Senator Richard Blumenthal responded to my concerns about Net Neutrality (that we might soon have fast/slow lanes and only large, wealthy companies get preference, killing innovation and Internet freedom). Here is his response! Dear Mr. LeBlanc, Thank you for your message regarding recent developments in the effort to preserve a free and open Internet. I appreciate hearing from you. I am a firm supporter of “net neutrality”— the idea that Internet users should have unobstructed access to the lawful content and services of their choice, and that Internet providers should not be allowed to block or discriminate regarding access to certain sites or applications over others. I believe it is important to keep the online playing field level for companies, bloggers, and individuals, and that people, within the bounds of the law, should be able to access any web content of their choice regardless of political views or opinions expressed on a particular site. You may be pleased to learn that after the D.C. Circuit struck down most of the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) net neutrality rules in January 2014, I introduced S. 1981, the Open Internet Preservation Act. This bill would restore the old net neutrality rules until the FCC is able to finalize new rules. On May 15, 2014, the FCC voted to open a proceeding considering new net neutrality rules. I have grave concerns that the FCC’s proposal would allow broadband providers to justify the creation of fast and slow lanes on the Internet that would privilege a few wealthy Internet companies over startups and innovators. This kind of dynamic would have devastating consequences for innovators, entrepreneurs, and consumers and would provide incentivizes for broadband providers to manage bandwidth scarcity instead of investing in a high-speed communications infrastructure of the 21st century. Such pay-to-play arrangements must not be permitted. I am privileged to serve on the Senate Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over the FCC, and I assure you I will fight to make sure the Internet remains a free and open platform for consumers and innovators, not a walled garden for wealthy companies. Consumers, not a company and not the government, must continue to determine the winners and losers on the Internet. Thank you again for contacting me. Please contact me in the future with any additional questions or concerns. Sincerely, Richard Blumenthal United States Senate If you would like to contact me again on this issue or another issue, please do not respond to this email address. Please, instead, use the contact form on my website: https://blumenthal.senate.gov/contact. I look forward to hearing from you.
Posted on: Fri, 19 Sep 2014 20:09:53 +0000
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