FCC rescinds claim that AT&T and Verizon violated net neutrality

"404 - User No Longer Available" (toni-cipriani)
02/06/2017 at 09:21 • Filed to: net neutrality, Oppolitics

Semi-political, but it’s an important issue for the Internet’s future. Last thing we want is free access to Jezebel, but Jalopnik and Oppo not included unless you select a different “ultimate bundle”.

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In case of Kinja: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

DISCUSSION (29)

yamahog > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:25

“Last thing we want is free access to Jezebel, but Jalopnik and Oppo not included unless you select a different ‘ultimate bundle’.”

Not sure why you think there’s a consensus on that though

404 - User No Longer Available > yamahog
02/06/2017 at 09:29

You can switch out Jezebel for Deadspin if you want.

Honeybunchesofgoats > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:29

Personally, I’m looking forward to getting AT&T’s Gold Package so I can enjoy preferred bandwidth on Oppo shitpost theme days. Imagine how much shitposting you could do with impunity, because the mods are too broke and will be on 56k speeds.

facw > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:29

Yeah this is a very bad thing. Of course the most likely targets are video streaming sites, since ISPs will want to make life hard on cord cutters to protect their cable TV businesses.

LongbowMkII > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:31

What can go wrong with information restriction?

ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:34

Ajit Pai is a whore for the Telecom industry. He can go fuck himself at his earliest convenience.

Sam > LongbowMkII
02/06/2017 at 09:35

NOTHING AT ALL. IT’S FINE. HAVE FAITH IN GIANT COMPANIES TO OPERATE IN YOUR BEST INTEREST. MOVE ALONG SIR, NOTHING TO SEE HERE.

404 - User No Longer Available > ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable)
02/06/2017 at 09:38

Pretty much just like the CRTC for a while.

yamahog > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:39

What makes you think I’d want that

yamahog > Honeybunchesofgoats
02/06/2017 at 09:40

‘Mods are too broke’

Lollllllllll nice try

#DINKlife

bhtooefr > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:41

In reality, it’d be Jezebel that would have bandwidth restrictions before Jalopnik and Oppo, because Jezebel posts quite a bit of content critical of those in power. (That’s a bad thing that Jezebel would be a victim of that, though.)

However, in practice, if they started doing bandwidth restrictions like that , the entirety of Kinja would likely get put onto a premium tier.

What’s most likely is that zero-rating would be applied to sponsored content (even if it’s high bandwidth - think Verizon’s Go90), maximum rating would be applied to sites that facilitate cord-cutting, and caps would be used to encourage consumption of the sponsored content.

ttyymmnn > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:42

Can you translate that article into two or three sentences for me? I’m not following it.

404 - User No Longer Available > yamahog
02/06/2017 at 09:44

Replace it with whatever, not my point.

LongbowMkII > Sam
02/06/2017 at 09:45

Sounds good, just don’t hurt my Netflix or midget/goat/1000 island dressing porn.

404 - User No Longer Available > ttyymmnn
02/06/2017 at 09:45

Probably better explained what net neutrality is first via Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Net_neutrality

404 - User No Longer Available > ttyymmnn
02/06/2017 at 09:48

Or John Oliver explains the issue here:

ttyymmnn > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:49

So, in other words, there is money to be made by charging people more money for more bandwidth.

404 - User No Longer Available > ttyymmnn
02/06/2017 at 09:52

Sort of. They’re already charging you for the bandwidth, basically they want to put a price tag on your content as well.

Think FedEx or UPS wanting to open up your packages, and determine if they want to slap a fee because you ordered from Overstock.com instead of Amazon.

spanfucker retire bitch > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 09:53

I sincerely - no joke - want Ajit Pai to end up in a fatal car crash. I hate that man with a burning fucking passion.

I can’t believe we’re stuck with that shit stick after we had Tom Wheeler who turned out to the best FCC Chairman we’ve had in at least 40 years.

spanfucker retire bitch > ttyymmnn
02/06/2017 at 09:55

Best explanation I’ve ever found for those not intimately familiar with Net Neutrality.

http://www.theopeninter.net/

404 - User No Longer Available > LongbowMkII
02/06/2017 at 09:58

Less so the restriction, but the ability to charge you for the segregated info.

404 - User No Longer Available > LongbowMkII
02/06/2017 at 10:00

Well Netflix already paid up, so...

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bloomberg.com/amp/news/articles/2014-02-23/netflix-said-to-agree-to-pay-comcast-for-faster-broadband-access?client=ms-android-blackberry

Textured Soy Protein > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 10:11

We’re giving consumers more choices and benefits by providing free video streaming!*

* As long as they also subscribe to our pay TV service.

404 - User No Longer Available > Textured Soy Protein
02/06/2017 at 10:15

You might laugh at that, that really happened in Canada. Except it wasn’t free and was charged separately.

Look up Shomi (Rogers) and CraveTV (Bell).

Textured Soy Protein > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 10:17

It’s happening right now in America. AT&T bought DirecTV and now AT&T advertises the hell out of free unlimited video streaming if you also pay for DirecTV.

404 - User No Longer Available > Textured Soy Protein
02/06/2017 at 11:49

Well... at least it was “free”. Rogers and Bell wanted to charge for it.

BKosher84 > Sam
02/06/2017 at 11:58

FREE MARKET MOTHER FUCKER

Textured Soy Protein > 404 - User No Longer Available
02/06/2017 at 12:36

The general scheme here in the US that people are worried about is called zero-rating.

Basically, ISPs, whether they are mobile, cable, etc., give you free unrestricted access to certain services, because they are getting additional money for offering that for free. For example:

T-Mobile gives free 480p video streaming to their customers, as long as they are using an app like Netflix, YouTube, etc. where the app is paying an extra fee to T-Mobile to get included in the free streaming for T-Mobile customers. T-Mobile has the leverage with the app companies because of the implied threat that if the apps don’t pay to be free to T-Mobile customers, then T-Mobile customers will watch some other app that is free instead.

AT&T owns DirecTV so they give customers of both services the ability to stream free video. So now if you are a Dish Network or cable customer, and have an AT&T phone, you’ve just been given a huge incentive to switch your TV service to DirecTV.

404 - User No Longer Available > Textured Soy Protein
02/06/2017 at 13:26

Yeah, that’s the same debate we had up here, when Bell offered “unlimited” data for their Mobile TV, but instead restricting by duration. They got shot down hard by the CRTC.

Either way the core issue is the same: ISPs have a say and preference on what to deliver based on their monetary gain.