David Coursey from the ZDNet Anchor Desk takes AT&T to task for their role in screwing up Excite @Home and says this an example why there needs to be regulation on Internet service. Wondering why the FCC never stepped in, he asks the keen question, “Since when has a bankruptcy court been the place where telecommunications policy is decided?”
I both agree and disagree with Coursey’s position. I agree from the standpoint that really crappy and greedy corporate policy led to lots of folks getting screwed out of a communications utility they’d come to rely on. But I’ve also come to have very little faith in the regulatory will and efficacy of the FCC. At it’s best the FCC will comply with the law, but can be truly weasly with regard to its own regulatory policy. In order for the FCC to be an effective watchdog for public and consumer interest in Internet service there has to be clear laws dictating those protections, otherwise the Commission will likely take the path of least resistance out of the line of fire, especially with Commissioner Michael “simplistic free market” Powell at the helm.
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