Big ISPs to FCC on Net Neutrality: We're The Victim Here Historically, incumbent ISPs like to try and win debates by simply flipping arguments completely on their head, even if doing so frequently doesn't make any coherent sense. For example, if you're a cable company accused of violating free speech and net neutrality, you can claim that net neutrality rules violate your First Amendment rights. Is your merger clearly and undeniably anti-consumer? Claim it's pro-consumer! Caught trampling local rights? Simply claim you're busy protecting local rights. As large ISPs like Verizon, Comcast and AT&T face continued allegations of intentionally degrading network performance to extract "troll tolls" from content companies, they've turned to ye olde "I know you are but what am I" fourth grade-level debate tactic. In a filing with the FCC, the cable industry's largest lobbying group, the NCTA, first denies they have the motive or capability to try and extort content companies: quote: Even if broadband providers had an incentive to degrade their customers’ online experience in some circumstances, they have no practical ability to act on such an incentive. Today’s Internet ecosystem is dominated by a number of “hyper-giants” with growing power over key aspects of the Internet experience—including Google in search, Netflix and Google (YouTube) in online video, Amazon and eBay in e-commerce, and Facebook in social media. Since when is getting billions in additional revenue through interconnection fees and usage caps not an incentive? The argument (as with Comcast's justification of their Time Warner Cable merger) is that there's just so many huge companies in the "ecosystem," there's simply no way cable companies could get away with anti-competitive behavior. This of course completely and intentionally ignores incumbent ISPs domination of the uncompetitive last mile -- where implementation of usage caps -- and now interconnection -- give them ample opportunity to aggressively pursue such ambitions. Since when is getting billions in additional revenue through interconnection fees and usage caps not an incentive? The argument (as with Comcast's justification of their Time Warner Cable merger) is that there's just so many huge companies in the "ecosystem," there's simply no way cable companies could get away with anti-competitive behavior. This of course completely and intentionally ignores incumbent ISPs domination of the uncompetitive last mile -- where implementation of usage caps -- and now interconnection -- give them ample opportunity to aggressively pursue such ambitions. From there, the NCTA proceeds to paint giant cable companies as the real victims here: quote: If a broadband provider were to approach one of these hyper-giants and threaten to block or degrade access to its site if it refused to pay a significant fee, such a strategy almost certainly would be self-defeating, in light of the immediately hostile reaction of consumers to such conduct. Indeed, it is more likely that these large edge providers would seek to extract payment from ISPs for delivery of video over last-mile networks. Time Warner Cable makes a similar argument in quote: "To TWC’s knowledge, no broadband provider has expressed any intention of prioritizing one class of Internet traffic at the expense of another. If anything, it is more likely that some content owners might well seek payment from broadband Internet access providers as a condition of delivering their content—paralleling the business model that already exists on MVPD [multichannel video programming distributor] platforms. The Commission should not turn a blind eye to actual marketplace dynamics in developing open Internet protections." Except that ISPs like AT&T have been making their Time Warner Cable makes a similar argument in their filing with the FCC Except that ISPs like AT&T have been making their interest in imposing entirely arbitrary tolls on content since about 2005 or so. It's what started the net neutrality debate to begin with. Time Warner Cable's over-arching point is that people shouldn't be worried about cable companies using their last mile stranglehold anti-competitively, because the real threat is everybody else -- including Google and Netflix -- suddenly turning around and trying to extort poor, defenseless ISPs. ISPs that certainly don't have a generation of aggressive, relentless anti-competitive behavior under their belt (ignoring historical context is, of course, always important). Fortunately for ISPs, they don't appear to have much to worry about when it comes to the FCC's new flimsy network neutrality rules (rules it needs repeating they're actively supporting right alongside their supposed nemesis Google). As noted previously, the FCC appears to be crafting rules that outlaw everything ISPs never intended to do (like blocking entire websites just for fun), while carefully avoiding covering any of the areas where ISPs could potentially be a threat to the open delivery of content (usage caps, interconnection and peering feuds). Really, who doesn't feel sorry for massive, hugely-profitable companies that have grown so large they get to use regulatory capture and SuperPACs to literally write the nation's flimsy consumer protections? Really, who doesn't feel sorry for massive, hugely-profitable companies that have grown so large they get to use regulatory capture and SuperPACs to literally write the nation's flimsy consumer protections?







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Most recommended from 12 comments

kinda pissed

join:2012-06-06

Newsoms, VA 3 recommendations kinda pissed Member poor things

Personally I wonder how vz and Comcast and the likes manage to stay afloat. I bet all their board members are on food stamps.