A trade group representing Google, Facebook, Amazon and other large Web companies is calling on the Federal Communications Commission to prohibit broadband providers from creating online fast lanes.
“The Internet must be defended from interests that would seek to control speech on the Internet, censor content, or provide advantages for speakers that have the means to pay for better
access,” the Internet Association said in its second round of comments on proposed net neutrality regulations. “The Commission should make clear that broadband gatekeepers should not have
the ability to create slow lanes and fast lanes on the Internet that discriminate against speech and harm users.”
The Internet Association also says that any neutrality rules should
apply equally to wired and wireless providers. “There is only one Internet, and the FCC’s openness rules should recognize that,” the organization writes.
The trade group
filed its comments on Wednesday -- the same day that many of the most popular Web sites organized a symbolic “slowdown” aimed at rallying support for net neutrality principles. That
initiative, which involved asking people to contact their lawmakers, resulted in almost 300,000 phone calls and more than 2 million emails to Congress, according to organizers.
The FCC, which
is accepting comments through Sept. 15, has already received a record-breaking 1.4 million comments. The Internet Association noted the unprecedented interest in neutrality in its most recent
filing.
“The public has spoken,” the trade group wrote. “It has reminded the Commission that the Internet is an indispensable platform for entertainment, commerce,
innovation, and democratic discourse.”
So far, though, it's hard to know what impact those comments are having on policymakers. As of today, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler hasn't indicated
that he plans to back away from an earlier proposal to allow broadband providers to charge companies extra for faster delivery.