Seidenberg Comes Out Swinging
Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg took issue Wednesday with proponents of FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski's so-called network neutrality plan who have suggested that network providers like Verizon and content providers like Google, Amazon and others occupy fundamentally different parts of the Internet ecosystem. The view that the Web is made up of "dumb pipes" on the one hand and "smart applications" on the other is a mistake, he told an industry conference in Chicago. "It fundamentally misreads how innovation happens in a dynamic and collaborative industry," he added.
"Our industry has shown that we can work with the government as well as our partners and competitors to achieve mutually desirable goals of more competition, consumer choice and broadband expansion. But we can't achieve these ends if we interrupt the flow of private capital and delay the cascading productivity impacts of a more networked world," Seidenberg said in a keynote at SUPERCOMM 2009 on the eve of a critical FCC meeting where commissioners will start crafting so-called network neutrality rules. He also warned against "pitting network providers and applications developers against each other in a zero-sum game."
Meanwhile, an open letter signed by 30 business investors in technology companies was sent today to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski on Wednesday. Prominent venture capitalists --including five of the top ten ranked investors on the 2009 Forbes "Midas List" - support "the Commission's ongoing efforts to adopt rules to safeguard the open Internet." The proposal will drive "investment, job creation, and consumer welfare," they wrote.
Read more about Genachowski's game plan and Thursday's Commission meeting in CongressDaily AM Edition here (subscription required).
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