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For more about net neutrality, watch The FCC's New York

March 28, 2017 by James Ashley

For more about net neutrality, watch  The FCC's  New York Times  ( https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/11/us/net-neutrality-rules-protect-freedom-in-the-cities-and-west.html ).  In this story, the Times's Mark Kavcic is quoted in saying that the FCC's order to eliminate "strict rules" is "completely meaningless and a slap in the face to internet freedom." To his credit, Kavcic continues that the FCC should not "go after broadband providers who operate under net neutrality rules." As we reported last week, the FCC is considering an order to cut the internet from the internet in favor of more traditional channels, a move that would protect all internet users.

This is just one example of a number of other ISPs' statements that Verizon's throttling of its fire department is a "mistake." In 2012, Verizon Wireless announced that it throttled its Fire department in order to keep the information about it from being shared with its ISP. It also claimed that Verizon's throttling of its Fire department was done to avoid "incidental traffic issues."

Last month, the FCC also ordered Verizon to disclose whether it is planning to expand its Fire phone network.

In a statement provided to Ars, Verizon said that this case demonstrates "the urgent need for a rule that protects the open Internet and makes it more accessible for all." This is just another example of the company's attempts to block open Internet access.

In their own statements, Verizon said that it has "no plans to add or change any new service lines to their Fire network."

"We did not create the Fire network to compete against rivals and we have no plans to create new services because we are happy to share our data with them," said Verizon, referring to the Fire network. "In fact, we are very happy to share our data with them. However, we have to take the time to think carefully about the situation, and we have to make sure that our Fire network is not subject to the same standards and risks as other Internet service providers."

According to the FCC, if the FCC allows ISPs to use Open Internet rules to protect the open Internet, then "We plan to move forward on implementation of our Open Internet rules," and to "seek a fair and mutually beneficial trade-off between protecting open Internet and protecting the open Internet by making them available to all service users in all markets."