House bill would prohibit unreasonable and disciminatory practices by broadband providers

Ben Scott, policy director of Free Press, and contributing author to Mandate for Change, comments on a new bill that would require broadband providers to get permission from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission before introducing new subscription fees.

Ben Scott, policy director of Free Press, praised the bill. “This a really inspiring example where grass-roots activism in response to an unfair business practice by a big corporation led to direct intervention by a congressional leader,” he said. “These kind of Internet overcharges will cripple [Internet-based] development and really set back communities by years if not more.”

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Obama’s Tech Agenda Put On Hold

Ben Scott, the policy director for the media advocacy group Free Press and contributing author to Mandate for Change, was quoted in an article in CBS news about President Obama’s technology agenda.

“I think it’s a positive sign (the administration is) including technology as a cross-cutting issue in all of their priorities. So far, with every opportunity to push technology policy into the mix, they’ve done so. Some of the standalone tech policy agenda has not been an immediate priority, but it would be unfair to demand that, given the other crises the administration is dealing with.”

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Make Wireless Widely Available

Here’s an easy way to make internet access not only widely available but also faster and more affordable: open the public airwaves to deliver wireless connectivity to the public. The most valuable, unused chunks of airwaves today are the TV channels that are not being used by TV stations. These unused “white spaces” could be opened immediately for so-called “unlicensed” use. The result would resemble WiFi–but be faster and more ubiquitous. The sky is the limit in the unlicensed spectrum–a perfect free market with enormous public service benefits.

Author: Ben Scott, Free Press