Lindsay Chestnut of Baltimore holds a sign that reads “I like My Internet Like I Like my Country Free & Open” as she protests near the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in Washington, Thursday, Dec. 14, 2017, where the FCC is scheduled to meet and vote on net neutrality. The vote scheduled today at the FCC, could usher in big changes in how Americans use the internet, a radical departure from more than a decade of federal oversight. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)The Federal Communications Commission repealed the Obama-era “net neutrality” rules Thursday, giving internet service providers such as Verizon, Comcast and AT&T a free hand to slow or block websites and apps as they see fit or charge more for faster speeds.
In a straight party-line vote of 3-2, the Republican-controlled FCC junked the long-time principle that said all web traffic must be treated equally. The move represents a radical departure from more than a decade of federal oversight.
The big telecommunications companies had lobbied hard to overturn the rules, contending they are heavy-handed and discourage investment in broadband networks.
“What is the FCC doing today?” asked FCC chairman Ajit Pai, a Republican. “Quite simply, we are restoring the light-touch framework that has governed the internet for most of its existence.”
The push to eliminate the rules has touched off protests and stirred fears among consumer advocates, many web companies and ordinary Americans that cable and phone companies will be able to control what people see and do online. But the broadband industry has promised the internet experience for the public isn’t going to change.