-By Scott Cleland
With due credit to “Ripley’s Believe it or Not!®,” so much odd and bizarre is happening at the FCC in the “name” of “broadband” that the topic calls for its own collection of: “Believe it or Not!®” oddities.
The FCC insists that its Title II reclassification effort to regulate broadband networks is not “regulating the Internet,” when the law the Supreme Court and the FCC all define the Internet to include broadband networks!
The FCC, certain that the D.C. Circuit Court decision on Comcast vs. the FCC was incorrect, decided not to appeal to the Supreme Court!
The FCC, an administrative agency created, funded, and overseen by Congress, completely ignored a majority of Members of Congress who wrote the FCC opposing FCC reclassification of broadband as a common carrier!
The FCC plans to justify new broadband Title II regulation with some regulatory forbearance by arguing that the market facts simultaneously warrant both more, and less, broadband regulation — at the very same time!
The FCC claims the “soundest legal foundation” for broadband is the opposite of what the DC Circuit Court, Congress, legal experts and industry think is sound!
The FCC justified pursuing its Title II reclassification effort by characterizing it as the “broad consensus” view, but the non-partisan Association of State Legislatures and a bi-partisan majority of Members of Congress opposed the FCC in writing!
The FCC claims it has an open mind in approaching the Notice of Inquiry, but a majority of FCC votes, are on record already supporting new broadband regulation!
The FCC claims ‘immaculate mis-conception’ to explain how “series of tubes,” the FCC appears intent on officially declaring the Internet a series of telephone lines!
Strange but true.
“Believe it or Not!®”
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Scott Cleland is one of nation’s foremost techcom analysts and experts at the nexus of: capital markets, public policy and techcom industry change. He is widely-respected in industry, government, media and capital markets as a forward thinker, free market proponent, and leading authority on the future of communications. Precursor LLC is an industry research and consulting firm, specializing in the techcom sector, whose mission is to help companies anticipate change for competitive advantage. Cleland is also Chairman of NetCompetition.org, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Precursor LLC and an e-forum on Net Neutrality funded by a wide range of broadband telecom, cable and wireless companies. He previously founded The Precursor Group Inc., which Institutional Investor magazine ranked as the #1 “Best Independent” research firm in communications for two years in a row. His latest op eds can be seen at www.precursorblog.com.