DSL Prime: Powell's Four Freedoms

Many see FCC Chairman Michael Powell as the enemy of Internet freedom, but he speaks out, showing that he opposes limits on what customers can do with their Internet access.

by Dave Burstein DSL Prime [March 1, 2004]

Mike Powell's Four Freedoms
Freedom to Access Content. First, consumers should have access to their choice of legal content.

Consumers have come to expect to be able to go where they want on high-speed connections, and those who have migrated from dial-up would presumably object to paying a premium for broadband if certain content were blocked. Thus, I challenge all facets of the industry to commit to allowing consumers to reach the content of their choice. I recognize that network operators have a legitimate need to manage their networks and ensure a quality experience, thus reasonable limits sometimes must be placed in service contracts. Such restraints, however, should be clearly spelled out and should be as minimal as necessary.

Freedom to Use Applications. Second, consumers should be able to run applications of their choice.

As with access to content, consumers have come to expect that they can generally run whatever applications they want. Again, such applications are critical to continuing the digital broadband migration because they can drive the demand that fuels deployment. Applications developers must remain confident that their products will continue to work without interference from other companies. No one can know for sure which killer applications will emerge to drive deployment of the next generation high-speed technologies. Thus, I challenge all facets of the industry to let the market work and allow consumers to run applications unless they exceed service plan limitations or harm the providers network.

Freedom to Attach Personal Devices. Third, consumers should be permitted to attach any devices they choose to the connection in their homes.

Because devices give consumers more choice, value and personalization with respect to how they use their high-speed connections, they are critical to the future of broadband. Thus, I challenge all facets of the industry to permit consumers to attach any devices they choose to their broadband connection, so long as the devices operate within service plan limitations and do not harm the providers network or enable theft of service.

Freedom to Obtain Service Plan Information. Fourth, consumers should receive meaningful information regarding their service plans.

Simply put, such information is necessary to ensure that the market is working. Providers have every right to offer a variety of service tiers with varying bandwidth and feature options. Consumers need to know about these choices as well as whether and how their service plans protect them against spam, spyware and other potential invasions of privacy. Thus, I challenge all facets of the industry to ensure that broadband consumers can easily obtain the information they need to make rational choices among an ever-expanding array of different pricing and service plan....Preserving Net Freedom also will serve as an important insurance policy against the potential rise of abusive market power by vertically-integrated broadband providers. And, if we secure a reasonable balance between the needs of network providers and Internet freedom, consumers will reap the benefits of broadband without intrusive regulation, while preserving industry s incentives to deploy more high-speed broadband platforms.

In closing, I would emphasize that consumers also have a role in this challenge to preserve Net Freedom. I encourage consumers to challenge their broadband providers to live up to these standards and to let the Commission know how the industry is doing. Net Freedom is intended to give broadband consumers the choices, value and personalization they have come to expect. Thus, consumers are the ultimate judges of whether the industry is successfully preserving Net Freedom, or falling short. ... Continuing to keep a sharp watch for dangerous shoals will ensure that someday soon we will dock safely on the shore and begin a bright new era in communications.

Copyright 2004 Dave Burstein.
The DSL Prime Newsletter is reprinted with permission.

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