Net neutrality: Old issues never die

[emsimon33]

By A. Michael Noll

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Back then in the 1970s, the White House did not want the government to became a common carrier selling any telecommunication service. Therefore, AT&T was asked whether it could take over the ARPANET. AT&T declined, and as a result Telenet was formed to do so. And here we are decades later as AT&T now lobbies that data telecommunication is an information service and should not be regulated as common carriage. Old issues never die!

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The issues, just like decades ago, are unnecessarily made to appear complicated. Lawyers and lobbyists make a fortune, and politicians scratch their heads in delay and confusion. But being neither a lawyer, lobbyist, nor politician, the issues are as clear today in my mind as they were decades ago. If it looks like telecommunication involving transmission and switching, it is telecommunication ¬ and should be treated as common carriage. And clearly in my opinion, content should be separated from carriage.

Read the article at http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/net-neutrality-old-issues-never-die/2010-05-17?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal