Markey, Pickering Defend Internet Bill Against Charges It Would Protect Piracy, Promote FCC Regulation

Members of the House telecommunications and the Internet subcommittee have publicly staked out their positions on pending net neutrality legislation, with strong resistance to the idea of legislative action on the issue coming from most Republicans and even a few Democrats.

The proposed Internet Freedom Preservation Act (HR 5353), which was cosponsored by subcommittee Chairman Edward J. Markey (D., Mass.) and panel member Charles (Chip) Pickering (R., Miss.), would adopt a national policy of maintaining an open Internet free of discrimination and would require the FCC to conduct an investigation into whether broadband network providers' traffic-management practices adhere to such a policy.

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Martin, Comcast VP Differ On Views of P2P Management

FCC Chairman Kevin J. Martin has said that he is concerned that recent statements by a Comcast Corp. official about the company's alleged interference with peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing "may be somewhat misleading."

Joe Waz, Comcast's vice president-external affairs and public policy counsel, was responding to the FCC Chairman's own statements before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee last month.

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