AT&T offers concessions on bellsouth buyout!!!
the scientists at the labs were totally surprised to see such good news in today's paper, but this temporary victory needs to be made permanent. it's time for the new congress to finish the work of the FCC and make net neutrality permanent under the law.
from the New York Times:
"AT&T offered new concessions to federal regulators late yesterday in the hopes of salvaging its $84 billion proposed acquisition of BellSouth.
"The concessions included a pledge to provide Internet users unobstructed Internet connections, an important gesture meant to win over dissenting commissioners at the Federal Communications Commission."
…
"In addition to the net neutrality pledge, AT&T, which is already the nation's largest phone company, also offered to sell certain wireless spectrum and phone lines, a concession Mr. Copps and Mr. Adelstein have sought as a way to encourage competition and temper the company's dominance. And the company pledged to upgrade its telephone network so that it could provide high-speed Internet service to at least 85 percent of homes in its service area.
"The company said it would also extend favorable terms to rivals that want to rent its lines to provide their own phone and Internet service, an issue that has been the subject of innumerable legal, regulatory and political fights for more than a decade."
…
"If the F.C.C. approves the deal, AT&T said it would live by the commitments for three and a half years."
→ read the entire article
→ tell congress to make net neutrality the law
→ analysis of AT&T's concession by Columbia Law Professor Tim Wu
