InfoWorld — Sneaky broadband data caps imperil the Internet's future

The free market can undercut free competition? You betcha.

Is anyone surprised by the new government report that found most people don't want data caps on their home Internet service? What you might not have been aware of, however, is that ISPs admit usage-based pricing has little to do with managing network congestion -- so stop blaming capless users binging on "Breaking Bad" for your slow Internet speeds. Data caps, it seems, are a part of ISPs' plans to increase the cost of Internet access. Now there's a shocker.

The GAO (Government Accountability Office) this week released a preliminary report on Internet data caps based on findings from focus groups and interviews with experts. The study was requested by Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), a ranking member of the House Communications Subcommittee, who represents a district in Silicon Valley. Eshoo said she asked for the report based on concerns that "discriminatory or arbitrary applications" of usage-based broadband pricing could "discourage innovation, competition, and consumer choice" on the Internet.

"In the midst of the Net neutrality debate, the topic of usage-based pricing is more relevant than ever," Eshoo said. "While much of the talk has focused on the anti-competitive impact of fast and slow lanes, data caps, particularly when applied discriminatorily, could have the same damaging impact on the free and open Internet as we know it."

Don't you hate it when the rest of the world has better and cheaper broadband service than the US?

The Internet is essentially a public utility and needs to be regulated as such rather than becoming the fiefdom of the major providers who dominate the market.

InfoWorld
Sneaky broadband data caps imperil the Internet's future

Caroline Craig
(h/t Lambert Strether at Naked Capitalism)