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A court squashes net neutrality, what next for the FCC?
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For what the broadband industry hopes for next, <strong><em><a href="https:\/\/federalnewsnetwork.com\/category\/temin\/tom-temin-federal-drive\/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Federal Drive with Tom Temin<\/a><\/em><\/strong> turn to the president and CEO of the trade group U.S. Telecom, Jonathan Spalter.nn<strong><em>Interview transcript:<\/em><\/strong>n<blockquote><strong>Tom Temin <\/strong>And well, is net neutrality, as we understand it, actually dead or, as I said, only at the federal level?nn<strong>Jonathan Spalter <\/strong>Well, not more net neutrality, because it's not gone away. It's always going to be the hallmark principle of broadband providers who for since the beginning of the Internet, have understood that keeping the Internet open and free, putting consumer choice first, has always been the guiding principle. So let's not mourn the death of net neutrality. We're going to have an Internet that's going to be, I think, even more innovative. And as competition increases, customers can flee anywhere if any single provider decides to clamp down on what we consider to be net neutrality. It has been something that I'm glad we're moving forward on. This is progress, this is not moving backwards.nn<strong>Tom Temin <\/strong>It seems like the two sides have always looked at it in different manner. The people that were arguing against this idea said that why should providers not be able to have pricing depending on volume so that Google and YouTube and Netflix have a kind of a free ride versus the texts that are being sent by individuals, which is a teeny tiny, unmeasurable part of broadband. The people in favor of it have said there's the danger that people will be throttled or necked down or something. But personally, I've never seen any evidence that actually happens.nn<strong>Jonathan Spalter <\/strong>There's not been literally a single complaint at the FCC of people genuinely and with material proof, saying that there's been any throttling or misdirection of traffic because a provider wants to throttle a customer. We know that the Internet has been one of the most thriving, dynamic and innovative technologies maybe in American history. The notion that government has to replace the perspective of consumers in determining how the consumer experience should be I think is a relic of an old mindset in terms of regulation. And the good news is there is a forward looking approach now, which is like, No, we know the experience. Common sense shows that we are all experiencing a very vibrant and open internet. If that's the case, the government, for one reason or another, decided that it wanted to reclassify our Internet as a telephone. Well, let's move forward. Let's turn the page and let's actually bring even more innovation and investment and creativity to our Internet.nn<strong>Tom Temin <\/strong>And let me ask you a very parochial question. This is a family station, and we are on an FCC regulated frequency. However, these interviews that I do are repurposed as podcasts and the show gets 55,000 downloads a month. So a lot of people hear it online, a lot of people here downloaded. A lot of people we hope are listening on their car radios and hear it there. I can't say certain words now because it's going to be on a broadcast. But if it was on a podcast, I could say anything I want. How do you envision the FCC or do you kind of navigating that show or should it?nn<strong>Jonathan Spalter <\/strong>I believe as do I think every single one of the Internet providers that I'm glad to represent, that free speech and the ability to actually evolve as a society in terms of what is considered free speech is absolutely central to our civic life, to our national commitment, to our democratic principles. And so my perspective is that the more that we can actually shape an environment where the regulators of how we perceive what speech is can be as permissive as possible, expansive as possible, and keeping up with the evolution of how we use language, not restricting it.nn<strong>Tom Temin <\/strong>By the way, I wouldn't say any of those words, even on a podcast. It was never broadcast, just my style. We're speaking with Jonathan Alter, president and CEO of the trade group at U.S. Telecom. And what are you expecting then, otherwise from the FCC under Brendan Carr? And what do you hope for him?nn<strong>Jonathan Spalter <\/strong>Well, first, I hope very, very positive things, because the agency that he's now going to be charged with leading probably is the most outsized in terms of impact and importance on our lives as a connected society. What he will be doing, I hope, is driving a hard reset for how we actually have to think about communications policy and the role regulation should play in its evolution. And that reset has to be about ensuring that again, we put consumers first. We let the market structure actually evolve and innovate, give us more choices. There's two roads that the FCC can follow. One is to take a can do perspective of accelerating and enabling more innovation, more choice, more dynamism in the marketplace. The other is to put a hard brake on a lot of these achievements. I know exactly what side Brendan Carr is going to be voting for. He grew up in this agency. He, from being a young advisor to now the chair of the agency. He understands that in making policy you have to have rigor when it comes to facts and data to listen to all stakeholders. But he also believes in results. He believes that we need to be able to turn the page in really radically, giving a permission structure for more innovation in our nation. And he's going to be doing it, I think, from a really deep, deep understanding of the soul of the machine that is the FCC.nn<strong>Tom Temin <\/strong>And if you look at the innovation happening in the economy, so much of it centers around artificial intelligence and also new entertainment, frankly, and gigantic industry that is a big user of broadband. Nobody has rabbit ears on their TVs anymore. Even cable is being cut in favor of broadband access to whatever. And then you have industrial users of broadband that are consuming artificial intelligence going back and forth from clouds, huge users of not only computing power but also of broadband to connect. What can governmental and industrial users of broadband expect from the broadband industry, do you think, in the next, say, 2 or 3 years?nn<strong>Jonathan Spalter <\/strong>Well, first is we're going to continue to press the pedal to the metal on massive investment. Just last year alone, American broadband providers invested over $100 billion in America's critical infrastructure, that is our networks. We are going to be able to continue to drive that level of innovation so that all of the innovations of the future from large language models, AI, the data centers that are hyper scaling to support them, the cloud infrastructure, can know that there's going to be a resolute commitment to making sure that the networks that we have will be the world's best, but also increasingly secure.nn<strong>Tom Temin <\/strong>And can you continue that investment and provide that service with non-Chinese network gear?nn<strong>Jonathan Spalter <\/strong>We've been aggressively moving to literally rip out and replace the legacy Chinese infrastructure that remains in the network. We've been working very closely with Congress to enable that to happen. We understand that there's a huge and evolving risk that is posed by the Chinese government, which has a very close design on infiltrating our networks. But we're going to continue to do what we do, which is deploying the best technology, working with making massive investments in shoring up the security of our networks, but also and really importantly, working in deep partnership with our intelligence agencies, with DHS, with the Department of Defense, with the White House, and with Congress to join arms in this fight.nn<strong>Tom Temin <\/strong>And what do you see ahead for what has been kind of a bifurcated industry, wireless versus wired and fiber broadband, now that satellite networks are being launched that are offering broadband and we're seeing 5G evolve to where even in a campus situation, people are using that instead of wired infrastructure traditionally through their Wi-Fi, that's all being replaced in some cases by 5G. How do you see the convergence, if that's the right word, happening? What's the next technological frontier of wired and wireless?nn<strong>Jonathan Spalter <\/strong>Well, first of all, I think it's an extremely exciting process that we're seeing of convergence between companies that used to be pure play wireless players, now understanding the deep importance to their customers and the continued growth that fiber technology, the underlying core infrastructure of all communications technologies bringing, which is why we're seeing this real explosion of interest by various companies in purchasing companies that are offering fiber. But it's a great thing. There are a huge mix of technologies that are available, terrestrial ether core fiber technologies, which is providing the gold standard of Internet connectivity globally, but also where it's hard for fiber to go. There are now fixed wireless technologies. Low-Earth orbit satellite technologies like StarLink and Kuiper that are coming into play. It's a very exciting time. But we have to make sure the regulatory structures can accelerate not only this convergence, but this ability to actually finally close the digital divide in ways that are going to be sustainable, achievable and affordable for everybody.<\/blockquote>"}};
With net neutrality A recent U.S. appeals court decision ended the idea of net neutrality. It said the Federal Communications Commission lacked authority to regulate internet service and broadband providers. The incoming FCC chair, Brendan Carr, was already planning to undo Biden administration rules for net neutrality favored by the outgoing FCC chair. For what the broadband industry hopes for next, the Federal Drive with Tom Temin turn to the president and CEO of the trade group U.S. Telecom, Jonathan Spalter.
Interview transcript:
Tom Temin And well, is net neutrality, as we understand it, actually dead or, as I said, only at the federal level?
Jonathan Spalter Well, not more net neutrality, because it’s not gone away. It’s always going to be the hallmark principle of broadband providers who for since the beginning of the Internet, have understood that keeping the Internet open and free, putting consumer choice first, has always been the guiding principle. So let’s not mourn the death of net neutrality. We’re going to have an Internet that’s going to be, I think, even more innovative. And as competition increases, customers can flee anywhere if any single provider decides to clamp down on what we consider to be net neutrality. It has been something that I’m glad we’re moving forward on. This is progress, this is not moving backwards.
Tom Temin It seems like the two sides have always looked at it in different manner. The people that were arguing against this idea said that why should providers not be able to have pricing depending on volume so that Google and YouTube and Netflix have a kind of a free ride versus the texts that are being sent by individuals, which is a teeny tiny, unmeasurable part of broadband. The people in favor of it have said there’s the danger that people will be throttled or necked down or something. But personally, I’ve never seen any evidence that actually happens.
Jonathan Spalter There’s not been literally a single complaint at the FCC of people genuinely and with material proof, saying that there’s been any throttling or misdirection of traffic because a provider wants to throttle a customer. We know that the Internet has been one of the most thriving, dynamic and innovative technologies maybe in American history. The notion that government has to replace the perspective of consumers in determining how the consumer experience should be I think is a relic of an old mindset in terms of regulation. And the good news is there is a forward looking approach now, which is like, No, we know the experience. Common sense shows that we are all experiencing a very vibrant and open internet. If that’s the case, the government, for one reason or another, decided that it wanted to reclassify our Internet as a telephone. Well, let’s move forward. Let’s turn the page and let’s actually bring even more innovation and investment and creativity to our Internet.
Tom Temin And let me ask you a very parochial question. This is a family station, and we are on an FCC regulated frequency. However, these interviews that I do are repurposed as podcasts and the show gets 55,000 downloads a month. So a lot of people hear it online, a lot of people here downloaded. A lot of people we hope are listening on their car radios and hear it there. I can’t say certain words now because it’s going to be on a broadcast. But if it was on a podcast, I could say anything I want. How do you envision the FCC or do you kind of navigating that show or should it?
Jonathan Spalter I believe as do I think every single one of the Internet providers that I’m glad to represent, that free speech and the ability to actually evolve as a society in terms of what is considered free speech is absolutely central to our civic life, to our national commitment, to our democratic principles. And so my perspective is that the more that we can actually shape an environment where the regulators of how we perceive what speech is can be as permissive as possible, expansive as possible, and keeping up with the evolution of how we use language, not restricting it.
Tom Temin By the way, I wouldn’t say any of those words, even on a podcast. It was never broadcast, just my style. We’re speaking with Jonathan Alter, president and CEO of the trade group at U.S. Telecom. And what are you expecting then, otherwise from the FCC under Brendan Carr? And what do you hope for him?
Jonathan Spalter Well, first, I hope very, very positive things, because the agency that he’s now going to be charged with leading probably is the most outsized in terms of impact and importance on our lives as a connected society. What he will be doing, I hope, is driving a hard reset for how we actually have to think about communications policy and the role regulation should play in its evolution. And that reset has to be about ensuring that again, we put consumers first. We let the market structure actually evolve and innovate, give us more choices. There’s two roads that the FCC can follow. One is to take a can do perspective of accelerating and enabling more innovation, more choice, more dynamism in the marketplace. The other is to put a hard brake on a lot of these achievements. I know exactly what side Brendan Carr is going to be voting for. He grew up in this agency. He, from being a young advisor to now the chair of the agency. He understands that in making policy you have to have rigor when it comes to facts and data to listen to all stakeholders. But he also believes in results. He believes that we need to be able to turn the page in really radically, giving a permission structure for more innovation in our nation. And he’s going to be doing it, I think, from a really deep, deep understanding of the soul of the machine that is the FCC.
Tom Temin And if you look at the innovation happening in the economy, so much of it centers around artificial intelligence and also new entertainment, frankly, and gigantic industry that is a big user of broadband. Nobody has rabbit ears on their TVs anymore. Even cable is being cut in favor of broadband access to whatever. And then you have industrial users of broadband that are consuming artificial intelligence going back and forth from clouds, huge users of not only computing power but also of broadband to connect. What can governmental and industrial users of broadband expect from the broadband industry, do you think, in the next, say, 2 or 3 years?
Jonathan Spalter Well, first is we’re going to continue to press the pedal to the metal on massive investment. Just last year alone, American broadband providers invested over $100 billion in America’s critical infrastructure, that is our networks. We are going to be able to continue to drive that level of innovation so that all of the innovations of the future from large language models, AI, the data centers that are hyper scaling to support them, the cloud infrastructure, can know that there’s going to be a resolute commitment to making sure that the networks that we have will be the world’s best, but also increasingly secure.
Tom Temin And can you continue that investment and provide that service with non-Chinese network gear?
Jonathan Spalter We’ve been aggressively moving to literally rip out and replace the legacy Chinese infrastructure that remains in the network. We’ve been working very closely with Congress to enable that to happen. We understand that there’s a huge and evolving risk that is posed by the Chinese government, which has a very close design on infiltrating our networks. But we’re going to continue to do what we do, which is deploying the best technology, working with making massive investments in shoring up the security of our networks, but also and really importantly, working in deep partnership with our intelligence agencies, with DHS, with the Department of Defense, with the White House, and with Congress to join arms in this fight.
Tom Temin And what do you see ahead for what has been kind of a bifurcated industry, wireless versus wired and fiber broadband, now that satellite networks are being launched that are offering broadband and we’re seeing 5G evolve to where even in a campus situation, people are using that instead of wired infrastructure traditionally through their Wi-Fi, that’s all being replaced in some cases by 5G. How do you see the convergence, if that’s the right word, happening? What’s the next technological frontier of wired and wireless?
Jonathan Spalter Well, first of all, I think it’s an extremely exciting process that we’re seeing of convergence between companies that used to be pure play wireless players, now understanding the deep importance to their customers and the continued growth that fiber technology, the underlying core infrastructure of all communications technologies bringing, which is why we’re seeing this real explosion of interest by various companies in purchasing companies that are offering fiber. But it’s a great thing. There are a huge mix of technologies that are available, terrestrial ether core fiber technologies, which is providing the gold standard of Internet connectivity globally, but also where it’s hard for fiber to go. There are now fixed wireless technologies. Low-Earth orbit satellite technologies like StarLink and Kuiper that are coming into play. It’s a very exciting time. But we have to make sure the regulatory structures can accelerate not only this convergence, but this ability to actually finally close the digital divide in ways that are going to be sustainable, achievable and affordable for everybody.The post A court squashes net neutrality, what next for the FCC? first appeared on Federal News Network.
