Friday, April 16, 2010

FCC Has National Broadband Authority, Say 2 Former FCC Commissioners

Former FCC chairmen Reed Hundt (D) and Michael Powell (R) say that, contrary to much speculation, the Federal Communications Commission continues to have the authority it requires to set in motion the "National Broadband Plan."

Both Powell and Hundt agreed that the FCC still has jurisdiction on the Broadband Plan and net neutrality and that there isn’t “Armageddon” because of the DC Circuit ruling on the Comcast complaint.

Powell pointed out that Title II reclassification would have a “destabilizing nature” to the industry because it would change decades-long policy and that it would frustrate investments made under the current regulatory environment (for example the $23 billion investment Verizon made on their “FiOS” service).

The argument that the FCC now "lacks jurisdiction," though incorrect, is being used to advance the notion of wider and more-disruptive changes in the basic regulatory framework governing broadband access services.

Post Tech - The Full Video: Ex-FCC heads Hundt and Powell discuss broadband policy

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