City broadband ISPs: PLEEEEASE don't do 'Title II' net neutrality

Legislation

The problem with legislation on this topic is that both legislative bodies are now controlled by the GOP. GOPsters hate Net Neutrality and thus won't bring up any new legislation that would enshrine that. So the only option seems to be Title II, even if it does suck as a solution.

Having educated myself on both the history of title II and the companies subjected to them I'm finding it really hard to believe that there is anything wrong with it.

The FCC appears to have done right so far.

I think it's a good idea

My choices for broadband access are basically the (really good) local cable company and Verizon FiOS. I know that not everyone has a good set of options, and this seems like a good idea to set standards.

ISP service is a utility now, just like water, electricity or gas. You're basically paying someone to route data packets to and from your house, much like you pay for electricity into the house, or wastewater/garbage out of it. It doesn't seem out of line for the FCC or state public service commissions to regulate the standards of service. ISPs routinely oversubscribe links, or conveniently forget to fix problems in areas that are hard to serve (example: rural locations.) If every customer were afforded a minimum standard of service, and could choose to pay for more than the minimum (and get what they pay for) then this is a good thing. It would force carriers to maintain their infrastructure instead of just letting it rot away. Everyone hated the AT&T monopoly on phone service, but at least everyone was reasonably assured that their phones would be working whenever they wanted to make a call. That was the price AT&T paid for the ability to charge monopoly level rates -- they had to keep their networks in good shape. Same thing here -- treating data as a commodity to be pumped in and out of your house is the right way to go IMO.

Small ISPs?

The list of signatures looks like it's from mayors and public utility companies. I'm not seeing any independent providers in there. Unfortunately, I think that mostly says that independent providers don't exist any more.

Network Administrator

I'm an owner/operator of an Independent ISP in Northeast Oregon. I and two of my friends pooled a few thousand dollars of savings to get started, and have spent 5 years of our lives building out a network that now covers 500 square miles of rural Oregon with real broadband speed. We offer up to 26Mbps. We built it using internally generated cash, we don't have bank loans, we don't use public rights of way, we aren't subsidized by public money.

Now the government is coming in and in effect taking the first steps towards nationalizing my company. The public has been taught to see the Internet as a human right, like air and water. It feels it has a right to my labor, and the government is happy to oblige. I have a problem with this.

We've solved the problem out here. All it took was a handful of committed entrepreneurs a few years. Stay out of our way, stay off our backs, and we'll finish the job.

Squeeze too hard, and we'll shrug off the burden and walk away.