The Federal Communications Commission chairman Ajit Pai has already moved to cut down low-income families’ access to broadband internet. Today he let his intentions be known that he is as deep into the pockets of big telecoms as one can get (without turning into a television set). He will be blocking the stricter privacy rules the Obama administration tried to implement on broadband providers’ ability to collect your data.
The rules approved by the FCC in October in a 3-2 vote were aimed at protecting sensitive personal consumer data, but the spokesman said Ajit Pai, the FCC chairman appointed by President Donald Trump, believes all companies in the "online space should be subject to the same rules, and the federal government should not favor one set of companies over another."
As with Pai’s previous moves, his justification is the opposite of what it will really do. He does this by creating a false equivalency between websites and broadband providers.
Republican commissioners including Pai, said in October the rules unfairly give websites the ability to harvest more data than service providers and dominate digital advertising.
This would mean something if consumers had tons of broadband providers to choose from in every market. They don’t. FCC Chair Ajit Pai is doing what we knew he would do: schilling for big telecom. Even worse? He’s going to use this new Republican attitude of speeding everything through.
The larger surprise is how quickly the process might happen. The bulk of the privacy rules are already in effect, but the data security provisions won’t have legal force until March 2nd. That deadline has given Chairman Pai a reason to act faster than expected, requesting that commissioners assemble for an emergency vote on the larger petition before the rules take effect on Thursday. If the commission stuck to its announced schedule, it wouldn’t meet again until March 23rd.
If the commissioners are willing to hold the emergency vote, the result could be a sudden freeze to the rules and a major win for cable companies. If the commissioners don’t assemble, Pai has pledged to unilaterally stay the data security portion of the rules, leaving the rest of the order in place.
Ajit Pai is yet another stooge in a long line of Republican stooges.