Quoting the salient part:
"Pai's aggressive pursuit of net-neutrality repeal contradicted his previous
stated position that 'a dispute this fundamental is not for us, five unelected
individuals, to decide. Instead, it should be resolved by the people's elected
representatives, those who choose the direction of government, and those whom
the American people can hold accountable for that choice.'
"Not only did the FCC not defer to a Congressional vote on net neutrality,
polls have shown that more than eighty percent of the U.S. public oppose Pai's
pro-ISP position. The controversy only got worse when it was discovered that
the FCC's public comment process was infiltrated by unknown hackers.
"The FCC was flooded with fake comments, mostly supporting Pai, ..."
Regardless, out of 22 million comments, some 2 million were fake, and those
favored the Chairman. Gee, I wonder why he prevented the FCC from analyzing the
comments at all? In 2015, the FCC received 4 million comments. Then this
Chairman did the unthinkable, merely 2 years later, and received 22 million
comments. Does he really not get it? People give a damn about this.
The more one reads about this fiasco, the more corrupt and crooked this
Chairman comes across. And no, there are few issues as important to the
telecoms than that they be guaranteed to be neutral. It's utterly unacceptable
for an FCC Chairman to be oblivious of this, assuming "oblivious" is as
innocent as his condition is.
Bert
----------------------------------------------------
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?_mc=RSS%5FEET%5FEDT&doc_id=1332829&page_number=1
News & Analysis
FCC Chief Bails and CTA Head Makes Do
David Benjamin
1/9/2018 06:55 PM EST
LAS VEGAS -- Less than a month after pushing a vote in the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) to end rules protecting "net neutrality" on the
Internet, FCC chairman Ajit Pai missed his victory dance at the Consumer
Electronics Show, blaming a series of death threats for cancellation of the FCC
Chairman's annual appearance at the giant technology convention.
A year ago, at the same forum in Las Vegas, Ajit Pai had all but guaranteed a
new Internet regime ending the era of unrestricted free access to the Web that
dates back to its inception by a group of Defense Department scientists in the
1970s.
News reports were sketchy as to whether the threats to Pai came from angry
Internet users fearful that a handful of powerful Internet service providers
(including Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T) will restrict "fast-track" access to
corporate users willing to pay premium rates, or from white supremacists who
have chafed over the appointment of an Indian-American as one of the United
States' most powerful regulators.
What's clear was that Consumer Technology Association (CTA) president Gary
Shapiro was left interviewing the second banana in the Trump administration's
CES regulatory show, Acting Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Maureen
Ohlhausen.
Shapiro called the absence of Pai a "horrible situation." Its trigger, of
course, was the FCC's 3-2 vote -- along party lines -- on December 14 to cancel
a 2015 decision to apply Title II of the 1934 Communications Act to the
Internet. That decision, promoted by then FCC chief Tom Wheeler, defined the
Internet as a "common carrier" ensuring free access to all its users, similar
to radio and terrestrial television.
Pai's aggressive pursuit of net-neutrality repeal contradicted his previous
stated position that "a dispute this fundamental is not for us, five unelected
individuals, to decide. Instead, it should be resolved by the people's elected
representatives, those who choose the direction of government, and those whom
the American people can hold accountable for that choice."
Not only did the FCC not defer to a Congressional vote on net neutrality, polls
have shown that more than eighty percent of the U.S. public oppose Pai's
pro-ISP position. The controversy only got worse when it was discovered that
the FCC's public comment process was infiltrated by unknown hackers.
The FCC was flooded with fake comments, mostly supporting Pai, many of them
using stolen or fabricated identities. The result was the discrediting of the
comment process and further turmoil among consumers who depend on the Internet
for communication, social media, commerce and news.
In Pai's absence, Shapiro got Ohlhausen, an appointee of President George W.
Bush (Barack Obama named Pai to the FCC) with impeccable conservative
credentials, to elliptically endorse the FCC's decision on de-neutralizing the
Net.
Asked by Shapiro to cite Internet users who merit "priority" over consumers who
"just want to watch Netflix," Ohlhausen said health and safety, as well as
privacy, deserve preferential treatment.
Shapiro helped out, saying, "Net neutrality is important, but some things are
more important than others. This is a nuanced issue."
Nuances aside, this ended a net-neutrality discussion that more than a hundred
CES attendees had come to the Las Vegas Convention Center to hear.
Shapiro and Ohlhausen briefly broached the related issue of antitrust
enforcement, a realm closer to the FTC's authority. Ohlhausem noted that her
approach to the emerging mega-corporations in technology and communication,
such as as Apple and Google, leans more toward diplomacy than intervention.
"You can't say big is bad and small is good across the board," said Ohlhausen.
"Is a company innovating and reducing price through economies of scale,
economies of scope and greater efficiency?"
If so, she suggested, a big company could benefit consumers, regardless of its
size and market dominance, unlike a big company that is "getting big just by
buying up its competitors." The FTC looks at these mergers" with such criteria
in mind, she added.
She concluded, "We're always looking at whether companies are colluding."
The FTC, Shapiro noted, also oversees many aspects of "big data," the
electronic collection of massive amounts of information, much of it personal.
Ohlhausen admitted that big data poses a serious challenge to regulators like
the FTC, if only to determine what sort of data should be made universally
available. She cited the obvious example of financial information, bank account
and credit card numbers, but also cited "real-time location data" that reveals
where an individual is at all times.
Health information, she said, must be rigorously guarded, as well as personal
photos, legal issues and family troubles. She said the FTC "should be
addressing" all such privacy issues.
Asked by Shapiro, "Do corporations have any right to privacy?," Ohlhausen
brushed off the question, replying that big companies have enough resources to
protect themselves.
Asked, finally, about her legacy at the Federal Trade Commission, Ohlhausen
cited her creation of the Economic Liberty Task Force, a subgroup within the
FTC focused on identifying regulations that harm service providers in a vast
range of small business, including beauty shops and interior decoration.
She said she set up the Task Force "to allow technology and innovation to
benefit consumers" by taking "a look at regulations in place that are
preventing people at the lower end of the economic ladder to move up, and
preventing their communities from doing so." Federal intervention, said
Ohlhausen can help solve these problems.
She said that many of these protectionist rules and licensing requirements have
been promulgated at the state and local level. Among these, she mentioned work
restrictions that make it hard for military spouses to find jobs near the bases
where they are stationed. Senator Tim Kaine (D-Va.) has introduced legislation,
supported by the FTC, directed at this issue.
"I hope," said Ohlhausen, "that this [initiative] will live on after my term."
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