President Stands Behind Network Neutrality
John Eggerton -- Multichannel News, 2/1/2010 4:58:24 PM
In an interview Monday on YouTube, President Barack Obama gave a shout-out to network neutrality and his FCC chairman on Monday.
In the interview, conducted Feb. 1 by YouTube political director Steve Grove based on questions submitted online after the State of the Union speech, Obama said he continued to be a strong supporter -- as he was for network neutrality legislation while he was a senator.
"I'm a big believer in net neutrality," he said. "I campaigned on this. I continue to be a strong supporter of it. My FCC chairman Julius Genachowski has indicated that he shares the view that we've got to keep the Internet open, that we don't want to create a bunch of gateways that prevent somebody who doesn't have a lot of money but has a good idea from being able to start their next YouTube or their next Google on the Internet."
Genachowski and the FCC's Democratic majority have proposed expanding and codifying the commission's network openness principles.
The president said the network neutrality was getting "pushback" from "bigger carriers," who he said want to charge more to "extract more money from wealthier customers." He said that "runs counter to the whole spirit of openness that has made the Internet such a powerful engine for not only economic growth, but also for the generation of ideas and creativity."
Those carriers have generally agreed that the Internet needs to be open and accessible, but also argue that new rules could discourage investment and innovation and that variable pricing models for different levels of service are not inconsistent with openness.
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