Tech Groups Looking For Net Neutrality Solution
April 9, 2010
| 3:56 PM
As public interest groups, Internet firms and broadband providers anxiously await the FCC's next move on its open Internet proceeding, two technology associations that have an interest in the debate, but are not as deeply involved, say they would like to bring the warring factions together to find a voluntary solution to the problem.
Information Technology Industry Council President Dean Garfield and TechNet President Rey Ramsey said they have been reaching out to some of the key stakeholders in the debate such as public interest groups and broadband providers to try to develop voluntary standards on ensuring an open Internet.
The issue has taken on heightened attention in the wake of a U.S. Court of Appeals ruling last week that found the FCC overstepped its authority by cracking down on Comcast for interrupting service to users of the BitTorrent file-sharing service. Many observers said the ruling will likely affect the FCC's network neutrality proceeding aimed at preserving an open Internet.
Garfield said in an interview Thursday that he has been meeting with some of the broadband providers such as Verizon and nonprofit groups in an attempt to serve as an honest broker. Garfield's group includes many of the firms that make the equipment that helps enable broadband services such as Apple, Cisco, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, IBM and Qualcomm.
"What would be optimal from my perspective would be for the private sector to agree on a set of rules that relate to the open Internet and for both the FCC and key members of Congress to bless that approach. ... The private sector would essentially say 'we agree that the FCC can provide some oversight based on its Title I jurisdiction [under the telecommunications act] in these key limited ways' and we just avoid litigation," he said. "And so it's essentially self regulation, which we're good at. We develop standards all the time that come out of the private sector. And so it can work."
In a separate interview Friday, Ramsey echoed these views, saying he is trying to reach out to some of the telecommunications providers, the public interest group Free Press and others to see "if we can work together in a voluntary way" to address the issue without new regulations or legislation. Ramsey's group includes some ITIC members such as Cisco, Dell, HP and Intel as well as eBay, Google, the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and others.
Still, both Ramsey and Garfield said they believe the FCC may move forward to reclassify broadband as a telecommunications service under Title II of the communications act. "There seems to be an inclination on the part of the FCC to move forward under title II," Garfield said, adding "I hope they don't." He said if the do "there will be a battle in Congress," followed by litigation and in five years it will end up at the Supreme Court.
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