Telecom Chief Says Industry Should Be Scared of Obama's Plans for an Open Internet

[BurtWorm]

:applause:

Gobama!



http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/13/AR2008111303830_pf.html

By Cecilia Kang
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, November 14, 2008; D02

President-elect Barack Obama famously made the Web a pillar of his campaign, so it is not surprising that the man called the nation's first "wired" president has championed the idea of an open Internet.

And that is what Sprint Nextel chief executive Dan Hesse said recently "should scare" the telecom industry the most.

Republican lawmakers and technology regulators have fought the idea of an open Internet, or net neutrality, calling it a "solution in search of a problem." But it is widely expected that Obama will make net neutrality and access to broadband in rural and poor areas a key part of his agenda to close economic divides and help spur job creation.

The task of translating net neutrality -- the notion put forth by academics that network operators should be banned from slowing, blocking or degrading Internet content and technologies -- could likely fall under the Federal Communications Commission, business leaders and analysts said.

The FCC has been criticized by consumer groups for trailing technology changes in the marketplace by grappling with reforms on landline programs and falling short on consumer protections and rules for wireless operators. Under the Obama administration, however, many high-tech leaders and analysts say the agency first formed to hand out broadcast licenses will be more important than ever.

"There is going to be a sea change. Technology has been primarily ignored by the Bush administration but Obama from the beginning made it a central part of his push for change," said Maura Corbett, a partner at Qorvis, a tech public relations firm. "He understands that technology has a multiplier effect on the economy and that is something we've never needed more right now."


...

[grannie4peace]

1. he's our man!!!!!

[Alter Ego]

2. The Internet Is For Porn

[av8rdave]

3. I suppose a telecom chief WOULD be concerned

This could hamstring their efforts to control the internet and extract maximum profit from it.

[DrToast]

5. Yep, any policies that scare telecom chiefs work for me!

[BanzaiBonnie]

6. Me too

Pretty much any time an industry that stands to profit from an action says, "This is a bad thing", we know that the reality is that it's a good thing.


I will NEVER forget the lesson from the insurance industry in Washington State. They told us that if we enacted a law requiring everyone to have auto insurance that our auto insurance rates would go down. THEY LIED. We never saw any relief in our rates.

And there are still uninsured drivers. Then there is the problem of people ending up in jail over the issue and WE, the taxpayers, pay for that.

Fool me once... not gonna fool me again.

[Joanne98]

4. YAY