Shooting for the open net. (Regulation).(consumer groups, independent Internet service providers push for cable broadband regulation)(Brief Article)

Broadcasting & Cable, December, 2002 by McConnell, Bill

Independent ISPs, consumer groups and some of cable's rivals have bee pushing the FCC to impose some type of open access or non-discrimination requirement on cable broadband since at least 1998, when high-speed Internet service first took off. The FCC, in a tentative decision, rejected the idea in 1999 and held the line last March when it finally defined cable broadband as an "information service." Technically, that meant cable-modem service simply allowed subscribers to generate, acquire and store information over a telecommunications infrastructure.

Practically, it meant the FCC gave itself power to impose those rules if it saw fit. So far, the FCC has been unwilling to adopt rules it says could stifle growth in the young business. In the past...

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