FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 6, 2019
Contact: Mark Stanley, [email protected], 202.681.7582
The following can be attributed to Mark Stanley, director of communications for Demand Progress:
“Demand Progress supports the Save the Internet Act to fully restore the open internet rules gutted by Chairman Ajit Pai’s FCC. Already, the effects of the FCC’s repeal are being felt, from Verizon’s throttling of firefighters’ data services during a massive wildfire in California last summer, to reports that carriers are throttling video services like Netflix and YouTube. If Congress doesn’t act now, internet providers will only grow more brazen in their pursuit of greater profits at the expense of what’s best for consumers.
“The repeal of strong net neutrality rules is a stark example of the kind of undemocratic and corrupt pandering to corporate interests the public is fed up with from Washington. The repeal serves only Big Telecom executives and the army of lobbyists they employ on Capitol Hill, while sticking it to ordinary Americans who rely on the internet to organize, do business, and access the information they need. It’s imperative every member of Congress, regardless of party, stand with their constituents by cosponsoring and voting for the Save the Internet Act.
“The Save the Internet Act will restore the protections from the 2015 Open Internet Order and the strong legal framework of classifying broadband internet access under Title II of the Communications Act. This legal framework is crucial not just to preventing internet providers from blocking, throttling and engaging in paid prioritization, but also to safeguarding against privacy violations and promoting competition and broadband deployment. Lawmakers should not be fooled — no other legislation in Congress comes close to ensuring these strong protections, and the public will settle for nothing less.”
Are Technica: Verizon throttled fire department’s “unlimited” data during Calif. wildfire
Bloomberg: YouTube, Netflix Videos Found to Be Slowed by Wireless Carriers
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