- FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler: This Is How We Will Ensure Net Neutrality [Wired]: “The internet must be fast, fair and open. That is the message I’ve heard from consumers and innovators across this nation. That is the principle that has enabled the internet to become an unprecedented platform for innovation and human expression. And that is the lesson I learned heading a tech startup at the dawn of the internet age. The proposal I present to the commission will ensure the internet remains open, now and in the future, for all Americans.”
- Remember Netflix’s deal with Comcast? The FCC’s proposal on net neutrality could overturn agreements like those. [Washington Post]: “The FCC’s draft net neutrality rule allows any company that feels like it’s been unfairly treated in the middle mile (e.g., Netflix) to file a complaint and have the agency examine what’s going on. In responding to the proposal Wednesday, Netflix said: ‘If such an oversight process had been in place last year, we certainly would’ve used it when a handful of ISPs opted to hold our members hostage until we paid up.'”
- Comcast, Cable Stocks Rise as FCC Won’t Try to Control Rates [Bloomberg]: “Comcast rose as much as 4.6 percent in New York trading, the biggest intraday gain since November 2013. Time Warner Cable jumped as much as 5.2 percent, the most since its proposed $45 billion sale to Comcast was announced almost a year ago. Shares of other cable companies that offer broadband service also gained.”
- Unhappy Comcast customers have options [Philadelphia Inquirer]: “In Comcast’s hometown itself, unhappy customers can also weigh in as Philadelphia moves toward an expected renewal later this year of Comcast’s franchise agreements with the city. Activists such as Hannah Sassaman, of West Philly’s Media Mobilizing Project, say other cities have won valuable concessions. Philadelphia should demand them, too.”
- Letters: No Comcast contract till it pays its fair share [Philadelphia Daily News]: “Communications services at home aren’t a luxury — for school, work, and health, they are a necessity. While Philadelphia consumers pay hundreds of dollars or more a month to Comcast for needed communications services (with costs rising an average of 3.4 percent in 2015), Comcast pays next to nothing in property taxes on its current building. It also applied for a 10-year tax abatement on its new building, and won more than $42 million in promised subsidies from the city and commonwealth.”
- If Comcast Did This One Thing, So Much Customer Hate Would Vanish [TIME]: “‘Simplify pricing strategies instead of forcing people to threaten to cancel service just to get a better rate. Stop creating situations where customers have to fight with you.'”
- Comcast now has more than half of all US broadband customers [Ars Technica]: “Under the 25Mbps threshold, Comcast will have ‘56.8 percent [market share] excluding mobile broadband and 44.7 percent including mobile broadband’ after the merger, the filing says. But that is barely changed from today because ‘less than one tenth of TWC customers enjoy speeds at or above 25 Mbps, whereas more than half of Comcast customers enjoy such speeds.'”
- Comcast merger under fire on K St. [The Hill]: “The Stop Mega-Comcast Coalition registered with Glover Park Group in recent weeks to help it lobby the federal government. The coalition comprises an unlikely collection of interests, including Glenn Beck’s television station The Blaze, companies like Dish Network, watchdog groups such as Public Knowledge and Common Cause, and writers unions.”
Companies:
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) / Comcast
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