Minority Groups Ask FCC for “Digital Equal Opportunity” in Broadband Plan
Sixteen organizations representing a diverse swathe of the American public are urging the Federal Communications Commission to recognize that any changes affecting net neutrality may also exacerbate the digital divide that already disproportionately affect minorities.
In comments submitted to the FCC, the group expresses concern that proposed rules on net neutrality imply they can only improve minority access issues, which they don’t believe is a given. The group is also asking the FCC to develop monitoring mechanisms to track the real world impact of its rules in the future.
“If drafted or applied incorrectly, net neutrality rules could increase the price of broadband for minorities, reduce broadband adoption, deter the investments necessary to fully bridge the digital divide, limit job growth and economic opportunity, and harm the interests of minorities in other significant ways.”
The FCC is set to issue its National Broadband Plan next month, and a major concern of this group and others representing those who are typically on the wrong side of the digital divide is that the plan include concrete steps to alleviate the disparities in both access and adoption. The filing suggests applying a principle of “Digital Equal Opportunity,” meaning access to the internet regardless of geography, social-economic status, race or ethnicity, tribal status, language, age, or physical or mental ability.
The organizations participating in the filing include:
- The ASPIRA Association
- Black College Communications Association
- The Hispanic Institute
- Hispanic Technology and Telecommunications Partnership
- Labor Council for Latin American Advancement
- Latinos in Information Sciences and Technology Association
- Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
- League of United Latin American Citizens
- MANA, A National Latina Organization
- National Association of Black County Officials
- National Black Caucus of State Legislators
- National Conference of Black Mayors
- The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation-Black Women’s Roundtable
- National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women
- National Puerto Rican Coalition
- United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
If it seems odd that all of these organizations would come together you are not alone. In fact this is an historic filing. Never before have this many elected/appointed officials joined with civil rights organizations in filing comprehensive Comments of this nature in any Federal Communications Commission docket. Love to see stuff like this, especially on MLK Day.
Category: News | Tags: FCC, Net Neutrality
About the Author Lesly Simmons is a freelance writer and interactive communications and events specialist based in San Francisco, California.
See all posts by Lesly Simmons.
Simple, they come out when they smell money as mentioned above! These dam minorities want everything for nothing! This is the biggest load I have seen in a while. Oh, my internet wont let me download this song, its because I am a minority! Hell lets be realistic, when the title said minority I was expecting to see some group of white americans listed, since whites are the minority. Plain bs. If you pay your bill you shall have service period. And if your area does not have broadband available, then maybe everybody in those areas should ban together and launch a complaint or whatever, as I doubt any isp holds back from deploying based on ethnicity, rather by $.
Simple, they come out when they smell money as mentioned above! These dam minorities want everything for nothing! This is the biggest load I have seen in a while. Oh, my internet wont let me download this song, its because I am a minority! Hell lets be realistic, when the title said minority I was expecting to see some group of white americans listed, since whites are the minority. Plain bs. If you pay your bill you shall have service period. And if your area does not have broadband available, then maybe everybody in those areas should ban together and launch a complaint or whatever, as I doubt any isp holds back from deploying based on ethnicity, rather by $.
They smell Money! Why else would they be found under the same umbrella?
They smell Money! Why else would they be found under the same umbrella?
Utter non-sense
Utter non-sense
Net Neutrality is the basis of the internet operation. A packet of data is transmitted in the order received to the address requested. First packet in becomes first packet out. The ISP creates no prioritization based on the type of data in the packet or where the packet came from or where it is going, no discrimination or delay based on the type of data in the packet or where the packet came from or where the packet is going. Basic IP/TCP process. Some ISPs, mainly those that deliver cable television or IPTV, want people to think they will not invest in the future infrastructure of the internet if they cannot violate these principles. Strange that they have been investing in internet facility improvements for the past 20 years while following these principles for the most part. It is only the advent of HD video transported over broadband that threatens the existing monopoly held by cable television over movie or TV viewing that is creating the corporate need to violate the existing Network Neutrality principles. In other words, if you get your internet access from a cable company, they want to make sure that you will always go through them for your online video viewing. And that means they will want to degrade the quality of the viewing experience from any internet based source by creating a worse(slower) download experience, by delaying those packets, than you get by going through the sources that the cable company profits from. Instead of having to arbitrate, mediate or litigate every possible scheme to create these delayed internet packets in the future, Net Neutrality advocates want to the law to declare that all bytes are to be treated equally. Since spam, criminal activities, and denial of service attacks threaten the functioning of the internet, the ISPs are allowed under the proposed legislation to deal with those issues. All bad actors are treated the same. The cable companies real fear is becoming nothing more than common carriers. This is similar to UPS, FedEx, and DHL. They move cargo. They don't make cargo, They do not discriminate based on who sent the cargo, what the cargo is, or who it is going to. They compete to have you, the cargo shipper, choose them to deliver your cargo. They are common carriers. That is what we, the Net neutrality advocates, want from the ISPs. To behave as common carriers.
Net Neutrality is the basis of the internet operation. A packet of data is transmitted in the order received to the address requested. First packet in becomes first packet out. The ISP creates no prioritization based on the type of data in the packet or where the packet came from or where it is going, no discrimination or delay based on the type of data in the packet or where the packet came from or where the packet is going. Basic IP/TCP process. Some ISPs, mainly those that deliver cable television or IPTV, want people to think they will not invest in the future infrastructure of the internet if they cannot violate these principles. Strange that they have been investing in internet facility improvements for the past 20 years while following these principles for the most part. It is only the advent of HD video transported over broadband that threatens the existing monopoly held by cable television over movie or TV viewing that is creating the corporate need to violate the existing Network Neutrality principles. In other words, if you get your internet access from a cable company, they want to make sure that you will always go through them for your online video viewing. And that means they will want to degrade the quality of the viewing experience from any internet based source by creating a worse(slower) download experience, by delaying those packets, than you get by going through the sources that the cable company profits from. Instead of having to arbitrate, mediate or litigate every possible scheme to create these delayed internet packets in the future, Net Neutrality advocates want to the law to declare that all bytes are to be treated equally. Since spam, criminal activities, and denial of service attacks threaten the functioning of the internet, the ISPs are allowed under the proposed legislation to deal with those issues. All bad actors are treated the same. The cable companies real fear is becoming nothing more than common carriers. This is similar to UPS, FedEx, and DHL. They move cargo. They don't make cargo, They do not discriminate based on who sent the cargo, what the cargo is, or who it is going to. They compete to have you, the cargo shipper, choose them to deliver your cargo. They are common carriers. That is what we, the Net neutrality advocates, want from the ISPs. To behave as common carriers.
Simple, they come out when they smell money as mentioned above! These dam minorities want everything for nothing! This is the biggest load I have seen in a while. Oh, my internet wont let me download this song, its because I am a minority! Hell lets be realistic, when the title said minority I was expecting to see some group of white americans listed, since whites are the minority. Plain bs. If you pay your bill you shall have service period. And if your area does not have broadband available, then maybe everybody in those areas should ban together and launch a complaint or whatever, as I doubt any isp holds back from deploying based on ethnicity, rather by $.
They smell Money! Why else would they be found under the same umbrella?
Utter non-sense
Net Neutrality is the basis of the internet operation. A packet of data is transmitted in the order received to the address requested. First packet in becomes first packet out. The ISP creates no prioritization based on the type of data in the packet or where the packet came from or where it is going, no discrimination or delay based on the type of data in the packet or where the packet came from or where the packet is going. Basic IP/TCP process. Some ISPs, mainly those that deliver cable television or IPTV, want people to think they will not invest in the future infrastructure of the internet if they cannot violate these principles. Strange that they have been investing in internet facility improvements for the past 20 years while following these principles for the most part. It is only the advent of HD video transported over broadband that threatens the existing monopoly held by cable television over movie or TV viewing that is creating the corporate need to violate the existing Network Neutrality principles. In other words, if you get your internet access from a cable company, they want to make sure that you will always go through them for your online video viewing. And that means they will want to degrade the quality of the viewing experience from any internet based source by creating a worse(slower) download experience, by delaying those packets, than you get by going through the sources that the cable company profits from. Instead of having to arbitrate, mediate or litigate every possible scheme to create these delayed internet packets in the future, Net Neutrality advocates want to the law to declare that all bytes are to be treated equally. Since spam, criminal activities, and denial of service attacks threaten the functioning of the internet, the ISPs are allowed under the proposed legislation to deal with those issues. All bad actors are treated the same. The cable companies real fear is becoming nothing more than common carriers. This is similar to UPS, FedEx, and DHL. They move cargo. They don't make cargo, They do not discriminate based on who sent the cargo, what the cargo is, or who it is going to. They compete to have you, the cargo shipper, choose them to deliver your cargo. They are common carriers. That is what we, the Net neutrality advocates, want from the ISPs. To behave as common carriers.