The Chiefs of Facebook, Google and Other Tech Giants Aren't Committing To Testify To the US Congress On Net Neutrality (recode.net)

Amazon, Facebook, Google and Netflix -- along with their telecom industry foes -- have not committed to sending their chief executives to testify before the U.S. Congress in September on the future of net neutrality. From a report: Not a single one of those companies told the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee, which is convening the hearing, that they would send their leaders to Washington, D.C., in the coming weeks, even at a time when the Trump administration is preparing to kill the open internet rules currently on the government's books. The panel initially asked those four tech giants, as well as AT&T, Charter, Comcast and Verizon, to indicate their plans for attendance by July 31. Now, the committee is pushing back its deadline indefinitely, as it continues its quest to engage the country's tech and telecom business leaders on net neutrality. "The committee has been engaging in productive conversations with all parties and will extend the deadline for response in order to allow for those discussions to continue," a spokesman said.

Comments

Why bother?

[ilsaloving]

It's already plainly obvious that Idjit Patel is going to kill off those rules come hell or high water.

So what's the point of having a discussion? I doubt any of the 'tech leaders' want to waste their time with political theatre, having a bunch of politicians pat their heads and go "There there, it'll be ok."

If you want Net Neutrality

[rsilvergun]

you're going to have to put the sorts of politicians in office that support it. And that means people who believe government (and government regulation, which NN is) can work. Right now the folks in charge of the government don't think government works. They want to tear it all down and NN is just one more regulation on their chopping block.

Re:If you want Net Neutrality

[Anonymous Coward]

The folks in charge right now *do* think government works. That's their problem with it. It's getting in the way of their continuing attempts to steal the country blind while giving absolutely nothing back to the people who are actually creating all the wealth they're hoarding.

Re:For the People, by the People

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, but the other guy got to be President anyway.

Re:Yep, bring on more government rules

[king neckbeard]

Telecoms and cable companies didn't invent anything you tied to innovation (although, to be fair Bell Labs did quite a bit back in the day) after their deregulation. All they really do halfway decently is build infrastructure, which isn't innovative, and isn't something private for-profit companies tend to be comparatively good at.

Re:Yep, bring on more government rules

[Anonymous Coward]

You're conflating the breakup of AT&T with telecoms deregulation. Which actually happened in different decades, and neither had the effects you're ascribing to them.

But hey, you go on bleating. It won't change reality, but I imagine it'll make you feel better. So there's that.

Effectiveness

[Mike Van Pelt]

I didn't vote for the SOB either, but seriously...

What's likely to get a better result?

Discussing issues with the current administration, trying to convince them, maybe get a little of what you want?

Or spend the next 3.5 years running around hair on fire frothing at the mouth shrieking "NOT MY PRESIDENT NAZI NAZI HITLER RESIST RESIST NAZI HITLER HITLER HITLER RUSSIA HITLER!"

I submit that the first option makes you look reasonable and maybe gets at least some fraction of what you want.

The second option gets none of what you want, and makes it more likely that you're going to have to be doing it for the next 7.5 years.