AT&T Might Filter Internet Traffic

Agency had no standing to regulate Comcast, 3-judge panel rules

(NEWSER) - A federal court today said the FCC does not have the power to force Internet service providers to treat all traffic equally. The ruling, in a closely watched case concerning Comcast's ban on BitTorrent, is a blow to the Obama administration’s crusade for net neutrality. But the FCC failed to show that regulating ISPs falls within “its statutorily mandated responsibilities,” a three-judge appeals court panel ruled. More»

(AP) - China is postponing enforcement of a new rule mandating that all new computers be sold with filtering software. The rule was to go into effect tomorrow, but the official Xinhua News Agency said in a brief report today that the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology had decided to delay the plan. It did not say why or give any other details. More»

Promises new system for managing network, probably by end of year

(NEWSER) - Comcast is changing the way it manages Internet traffic after an intense public and FCC outcry over its blocking traffic from BitTorrent users. To cut use during peak hours, the Internet provider will stop targeting specific applications and instead slow its highest-bandwidth users’ traffic, reports the New York Times. Still, the FCC promised to continue scrutinizing the company. More»

Cable and ISP giant accused of hiring seatfillers to silence critics

(NEWSER) - The future direction of the Internet could be at stake in the FCC's decisions on net neutrality, but one of the ISPs concerned did its best to keep opponents out of a hearing on it, Portfolio.com reports. Advocacy group and fierce Comcast critic Free Press says the firm hired people off the street to fill seats at a Cambridge, Mass., hearing into the ISP's competition-stifling practices. Many of the seatfillers snoozed through the meeting. More»

Agency says it will step in to stop ISPs from blocking access

(NEWSER) - FCC boss Kevin Martin told a hearing yesterday that the government was "ready, willing, and able to step in" to stop Internet service providers from restricting traffic sent by rivals, the Wall Street Journal reports. Comcast is accused of acting improperly by slowing or blocking access to file-sharing sites. The cable giant says it is merely managing its network. More»