Drew Clark is hard to beat to the punch on anything. By the time I had finished reading Google’s lastest explanation of its position on net neutrality, he was up and posted with an excellent commentary on its meaning. Now that’s competition.
As Drew reported, Google’s new Washington Telecom and Media Counsel Rick Whitt, tried to clarify Google’s net neutrality position yesterday, which had been muddled after comments by his Google colleague Andy McLaughlin. Whitt explained that nothing had changed. Yes, the issue will ultimately be solved by competition, but that’s a long-run solution, maybe 20 years out. Until then, strong rules are needed.
But Google’s support of net neutrality rules was never in doubt. What I find more interesting is what Whitt did not address: Andy McLaughlin’s statement that the FCC should not be have a role in enforcing any such regulations, and that this should be seen as “an attorney general or FTC problem.” That would be a significant shift, putting Google at odds with most of its colleagues on the net neutrality bandwagon, as well as the leading bills on the subject.
I have some sympathy for Rick Whitt’s complaint that it’s hard to have a debate when anything that’s slightly off-message becomes an ad in the Wall Street Journal. (If there’s any concern on this point, I’ll promise not to run a Wall Street Journal ad on any this). But Whitt’s statement still leaves open more questions than answers. And nothing has been heard of late from McLaughlin himself to explain all this.
In any case, welcome to Google, Rick. You’ve joined the company at an interesting time.
The Technology Liberation Front is the tech policy blog dedicated to keeping politicians' hands off the 'net and everything else related to technology.
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