FCC Head Ajit Pai: Killing Net Neutrality Will Set the Internet Free
27 Minute Podcast:
FCC Head Ajit Pai: Killing Net Neutrality Will Set the Internet Free - Hit & Run : Reason.com
Quote:
|
"Over the coming years, we're going to see an explosion in the kinds of connectivity and the depth of that connectivity," he said this afternoon. "Ultimately that means that the human capital in the United States that's currently on the shelf?the people who don't have digital opportunity?will become participants in the digital economy."
|
Quote:
|
"It's telling that the first investigations that the prior FCC initiated under these so-called Net Neutrality rules were involving free data offerings," says Pai, pointing toward actions initiated by his predecessor against "zero-rating" services such as T-Mobile's Binge program, which didn't count data used to stream Netflix, Spotify, and a host of other services against a customer's monthly data allowance. "To me it's just absurd to say that the government should stand in the way of consumers who want to get, and companies that want to provide, free data."
|
Quote:
|
"We're entering a new era of technology known of 5G and that's going to involve massive amounts of investment in networks and spectrum. And that's the kind of thing that will be a big breakthrough for consumers on the wireless side." Referencing Benedict Evans, a partner at the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, Pai believes that "mobile is eating the world": "All of these services are migrating to wireless, and particularly in the future, whether we're talking about low-bandwidth applications, like monitoring yogurt trucks that drive across the countryside, or high bandwidth applications like Virtual Reality, a lot of this is going to be taking place over wireless."
|
I admit, I am unclear about Net Neutrality. I've picked up only dribs and drabs about it. But I say more competition in the market is a good thing. It sucks to live in an area where you have only one broadband provider. I'd much prefer to have 2-5-10 different provider options (I think most would agree). So if this legislation leads to more competition and more choices, I'm all for it.
T-Mobile and Sprint are forcing Verizon and At&T to reevaluate their plans all the time. That's a good thing.
