, within moments of the commerce committee's

final vote, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-OR, used a parliamentary move unique to

the Senate that could effectively prevent any vote on the full bill

" until it includes strong net neutrality provisions. "

 

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