MuniWireless

Free Press has published a PDF debunking the top ten net neutrality myths. For instance, the myth that net neutrality rules will discourage investment:

“The rhetoric about Net Neutrality discouraging investment is just a general outgrowth of the reflexive but misguided belief that any and all regulation discourages investment. The evidence does not support this theory. During the years following the Telecommunications Act of 1996, ISP investment rose dramatically as new regulations were being implemented. Investment declined, however, in the period…

The US  Broadband Coalition, an organization of more than 160 organizations whose goal is to advance the quality and penetration of broadband in the United States, has issued a report that summarizes the state of broadband and makes policy recommendations.

Excerpt from executive summary:

This report describes the opportunities that universal, affordable, and robust broadband connectivity will create for America; discusses national broadband goals; offers a range of policy options to stimulate broadband adoption and use and build-out, and to develop effective…

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski announced that the FCC will be taking steps to turn the four open Internet principles into law. In October, the FCC will issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to begin the process.

The four principles are outlined in a 2005 Internet Policy Statement:

To encourage broadband deployment and preserve and promote the open and interconnected nature of the public Internet, consumers are entitled to access the lawful Internet content of their choice. To encourage broadband deployment and…

Bob Frankston wrote a commentary back in June about communications infrastructure as dumb pipes and how the carriers try to extract value out of dumb pipes by creating artificial scarcity and vertical integration of infrastructure and services. Here is an excerpt from his piece:

Very simply – society needs dumb-pipes and carriers cannot survive being dumb-pipe providers. We have to face up to this stark truth and move on. The longer we wait the longer our economy is harmed and the…

A remarkable quote from Ivan Seidenberg, CEO of Verizon, the last true believer in the magic of free markets. The last time we trusted market players to spend money correctly with few restrictions, the global financial system blew up. There is no political support for letting private enterprise go on its old merry way completely unfettered, free of regulations or responsibilities. That era is over.

Seidenberg says he agrees with the goals of US government’s broadband stimulus package but thinks too…

With a new FCC chairman reportedly on his way in, it’s the perfect time to get as up to speed as possible on one of the most pressing telecom regulatory topics for 2009, the issue of network neutrality. And now we’ve made it easy for you to do so by offering our comprehensive report on the subject, titled “Net Neutrality Phase II: The Battle of 2009,” available for FREE DOWNLOAD from the Sidecut Reports website.

Prepared in an easy-to-read style with deep…