“If You Like Your Internet”… Obama Calls For Regulation To Keep “Internet Open”

“An open Internet is essential to the American economy, and increasingly to our very way of life,” begins the President as he explains why the FCC should regulate the internet for Americans’ own good:
*OBAMA CALLS FOR REGULATING INTERNET LIKE PHONE COMPANIES *OBAMA ASKS FOR ‘STRONGEST POSSIBLE RULES’ FOR OPEN INTERNET “The Internet has been one of the greatest gifts our economy – and our society – has ever known,” and that’s why Obama feels the need to regulate it to “protect an open, accessible, and free Internet.”
Full Statement:
An open Internet is essential to the American economy, and increasingly to our very way of life. By lowering the cost of launching a new idea, igniting new political movements, and bringing communities closer together, it has been one of the most significant democratizing influences the world has ever known.
‘Net neutrality’ has been built into the fabric of the Internet since its creation – but it is also a principle that we cannot take for granted. We cannot allow Internet service providers (ISPs) to restrict the best access or to pick winners and losers in the online marketplace for services and ideas. That is why today, I am asking the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to answer the call of almost 4 million public comments, and implement the strongest possible rules to protect net neutrality.
When I was a candidate for this office, I made clear my commitment to a free and open Internet, and my commitment remains as strong as ever. Four years ago, the FCC tried to implement rules that would protect net neutrality with little to no impact on the telecommunications companies that make important investments in our economy. After the rules were challenged, the court reviewing the rules agreed with the FCC that net neutrality was essential for preserving an environment that encourages new investment in the network, new online services and content, and everything else that makes up the Internet as we now know it. Unfortunately, the court ultimately struck down the rules – not because it disagreed with the need to protect net neutrality, but because it believed the FCC had taken the wrong legal approach.

This post was published at Zero Hedge on 11/10/2014.