What’s at stake at the FCC this morning
October 22nd, 2009 | Published in Google Public Policy
This morning, the FCC will propose and ask for public feedback on rules designed to protect and promote open broadband pipes to the Internet. (The Commission will be streaming live video of today's meeting on its website.)
Support for the Commission's effort has been loud and clear. This week alone, visionaries who built and developed the Internet, the CEOs and founders of the world's leading Internet and technology companies, investors, public interest and consumer groups, and tens of thousands of Internet users all announced their support for the Commission's work.
Yesterday, the CEOs of Google and Verizon Wireless outlined their common ground on the issue and threw their support behind a "thoughtful, transparent decision-making process." Unfortunately, some telecom companies have been working behind the scenes to try to prevent the Commission from even considering this issue, an audacious and unprecedented step intended to shut down an independent regulatory agency's discussion before it can even take place.
The fact is, this proceeding will help determine the Internet's future as the world's ultimate platform for innovation, economic growth, and free expression. Now is the time to have a full, open, transparent dialogue between the American people and their policymakers.