ƒç During the process of trying to merge AT&T back with BellSouth there were several critical defining sections.   The biggest is actually defining Net Neutrality.   By their doing so it lets the cat out of the bag where people are saying that it can't be defined.

The bad news is they only agree with the stipulations laid out in the agreement for 24 months.   That is not much time to clairfy and legislate the issue of Net Neteurality.   We must stay on top of this and keep up pressure thru netroots activism like Save The Internet and contacts to your local lawmakers to let them know we are watching.

This is just a single major battle in a continuing war against the megacorps and maintaining our rights on the internet...

DAILY KOS AT&T Buckles on Net Neutrality

By by mcjoan
December 29, 2006

While we didn't get everything we wanted in the last Congress with Net Neutrality, we managed to hold off some very bad legislation, and to have a major impact in the negotiation process of AT&T's buyout of BellSouth, which was approved by the FCC today.   While the larger buyout raises many valid concerns about media consolidation and conglomeration, the provisions on net neutrality agreed to by AT&T signal a significant win for the good guys. From Columbia law professor, Tim Wu:

Strikingly, AT&T commits to a basic set of Network Neutrality principles that establish a baseline of great importance. They do not create a pure "bit-discrimination rule," but this language is crafted as a practical implementation of neutrality. As the first working rule, it may serve as a model and an experiment for what follows, which is why it merits attention.

The letter of commitment from AT&T to the FCC did a pretty good job of doing just that, defining net neutrality:

AT&T/BellSouth also commits that it will maintain a neutral network and neutral routing in its wireline broadband Internet access service. This commitment shall be satisfied by AT&T/BellSouth's agreement not to provide or to sell to Internet content, application, or service providers, including those affiliated with AT&T/BellSouth, any service that privileges, degrades or prioritizes any packet transmitted over AT&T/BellSouth's wireline broadband Internet access service based on its source, ownership or destination.

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Tags ::  Politics • Save The Internet • Net Neutrality • FCC • 110th Congress