FCC chairman Ajit Pai has announced the end of the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau’s investigation into zero rating plans offered by Comcast, AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile, which enable some content to bypass usage caps and not affect customer data volumes. Pai said the plans, which have come under fire from consumer groups, a range of telcos and NGOs, and from, are popular among consumers, and in particular among those with low incomes. The chairman also said they have enhanced competition in the mobile marketplace.
Going forward, Pai said the FCC will not focus on people free data but concentrate on expanding broadband deployment and encouraging innovative service offerings.
The Internet Association disagreed with premise that zero-rating reduces competition, noting that properly designed zero-rating programmes –such as those that do not unfairly advantage content owned by an ISP – can promote consumer choice without harming competition among apps. The association said protecting consumers and competition “is what net neutrality is all about. While zero-rating can meet the consumer protection standards of meaningful net neutrality rules, when done improperly or left unchecked it can also be harmful to consumers and stifle competition online.” Artificially low data caps create false scarcity, which instills an appearance of value in a zero-rating program while harming consumers, the association concluded.
Pai also said the Commission will not consider as binding any of the orders and reports released in the “waning days” of the last administration. All of these will be revoked, the chairman said. The first move was to scale back the programme that provides discounts on broadband service for some people on low-income Americans, the Wall Street Journal reported, saying nine telecom companies will no longer receive subsidies for home internet users.
The Lifeline programme provides a USD 9.25 per month discount for low-income subscribers. The programme started with phone and mobile bills but was in March expanded to include broadband services. In recent weeks, the FCC added the nine companies to the list of broadband providers.
The FCC said that halting the nine additions would boost the programme’s integrity by giving staffers more time to consider waste-fighting measures. Dozens of other companies still participate in the Lifeline program, which the FCC has budgeted at USD 2.25 billion for this year. The programme was recently under investigation for fraud.
Democratic Commissioner Mignon Clyburn said the decision would widen the digital divide separating low-income Americans from those with more internet access.
