After more than five years of hemming and hawing, the FCC appears close to voting on net neutrality, the hotly contested means of overseeing Internet access.
The FCC has postponed its Dec. 2 meeting to Dec. 21, prompting speculation the agency is getting its ducks in a row for a vote on the politically polarized issue. The three Democratic commissioners are expected to vote — now or later — for a consumer-friendly regulation on Internet access, while the two Republican members are expected to hold out for relatively unfettered oversight favoring industry players.
Back in August, Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), chairman of the Senate communications subcommittee, predicted the FCC would likely move ahead on net neutrality itself, because he believed Congress couldn’t deal with the issue. Since then, the national election has produced a bumper crop of new Republican legislators, making it even more unlikely Congress would support any tough net neutrality oversight in its next session, starting in January.
Adding to the debate is the case of OpenDNS. The company, which provides open domain system solutions, has complained that Verizon Communications is already blocking its service, which OpenDNS calls an infringement of net neutrality policies.
Continues at: FCC Postpones Net Neutrality Vote — InformationWeek.
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