"Most of our facilities rely on a single provider for Internet and telecommunications needs: Charter Communications. The Marshfield Clinic Health System in Wisconsin told the FCC of Charter's involvement in fundraising efforts and its provision of Internet service to clinics. The Boys & Girls Club of the West Valley in Canoga Park, California, told the FCC that Charter gave 10 Samsung Galaxy tablets to the club and that "it only seems fair to level the playing field for Charter so they can have the same opportunities to grow as companies similar to them." Other Boys & Girls Club chapters supporting Charter after getting donations include ones in Fremont County, Colorado Schenectady, New York (which received a $75,000 donation) and Niagara Falls in New York.Ī US Veterans Corps filing in support of Charter's petition notes that the ISP "is a major supporter of our Operation Coming Home initiative, which provides new homes to troops who have been injured or families of fallen in combat operations." The veterans group said it is "happy to endorse their effort at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to remove two conditions from the merger." Nonprofits are ready for data capsįCC filings submitted by charities and community groups discuss the donations Charter gave them. The Boys & Girls Club of Harlem told the FCC it received a $35,000 grant from Charter this year for a learning lab and that "we are happy to support Charter as they seek to sunset two merger conditions-one on data caps and usage-based pricing and the other on interconnection." Advertisement Any FCC order that lifts the merger conditions two years early would likely cite arguments from the various filings supporting Charter's case. is the earliest date on which the conditions can be eliminated under the original terms of the merger approval. The FCC conditions were designed to prevent Charter from hindering online video providers that compete against the company's cable TV service. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai voted against the conditions when they were imposed in 2016 under then-FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, an Obama nominee. Instead, it merely seeks "a level playing field so that we can continue to grow and provide superior service to our customers across the country." But if Charter had zero intention of imposing data caps or changing its interconnection policies, there would be no reason to spearhead a big lobbying effort involving charities and politicians.Ĭharter's petition likely has a good chance at the Republican-majority FCC. The letters continue a years-long trend in which ISPs have been donating to charities and receiving their support in lobbying campaigns to complete mergers and eliminate consumer-protection regulations.Ĭharter told Ars last month that it doesn't "currently" plan to impose data caps or change its interconnection policy. The letters from nonprofits and politicians ignore the negative impact data caps would have on broadband customers. Many of the letters to the FCC echo Charter's argument that it shouldn't be treated differently from other Internet providers that don't face such conditions-even though Charter willingly agreed to them in order to secure approval for a merger that made it the second-largest ISP in the United States after Comcast. Charter has donated to these nonprofits and politicians, and it has apparently made a big outreach effort to get their public support for the petition. This is unacceptable," one person wrote in a sentiment echoed by hundreds of other Internet users who wrote to the FCC in the past few weeks.įurther Reading Charter seeks FCC OK to impose data caps and charge fees to video servicesīut alongside the angry users of Spectrum Internet service are a number of politicians and charities urging the FCC to grant the petition. "In this age of Internet communication, data caps are an unscrupulous way to gouge money from clients, many of whom do not have alternative Internet sources. With the FCC seeking public comment, the docket is overwhelmingly filled with consumers urging the commission to oppose Charter's request for permission to limit consumers' data usage and charge data-overage fees. If Charter's petition is granted, the company would be able to impose data caps on its Spectrum broadband service and charge network-interconnection fees to video providers after May 18, 2021, instead of in May 2023 as scheduled. Nonprofits and local politicians are lining up to support a Charter Communications petition that would let the ISP impose data caps on broadband users and seek interconnection payments from large online-video providers.Ĭharter filed the petition with the Federal Communications Commission last month, asking the FCC to eliminate merger conditions applied to its 2016 purchase of Time Warner Cable two years early. Tony Webster / Flickr reader comments 80 with
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