EU Taking On Net Neutrality
June 30, 2010
| 1:29 PM
The European Commission announced Wednesday that it has launched an examination into the issue of network neutrality that will look at such issues as whether Internet service providers should be allowed to adopt network management practices that prioritize certain types of content over others.
The commission's "consultation" on the issue also will examine the level of competition between Internet service providers, whether certain Internet traffic management practices may create problems or harm for consumers, and whether the European Union's current telecom rules are adequate or whether further action is needed to "ensure fairness in the Internet market."
"I am committed to keeping the Internet open and neutral. Consumers should be able to access the content they want," Neelie Kroes, the commission's vice president for the digital agenda, said in a statement. "Content providers and operators should have the right incentives to keep innovating. But traffic management and net neutrality are highly complex issues. I do not assume that one approach or another should prevail."
The commission is seeking input from all stakeholders including Internet service and content providers, consumer groups, businesses and others, who will have until Sept. 30 to submit comments. After reviewing the comments, the commission said in a statement that it will issue a "communication" on the issue by the end of the year outlining whether it will craft new rules or guidance on the issue.
In April, AT&T praised the commission's approach on the issue following a speech by Kroes in which she embraced the FCC's open Internet principles, while urging caution against imposing new restrictions aimed at preserving an open Internet. "AT&T could not agree more, and hopes that the U.S. will exercise the same judgment and follow the same deliberative path as Commissioner Kroes has outlined for Europe," AT&T Executive Vice President Jim Cicconi wrote in a blog post at the time.
An AT&T spokesman Wednesday noted that Kroes said in announcing the consultation that she would try to "strike the right balance between all the interests involved."
Join the Discussion
The National Journal Group has the right (but not the obligation) to monitor the comments and to remove any materials it deems inappropriate.
Comments powered by Disqus