Now that it’s been more than a year since the FCC repealed the so-called net neutrality regulations, it is clear that the doom and gloom rhetoric surrounding the regulatory repeal was wrong.
Under the veil of “net neutrality,” the Obama-era FCC applied outdated utility-style regulation on a flourishing internet once meant for copper wires in the 1930s. Investment in the economy stagnated after the FCC slapped on “net neutrality” regulations and reclassified Internet Service Providers as a utility in 2015. Fortunately, since the repeal investment is coming back into the market and Americans continue to be protected at the Federal Trade Commission.
Digital Liberty’s Demri Scott wrote an op-ed in the Washington Examiner on the events since the repeal, explaining that:
“While the numbers show that the market lost out big time after the Obama FCC imposed “net neutrality” regulations, there is also an intangible cost to the net neutrality fight. The time and resources used for ‘net neutrality’ could have been used to help close the digital divide, get us closer to winning the race to 5G, and addressing concerns about data privacy. Thankfully the current FCC is shifting its focus to goals that keep the United States a global leader in connectivity while ensuring that regulations do not get in the way of deploying next-generation technologies.”
Scott goes on to explain that:
“Americans deserve much better than a petty regulatory fight over legal definitions. The constant battle on net neutrality underscores that ultimately, we will need legislation that reaffirms Pai’s stance toward Internet freedom. Americans simply can’t afford to play regulatory ping-pong between the FCC and the FTC, relitigating net neutrality every time a new administration comes into office.”
To read more of Scott’s op-ed click here