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The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has asked AT&T, Comcast and T-Mobile US to explain how they offer customers free data for watching online video—practices that raise net neutrality concerns. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler emphasized that this request is not an investigation, but rather an effort to keep the agency informed about these service models.
In November 2015, Wheeler said the FCC would monitor T‑Mobile’s Binge On program, which exempts certain online video from counting against a customer’s limited data plan. He also mentioned Comcast’s Stream, a $15-per-month online TV service being trialed with Xfinity subscribers.
Comcast is also testing usage-based billing, charging customers who exceed a 300 GB monthly cap an additional $10 for each 50 GB increment. That approach is aimed at the small fraction of subscribers who generate heavy traffic through video streaming and other bandwidth-intensive activities.
AT&T offers a sponsored data option in which content providers can pay for customers’ mobile data usage when they stream video or access specific content on phones and tablets. AT&T has reportedly signed agreements with several companies to provide that service.
Net neutrality advocates say the FCC should scrutinize whether these practices violate the agency’s open‑internet rules by giving preferential treatment to some video services. Critics warn that such arrangements could create advantages for companies that can afford to pay for better access, potentially undermining an open and equal internet. In 2014, Senator Al Franken of Minnesota warned that broadband providers might establish “fast lanes” for firms with deeper pockets.
Do you think the FCC should be concerned about “free” data?