Net Neutrality: Trump’s FCC Plans to Repeal Obama Rules
President Obama
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) expressed its intentions Tuesday to revoke the Net neutrality regime imposed by the Obama Administration.
In his opinion piece Tuesday on The Wall Street Journal, the FCC chairman Ajit Pai suggested that the U.S. should undo the Obama Administration’s rules that regulate the web like a 1930s utility.
“Today, I’m proposing to repeal the heavy-handed Internet regulations imposed by the Obama Administration and to return to the light-touch framework under which the Internet developed and thrived before 2015,” Pai stated.
Today, I’m proposing to repeal the heavy-handed Internet regulations imposed by the Obama Administration and to return to the light-touch framework under which the Internet developed and thrived before 2015. In @WSJopinion: https://t.co/uDIiKr6YHF
— Ajit Pai (@AjitPaiFCC) November 21, 2017
In other words, Pai plans to revoke the Net neutrality rules that force Internet service providers (ISPs) and Internet regulating governments to equally treat all information on the Internet (or Net).
In the Net neutrality regime, ISPs are not supposed to have differentiated pricing based on the type of user, content, or the communication channel.
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The opposition leaders who favor Net neutrality are criticizing President Trump for FCC’s repael proposal. Ranking Member of the House Intelligence Committee Adam Schiff said Tuesday, “Despite huge public opposition, Trump’s FCC chair is pushing forward to repeal #NetNeutrality rules. We need to keep a free and open internet.”
Despite huge public opposition, Trump’s FCC chair is pushing forward to repeal #NetNeutrality rules. We need to keep a free and open internet.
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) November 21, 2017
Freedom House, an independent watchdog organization, has also expressed its displeasure on the FCC’s decision.
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“Repealing Net neutrality would allow internet service providers to become an arbiter of what types of content consumers can access and at what speeds and price,” said Michael J. Abramowitz, president of Freedom House.
“This change could limit free access to diverse sources of information, and could also set a dangerous precedent for countries that model their policy on Washington’s,” Abramowitz stated, adding that in less democratic countries, where most providers of online content are state-owned and censored, authorities would have an excuse to give faster lanes of access to progovernment outlets.”
But despite opposition, the Trump Administration is expected to kill Net neutrality because Trump is hell-bent to reverse everything that President Obama did.
