High monthly internet bills to pay? FCC kicks ISPs into submission, with new ruling
36 replies, posted
Got fooled by false advertising and decided to renew/change your internet provider, but you then got slapped with a bullshit internet bill?
Well, US FCC can lend you a hand (in a 6 months or so):
[QUOTE]The new rule specifies that home Internet providers and cellular carriers must make the following disclosures:
[U]Price[/U] — the full monthly service charge. Any promotional rates should be clearly noted as such, specify the duration of the promotional period, and note the full monthly service charge the consumer will incur after the expiration of the promotional period.
[U]Other Fees[/U] — all additional one time and/or recurring fees and/or surcharges the consumer may incur either to initiate, maintain, or discontinue service, including the name, definition, and cost of each additional fee. These may include modem rental fees, installation fees, service charges, and early termination fees, among others.
[U]Data Caps and Allowances[/U] — any data caps or allowances that are a part of the plan the consumer is purchasing, as well as the consequences of exceeding the cap or allowance (e.g., additional charges, loss of service for the remainder of the billing cycle).[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE]The transparency rule won't go into effect right away. The net neutrality bans on blocking, throttling, and paid prioritization will take effect 60 days after publication in the Federal Register, but new disclosure requirements require an additional approval by the Office of Management and Budget to comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act.
The FCC rules apply to broadband rather than TV service, but could lead to similar actions that force Internet providers to be more honest about what their services actually cost.
[/QUOTE]
([URL="http://arstechnica.com/business/2015/03/internet-providers-ordered-to-stop-hiding-the-true-size-of-monthly-bills/"]Full source[/URL])
Oh man, FCC is just dominating internet providers over here.
The future is bright.
It will be interesting to see how ISP's spin this as being a bad thing for consumers, though I'm sure they'll find a way.
[QUOTE=minilandstan;47318907]Oh man, FCC is just dominating internet providers over here.
The future is bright.[/QUOTE]
The fight is far from over.
Datacaps are so fucking stupid. They help no one, and hurt everyone. It's just a bullshit measure to increase profits.
[QUOTE=minilandstan;47318907]Oh man, FCC is just dominating internet providers over here.
The future is bright.[/QUOTE]
Disclosure is good, but actual market intervention would be better. Net neutrality doesn't change the fact that most Americans are slaves to one or two broadband providers that have agreed not to compete with each other.
[QUOTE]...and not the full monthly service charge the consumer will incur after the expiration of the promotional period.[/QUOTE]I distinctly remember my dad yelling into the phone, asking about what the price of the service plan would be after the two year contract was up. He eventually slammed the phone and from 2005-2007 we still had dial-up. The only reason why he eventually got cable was because being unable to use the internet and phone was becoming too much of an inconvenience.
[QUOTE=Binladen34;47318946]Datacaps are so fucking stupid. They help no one, and hurt everyone. It's just a bullshit measure to increase profits.[/QUOTE]
Try telling that to Australian telcos like Telstra, they'll laugh and hang up
Well, Telstra needs to have a similar boot to the backside, then.
Also good on the FCC for bringing American ISPs into line.
[QUOTE=fruxodaily;47319001]Try telling that to Australian telcos like Telstra, they'll laugh and hang up[/QUOTE]
I support sustainable usage of our precious data resources. Electrons aren't unlimited ya know!
[QUOTE=ironman17;47319015]Well, Telstra needs to have a similar boot to the backside, then.
Also good on the FCC for bringing American ISPs into line.[/QUOTE]
Other ISPs rent Telstra's lines then sell the internet for way cheaper than Telstra. Telstra still gets loads of business because of old people who don't know any better.
[QUOTE=helifreak;47319024]Other ISPs rent Telstra's lines then sell the internet for way cheaper than Telstra. Telstra still gets loads of business because of old people who don't know any better.[/QUOTE]
or they're in suburbs like mine where Telstra is the only option
I'd be with Optus unlimited cable if we had their lines trust me
can we have this in Canada too
telus implemented data caps this month, thank goodness I don't use netflix but a lot of people who use netflix are pissed the fuck off
[editline]49[/editline]
the CRTC (canadian FCC) is behind the FTC by like 5 years and is only starting to tell cable companies that their tv package pricings are complete horseshit, as well as removing that dumb rule where network providers must meet a quota of how much canadian content is on the air
[quote]The FCC rules apply to broadband rather than TV service[/quote]
Uh oh, didn't the FCC reclassify what "broadband" meant, so now most people technically don't have speeds high enough? Is that gonna be an issue here?
[QUOTE=Ardosos;47319604]Uh oh, didn't the FCC reclassify what "broadband" meant, so now most people technically don't have speeds high enough? Is that gonna be an issue here?[/QUOTE]
FCC uses the word broadband as an inclusive term for internet service. They use to describe everything (that I've read so far) from 76k to 110Mbps.. its not an issue in their order.
also at the end
[quote]Moreover, last-mile ISPs aren’t the only ones that should be concerned by today’s actions. The
item attempts—albeit in a failed way—to carve out, for now, CDNs, transit providers, backbone
providers, edge providers, and certain specialized services, including e-readers. But the new legal
framework for telecommunications services has let the proverbial genie out of the bottle[/quote]
[QUOTE=DaMastez;47318940]It will be interesting to see how ISP's spin this as being a bad thing for consumers, though I'm sure they'll find a way.
The fight is far from over.[/QUOTE]
They'll just flat-out lie like they did against net neutrality.
I just wanna know if this means that AT&T can continue to throttle my unlimited data after I pass 5 GB in a month? I mean I have a phone connected to a LTE tower, indicating LTE service that they boast as fast, and if I cross 5 GB of my unlimited amount I go from a 10 megabit connection to a solid 0.50 megabit connection.
[QUOTE=Dalto11;47320096]I just wanna know if this means that AT&T can continue to throttle my unlimited data after I pass 5 GB in a month? I mean I have a phone connected to a LTE tower, indicating LTE service that they boast as fast, and if I cross 5 GB of my unlimited amount I go from a 10 megabit connection to a solid 0.50 megabit connection.[/QUOTE]
No, at best it means they can't say "Unlimited 10 Mb Internet" and then in super small print somewhere "excessive use may result in throttling of connection", to my understanding at least.
Wait, so before American ISPs could advertise and sell their service without actually telling customers exactly what it'd cost them?
[QUOTE=Rents;47320657]Wait, so before American ISPs could advertise and sell their service without actually telling customers exactly what it'd cost them?[/QUOTE]
That's how it is for [I]most[/I] things here.
[QUOTE=bobxrawks;47320679]That's how it is for [I]most[/I] things here.[/QUOTE]
A bit of a tangent, but does anyone hate how at bars they'll tell you the price for something obscure once they open it.
"Yeah the bottle of cider that isn't on the menu and we just opened will be 16 bucks kthx"
[QUOTE=Rents;47320657]Wait, so before American ISPs could advertise and sell their service without actually telling customers exactly what it'd cost them?[/QUOTE]
Pretty much, as well as some limited false advertising i.e. ~unlimited data~ then it ends up just being a data cap a few gb's higher than other plans.
As long as the FCC doesn't try its censorship bullshit like with TV this could be nothing but good.
This whole thing was good, until the concept of the [i]Internet Tax[/i] was brought up. Whereby the government could add a Tax fee onto your monthly internet bill in order to pay for its expenses, and not necessarily have to do with your fair internet usage.
The whole thing is a little concerning, but I guess at this point; we'll just have to see where it all goes.
[b]edit:[/b] Plus, the FCC STILL is keeping the details of the agreement under tight lips. Which is rather concerning to me. Something tells me we're not going to get what we want in the end.
[QUOTE=Elstumpo;47320780]A bit of a tangent, but does anyone hate how at bars they'll tell you the price for something obscure once they open it.
"Yeah the bottle of cider that isn't on the menu and we just opened will be 16 bucks kthx"[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Alrækinn;47320820]Pretty much, as well as some limited false advertising i.e. ~unlimited data~ then it ends up just being a data cap a few gb's higher than other plans.[/QUOTE]
That's fucked, and illegal in most of europe I pretty sure.
[QUOTE=Rents;47320657]Wait, so before American ISPs could advertise and sell their service without actually telling customers exactly what it'd cost them?[/QUOTE]
ISP's say its around $20 a month for their internet, but that's only if you have it, but dont use it at all.
If you use internet regularly like me, then its more like $100 a month.
[QUOTE=ScottyWired;47319020]I support sustainable usage of our precious data resources. Electrons aren't unlimited ya know![/QUOTE]
Unlimited data allowances have fooled people into thinking sending data over the internet is free
It's not
[QUOTE=Trumple;47321046]Unlimited data allowances have fooled people into thinking sending data over the internet is free
It's not[/QUOTE]
It's pennies per GB, and even less than a penny in areas with good infrastructure.
Datacaps have no place in 2015. I can't imagine how the hell could anyone live with one. I download at least 200-300gb a month.
[QUOTE=Trumple;47321046]Unlimited data allowances have fooled people into thinking sending data over the internet is free
It's not[/QUOTE]
It isn't free; it is cheap. If ISP's wanted to charge for bandwidth overages at cost after some reasonable allowance I don't think anyone would care, but they either throttle it or have excessive overage fees from what I've heard on top of having low monthly allowances.
[QUOTE=Trumple;47321046]Unlimited data allowances have fooled people into thinking sending data over the internet is free
It's not[/QUOTE]
You're right it isn't free. But ISP profit margins are upwards of 90%. It's the digital equivalent of bottled water.
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