If you have a network connection of a certain speed available on your phone, you expect receive data at roughly that speed, more or less. That’s how it works. Except that’s not how it’s been working for Netflix: the popular streaming video service was moving at a fraction of what users expected, on Verizon and AT&T networks. Consumers were all ready to line up and blame their mobile carriers, but the wireless companies weren’t the ones screwing around with anything, as it turns out. Netflix was. [More]
net neutrality
Verizon: We Still Hate Net Neutrality And Hope It Loses, But We Love Net Neutrality!
By 3.22.16
Verizon is at it again: with a ruling on net neutrality likely to show up in the next few weeks, they are falling all over themselves to talk about how much they love net neutrality and what it protects, while explaining that they hate the rule that’s been put in place to protect net neutrality, and think it could ruin everything. [More]
YouTube Stops Complaining About T-Mobile’s Binge On, Joins Program
By 3.17.16
Remember all those years ago, when YouTube publicly railed against T-Mobile’s Binge On program, saying the wireless company may have violated FCC rules by throttling all video traffic? And then it led to a war of words, culminating in the T-Mobile CEO cursing out his critics on Twitter and accusing the Electronic Frontier Foundation of taking money from his competition? That was only a matter of weeks ago, but it’s all water under the bridge because YouTube has agreed to be part of Binge On after T-Mo made changes to give content companies more control over streaming quality. [More]
Consumer Advocates Petition FCC To Stop Comcast Exempting Their Own Stuff From Data Caps
By 3.3.16
Zero-rating — that thing where a company can exempt some services from data caps, to encourage customers to use it instead of other services — is still a big question mark, legally speaking. Is it “innovative” and “competitive” or does it violate net neutrality? The jury (or really, the FCC) is still out on that one, but a new formal complaint may finally force their hand toward some kind of decision. [More]
Senators Once Again Introduce Bill To Try To Stop FCC And Net Neutrality
By 3.1.16
Since June, 2015, net neutrality — or specifically, the FCC’s Open Internet Rule — has been the law of the land. While the rule is a win for consumers, plenty of businesses and politicians still don’t care for it, to say the least. So while the court challenge against it takes its own sweet time to mosey through the judicial system, opponents are taking another approach. What’s the best way to undo a law you hate? Get a new law. [More]
Net Neutrality Is A Year Old Today. What’s Changed, What Hasn’t, And Where Does It Stand?
By 2.26.16
Happy birthday, net neutrality! A year ago today, after a long and contentious process, the FCC formally adopted the Open Internet Rule, reclassifying broadband internet as a Title II communications service and creating bright-line rules to protect consumers’ and businesses’ access to the internet. [More]
Did Net Neutrality Kill Broadband Investment Like Comcast, AT&T, Verizon Said It Would?
By 2.9.16
Last year, when the FCC was preparing to vote on the new Open Internet Order (aka “net neutrality”) and its reclassification of broadband Internet as a vital utility, virtually the entire telecom and cable industry claimed this change would ruin investment and slow innovation. But a look at the year-end financial figures for the biggest naysayers casts a lot of doubt on these dire predictions. [More]
Stanford Law Professor: T-Mobile’s ‘Binge On’ Violates Net Neutrality Rules
By 1.29.16
Last fall, T-Mobile introduced Binge On, an optional program that lets users stream certain video streams without counting the data against their monthly allotments. YouTube and others have accused the company of throttling data in order to make this happen, and a new report from Stanford University claims that T-Mo’s actions are in violation of federal “net neutrality” rules. [More]
Verizon Finally Catches Up To T-Mobile, AT&T; Launches Program To Free Up More Data For Mobile Subscribers
By 1.19.16
Last month, executives with Verizon said the company would one day test sponsored data. That day is apparently today, as the largest wireless provider in the U.S. launched FreeBee Data, its version of T-Mobile and AT&T’s programs that don’t ding users’ data plans when they access certain content. [More]
T-Mobile CEO John Legere Sorry For Cursing Out Critics On Twitter
By 1.11.16
Last week, T-Mobile CEO John Legere went on Twitter to post video responses to questions about his company’s Binge On program. While the rabble-rousing exec is often applauded for his plainspoken demeanor, he was roundly criticized for cursing out one pro-consumer group that has been critical of his company. After a few days to think about it, Legere is now apologizing. [More]
T-Mobile CEO John Legere To Critics Of Binge On: “Who The F**k Are You?”
By 1.7.16
Earlier today, I predicted that there would be further slinging of words between T-Mobile and critics of its Binge On video streaming program. What I didn’t know at the time was that T-Mo CEO John Legere would go on Twitter to respond to, and profanely insult, those critics. [More]
T-Mobile Execs Say YouTube Is “Absurd” For Complaining About Downgraded Video Quality
By 1.7.16
The war of words between T-Mobile and YouTube continues, with executives from the wireless company claiming it’s “absurd” that the streaming service should care so much about T-Mo downgrading the quality of YouTube videos. [More]
Test Claims To Show T-Mobile’s YouTube “Optimization” Is Just Connection Throttling
By 1.5.16
We’ve had a bit of a high-tech tiff going on for the past few weeks between YouTube and T-Mobile. First, YouTube accused T-Mobile of unfairly degrading their video. T-Mobile replied nuh-uh, everything is simply optimized for mobile and the world is great. So who’s right? [More]
T-Mobile Denies “Throttling” YouTube, Says Video Is “Mobile Optimized”
By 12.30.15
Right before Christmas, YouTube publicly called out T-Mobile’s Binge On streaming program for allegedly slowing down all video content, potentially in violation of new federal “net neutrality” rules. Now T-Mobile counters YouTube’s argument by claiming that it’s just trying to provide users with speeds that are appropriate for use on mobile networks. [More]
YouTube Calls Out T-Mobile For Throttling Video Traffic
By 12.23.15
Net neutrality says that internet providers can’t throttle some services and speed others up. That much is clear. But if they’re throttling literally everyone, even those who didn’t sign up for it, is it still a violation? Google says yes, and has a definite complaint about the way T-Mobile is starting to handle video. [More]
Kickstarter, Tumblr, Etsy, Others Ask Lawmakers To Not Use Budget To Ruin Net Neutrality
By 12.11.15
While the telecom industry is fighting the bad fight against net neutrality through the legal system — the way such matters are supposed to be handled — some in Congress want to ruin the FCC’s Open Internet Order by using good ol’ fashioned pork-barrel politics, slapping riders that will undercut the pro-consumer regulation onto the omnibus budget bill now being compiled on Capitol Hill. [More]
Verizon To Follow Lead Of AT&T, T-Mobile; Try Some Sort Of Sponsored Data
By 12.10.15
The largest wireless provider in the U.S. has also been one of the least innovative in terms of its pricing. Its Chief Financial Officer even said earlier this year that “We’re a leader, not a follower.” And yet, Big V is just beginning to dip its toes into an idea that its competition has been swimming in for quite some time. [More]
Net Neutrality Opponents, FCC Get Their Long-Awaited Day To Argue In Court
By 12.4.15
We all knew from the moment that the FCC voted to reclassify broadband and protect the open internet back in February that ISPs would file every suit they could think of to kill the rule off again, as thoroughly as could be. The suits were formally filed back in April, but the wheels of justice and government roll at something of a slow grind and so the oral arguments in the case were finally heard today. [More]
