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House Panel Wants Google, Facebook, AT&T CEOs To Testify On Internet Rules (reuters.com)

Posted by msmash on from the tussle-continues dept.

The chairman of the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday asked the chief executives of Alphabet, Facebook, Amazon.com, AT&T, Verizon Communications and other companies to testify at a Sept. 7 hearing on the future of net neutrality rules. From a report: The U.S. Federal Communications Commission is considering tossing out 2015 Obama administration net neutrality rules that reclassified internet service like a public utility. The rules bar providers from blocking, slowing or offering paid prioritization of websites. Many internet providers want Congress to step in and write permanent rules. Other chief executives asked to testify include the heads of Comcast, Netflix and Charter. Some companies including Facebook said they were reviewing the letter but none immediately said if they will testify.

35 comments

  1. Notice how everyone is invited... by wizkid · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Accept the users of the internet. Our government for the people!

    --
    I take no responsibility for what I say. Even though I'm never wrong :)
    1. Re:Notice how everyone is invited... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And if I choose not to accept them?

    2. Re:Notice how everyone is invited... by gnick · · Score: 1

      [Except] the users of the internet. Our government for the people!

      We need to institute a system where we, the people, elect individuals to represent us. We could call them Representatives.

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    3. Re:Notice how everyone is invited... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah why the CEOs and not the engineers who actually know how the internet works ...

    4. Re:Notice how everyone is invited... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yah, we'z smarts enuf to guvern ours selves!

    5. Re:Notice how everyone is invited... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      [Except] the users of the internet. Our government for the people!

      We need to institute a system where we, the people, elect individuals [chosen by the rich and powerful] to represent [corporate interests]. We could call them Representatives [so the working man doesn't stop working and start shooting].

      FTFY

    6. Re:Notice how everyone is invited... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Join the pledge to throttle bandwidth for all non-users of the internet!

    7. Re:Notice how everyone is invited... by John.Banister · · Score: 1

      They needed someone who would speak sentences that legislators could actually comprehend. Plus, they feel more important while talking to the CEOs who they consider to be the most important people in the companies. Can you imagine them asking the companies to "send someone who is knowledgeable about your position on this topic and competent to tell us about it." The testimony would move from CNN to C-Span, greatly reducing the number of voters watching the Representatives' attempts to sound like they're providing benefit. Plus, "knowledgeable person who is good at communicating the company position" is a job description for lobbyist. And, regardless of the truth of the words, listening to lobbyist testimony in an official hearing doesn't sound to the idiot public like Representatives doing their job. It sounds like a future exposé waiting to happen.

    8. Re:Notice how everyone is invited... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Accept the users of the internet. Our government for the people!

      There is nothing stopping you from writing your elected Representatives and Senators in Washington, DC... assuming you are even a citizen of the USA.

      Letters to US lawmakers from persons other than citizens of the USA may or may not be considered and would/should hold much much less standing compared to complaints/feedback from American citizens to their own elected officials.

    9. Re:Notice how everyone is invited... by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Hmm... judging by the dupes you've been voting into office lately ... nope, you're not.

      Some people fear a world government, but when I see what we got instead, I can only say it cannot happen soon enough...

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  2. This is cute and all by rsilvergun · · Score: 2

    but with the Republicans in control of all branches of government this is a dead end. They should spend their time defending what's left of our tattered healthcare system. It'd be one thing if the Dems presented some kind of unified opposition and/or a few of the other side were willing to jump rank. But right now the only way Net Neutrality is coming back is if a law passes and unless the Dems win the House _and_ Senate (almost impossible with Gerrymandering no matter what the polls say and that's before the effects of voter suppression are felt) then we're done.

    Face it, America isn't a Democracy. We never have been. Hell, there's talk on the Right of eliminating our right to vote for Senators. They're not even pretending anymore.

    --
    Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/
    1. Re: This is cute and all by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Are you kidding? The repubs are incapable of anything. They've. Been in total power for 7 months and not accomplished a damn thing, can't do taxes, healthcare or anything else they committed to.

    2. Re: This is cute and all by denis-The-menace · · Score: 1

      I think you meant REMOVE healthcare .

      --
      Obama's legacy: (N)othing (S)ecure (A)nywhere and (T)error (S)imulation (A)dministration
    3. Re:This is cute and all by TFlan91 · · Score: 1

      "Hell, there's talk on the Right of eliminating our right to vote for Senators. They're not even pretending anymore."

      Source? I mean, I know they are pretty crazy, but cmon... They revere the Constitution like their bibles...

    4. Re:This is cute and all by l0n3s0m3phr34k · · Score: 1

      To better protect our citizens and our member States, the President has superseded and suspended the Federal Senate for the duration of this emergency. We are sure you shall all do everything in your power to assist us during this time of crisis.

    5. Re:This is cute and all by rsilvergun · · Score: 1

      Here you go. ALEC is a pretty big deal. The fact they'd even talk about it openly shows how far we've come.

      --
      Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/
    6. Re:This is cute and all by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They revere the parts of the Constitution that support their agenda (2nd Amendment) while at the same time being perfectly willing to gut the 1st, 4th, and 14th.

      Of course, as you say - "They revere the Constitution like their bibles..." in that they certainly hate fags, but that "turn your other cheek" shit is for the birds.

    7. Re:This is cute and all by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The constitution was "reversed", as you say, to make senators elected rather than appointed by state governments in the early 1900's, so its not something that is really even close to unprecedented. Senators were meant to represent the interests of state governments in Washington, and not general citizens.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seventeenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution

    8. Re:This is cute and all by rtb61 · · Score: 1

      Reality is the end of net neutrality would hugely negatively impact the majority of businesses. Any company that wants to deal directly with consumers is under threat, any company. All can have their traffic crippled to favour competitors, especially those competitors with investments from the telecom executive team. Their traffic can be strangled right off, made to be intermittent, be interrupted by commercials for competing product and that is regular product not content. Anyone distributing high volume content can be put out of business. Make your own music and wish to sell it, nope not without the approval of the ISP publishing arm, either they publish your content for a cut or you get strangle.

      The end of net neutrality favours something like 5 companies hugely and disadvantages say few hundreds thousands companies enormously. Those companies are already seeing the customer data being syphoned off by US telecoms, now those telecoms will be able to listen in and cut off traffic if the ISP taxes have not be paid. It is mind bogglingly corrupt to listen to a handful of companies whilst hundreds of thousands of companies are going to be screwed over, their customer data being pried into and sold to competitors and that is when traffic is allowed to flow through. No net neutrality and not only go you be extorted to pay for any normal speed but you can pay to take out somebody else's speed, buy up the bandwidth on the line that connects them to strangle them out of business and it can happen real fast, a month or two is enough to cripple many businesses.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    9. Re:This is cute and all by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There are still consumer protection laws that can come into play here.

      Also, IF a company were to do this, I can't think of a better way to kick off a mass movement to end ISP monopolies.

      The rules about net neutrality are not net neutrality. Eliminating them means going back to the dark ages of 2014 internet.

    10. Re:This is cute and all by q4Fry · · Score: 1

      The constitution was "reversed", as you say, to make senators elected rather than appointed by state governments in the early 1900's, so its not something that is really even close to unprecedented. Senators were meant to represent the interests of state governments in Washington, and not general citizens.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seventeenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution

      I recently learned about this as well. AC beat me to the post, though. I frankly think the Senate is kind of weird as a concept, but that's a topic for another time.

  3. Impersonating me YET AGAIN? Please... apk by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    See subject: Interesting read. Especially the parts on Harold Wallace Rosenthal, Barbara Spectre & the Talmud excerpts. The rest everyone pretty much knows from history, financials or politicals.

    APK

    P.S.=> I've read that here before. I've asked it be proven wrong. I haven't seen it done yet. If that's the truth of talmudic jews, they're fools for writing that of non-jews (then they wonder why they're despised? Please - calling us fit to be slaves and animals as well as raping little girls?? What do they expect!)... apk

  4. Soros funded sockpuppets by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What is the problem Soros funded SOCKPUPPETS?

    Don't want the truth getting out bout how you treat the goyim so bury my posts

    APK

    P.S. => The Jew will laugh at all you goyim all to the bank while they destroy your country.

    1. Re:Soros funded sockpuppets by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      so Koch funded sockpuppets are fine?
      -

      -Not APK--

  5. Impersonating me STILL YET AGAIN? apk by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    See subject: Again, interesting reads above. Especially videos on Rosenthal & Spectre. I'm not crazy about the talmud stuff either. The rest anyone knows from history, politicals & financials.

    APK

    P.S.=> I've read all this here before on /. & asked for anyone to prove it all wrong. I haven't seen it yet and it's impossible imo to deny the Rosenthal & Spectre statements. What did jews expect writing or saying things like that? To be liked?? apk

  6. Not really by rsilvergun · · Score: 1

    you're thinking like a small biz owner. A big biz wants to kill Net Neutrality because it hurts their competition (who can't afford the fees).

    --
    Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/
    1. Re:Not really by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      I think like a business owner that isn't an ISP. Because their train of thought would certainly be "Hey, cool idea. I'll make my own version and yours, well, sucks to be you because your traffic will now be very, very slow because I need to convince your customers to use my flavor".

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  7. And in other news... by Zemran · · Score: 1

    ... the ministry of agriculture has arranged a meeting of wolves to discuss lamb security in preparation for next spring.

    --
    I love stacking my barbecues in the shed at the end of summer - you can't beat a bit of grill on grill action.
    1. Re:And in other news... by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Where I am from, we shoot and pelt wolves for fun and profit.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.