WBS: Public Telecom & Net Neutrality

WBS dept:

Another man called from Lafayette, La., which has been battling Bell South and Cox Communications for years over the city’s attempts to provide municipal broadband to its residents. “An effective broadband strategy must allow for public ownership of the networks,” he declared angrily. “There’s a distinction between the interests of these corporations and the interests of communities. It became very clear in the fiber fight down here.”

Damn right. That quote is Mike’s and can be found in In These Times’ “Not Neutrality” article. It was uttered during a conference call focused on state video franchise laws and how those laws should be dealt with. As the article and Mike’s remarks indicate, some issues including net neutrality and encouraging rather than discouraging municipal participation weren’t dealt with adequately.