FCC Boss Calls Net Neutrality 'A Mistake' New FCC boss Ajit Pai again made his disdain for net neutrality clear at the Mobile World Congress this week in Barcelona. Pai has long opposed net neutrality, having voted down the rules when he was a vanilla commissioner last year. Now that he's boss, Pai has wasted no time killing consumer broadband privacy rules governing how your data can be collected and shared, ending the agency's attempt to bring competition to the cable box, and klilling the FCC's ongoing inquiry into zero rating.

In his speech, Pai (a former Verizon lawyer) called net neutrality "a mistake," while reiterating claims that the agency's net neutrality rules significantly harmed broadband network investment. "Two years later, it has become evident that the FCC made a mistake," claims the FCC boss. "Our new approach injected tremendous uncertainty into the broadband market," he added. "And uncertainty is the enemy of growth. After the FCC embraced utility-style regulation, the United States experienced the first-ever decline in broadband investment outside of a recession. In fact, broadband investment remains lower today than it was when the FCC changed course in 2015." The problem for Pai? None of what he said is true, or even debateable based on publicly-available ISP earnings reports, SEC filings, and stock performance data. And this isn't the first time Pai has been told as much. Chris Morran at The Consumerist first dissected Pai's "uncertainty" claim, highlighting the explosive growth most major broadband providers have enjoyed in the wake of net neutrality: quote: Since Feb. 26, 2015, the day that the FCC voted to approve the neutrality rules, AT&T’s share price has increased by more than 20%, Comcast’s is up 26%. Verizon’s stock price is at the same level as it was, though it has fluctuated as much as 15% in either direction since then. Charter’s share price is up 40%, after the FCC allowed it to acquire Time Warner Cable and Bright House in 2016. The only major broadband provider whose stock has fallen dramatically in the last two years is CenturyLink, whose share price has sunk around 50% in that time. Morran also notes how Capital Expenditures at most of these same companies are similarly up. The "worst" CAPEX was at Verizon, which was still up in the wake of net neutrality: quote: Even Verizon, which has not seen the same growth as the other companies is spending more on capital expenditures than it did before the neutrality rules were put in place. In 2015, the year where Pai contends investment sunk to levels unseen outside of a recession, Verizon spent $17.8 billion on capital investments, more than in any other year since the U.S. came out of the recession. So where is Pai getting his numbers? Industry lobbyists, of course: quote: So what is Pai’s justification for this claim? According to a rep at the FCC, the Chairman’s comment was based on data provided by USTelecom, the industry’s lobbying arm that is actively pushing for the FCC and Congress to roll back net neutrality and privacy regulations on broadband providers. The FCC has not responded to our query as to why Chairman Pai would use data provided by industry lobbyists over the actual numbers these companies are providing publicly . Previously, similar claims originated with Morran also notes how Capital Expenditures at most of these same companies are similarly up. The "worst" CAPEX was at Verizon, which was still up in the wake of net neutrality:So where is Pai getting his numbers? Industry lobbyists, of course:Previously, similar claims originated with industry funded think tanks paid by the broadband industry to massage statistics until they say what company executives and lobbyists would like them to say. These numbers too have been debunked time and time again , but apparently the industry -- and Pai -- still believe that repetition forges reality. While Pai clearly is excited to kill net neutrality, his path isn't easy. The FCC could roll back the rules using the same FCC procedures that created them, but they'd need to prove things have changed substantially since the court supported the FCC and its reclassification of ISPs as common carriers last June. They'd also have to open the ruling up to public comment, and given the record 4 million responses (mostly in support) filed last time, you can be fairly sure Pai, Trump and the GOP don't want that. So what happens next? Pai clearly intends to scale back the FCC's consumer protection authority one nibble at a time. But it's Congress that will attempt the killing blow on the net neutrality rules -- likely with a Communications Act rewrite slated for later this year. Until then, apparently the best Pai can do is to recycle most of the same anti-net neutrality talking points we'd already spent the last several years debunking. So what happens next? Pai clearly intends to scale back the FCC's consumer protection authority one nibble at a time. But it's Congress that will attempt the killing blow on the net neutrality rules -- likely with a Communications Act rewrite slated for later this year. Until then, apparently the best Pai can do is to recycle most of the same anti-net neutrality talking points we'd already spent the last several years debunking.







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