Comcast Appeals FCC Net Neutrality Ruling

Comcast has appealed an August FCC ruling that the cable company can not legally slow BitTorrent peer-to-peer network traffic. (tip) The catch-term for the FCC ruling is one of network neutrality -- the firm that operates the hardware (lines) should have no control over the content that passes over those lines.

In June 2006, Congress overwhelmingly rejected a move to condify net neutrality -- the same common carrier rules that allow AT&T phone calls to pass unimpeded on Qwest lines, for example.

This is the question: Should Congress require that Internet traffic (the zeros-and-ones that get my blog post to your browser, for example) be treated just like telephone traffic?

I think the answer is "yes" .... and that it should extend to all lines coming into your home, be they cable, telephone or fiber-optic. Separate the service from the hardware, for the same reason that we rejected the infrastructure investment it would take to put duplicate phone lines or duplicate power lines on the high-density streets in town. (We know that carriers would ignore the low density areas -> see the need for rural electric and telephone cooperatives).

Learn more: Network Neutrality - The Fight for Internet Infrastructure