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Meet the new boss… Same as the old boss

AT&T Chief Executive Officer Ed Whitacre inadvertently kicked off the public debate over Internet freedom in late 2005 when he told BusinessWeek:

"What they [Internet companies] would like to do is to use my pipes free. But I ain't going to let them do that…. For a Google or Yahoo or Vonage or anybody to expect to use these pipes [for] free is nuts!"

Over the next few months, activists flooded Congress with more than 1 million messages in favor of "net neutrality" - the principle that Internet service providers like AT&T must treat all Internet traffic the same, and not discriminate against or favor any content or services based on who is providing them.  Experts flocked to the editorial pages of major newspapers to explain that websites like Google and Vonage don't get a "free ride" and in fact, pay hefty bandwidth fees to the "pipe owners."  Ever since, AT&T and its fellow Internet service providers have been lobbying fiercely to put an end to net neutrality.  Eliminating longstanding neutrality principles would allow them to create tiers of service on the Internet, where some sites that could afford to pay more would continue to operate as they always had, and anyone who couldn't pay (like nonprofits, bloggers, local governments and small businesses) might find their websites more difficult to find or to use.

Last month, AT&T announced that the embattled Whitacre will resign on June 3, and that chief operating officer Randall Stephenson will assume the top post.  Will Stephenson lead AT&T in a new direction, embracing freedom and openness on the Internet?  Or will we get more of the same?

A Whitacre 'Clone'?

All indications are that consumers should be just as wary of Stephenson as they were of Whitacre.  In 2005, Stephenson was asked whether his DSL  customers would be able to watch live video from any website.  "Oh no," Stephenson declared.  "We're going to control the video on our network. The content guys will have to make a deal with us."  That could leave all the other "content guys" who can't afford to make a deal with AT&T - independent musicians and artists, nonprofits and charities, small businesses and entrepreneurs - locked out from reaching Internet users who use AT&T to access the 'Net. 

To make matters worse, most Americans don't have much choice when it comes to high speed Internet providers, so they won't be able to switch to another company if their Internet provider starts blocking or slowing down certain websites.  Usually the only options are the telephone company (high early termination fees if you cancel your service) or the cable company (often prohibitively more expensive).

Late last year, Stephenson reaffirmed his opposition to the net neutrality.  He told Forbes magazine that he believes Congress should allow, for the first time in the history of the Internet, a two-tier system to be created.  "You've got YouTube and Google dumping unbelievable traffic on here," he complained.  (Could someone explain to Mr. Stephenson that YouTube and Google can't control how many visitors they get, and that the "traffic" is just AT&T customers trying to use the service that they paid for?) 

Well Connected

Stephenson brings more to the job than 25 years as a company man: he also has a close relationship with the Bush White House.  He has served for several years, and is currently the Vice Chair, of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC).

The NSTAC is a secretive panel made up of industry executives who provide advice to the President on national security, emergency preparedness and other communications policy.  Its meetings are almost always closed to the public for national security reasons.  And its website claims that documents and records produced by NSTAC are not subject to the Freedom of Information Act because it is not technically a federal "agency." 

It remains to be seen how AT&T will use Stephenson's access to top Administration officials.

Money Talks

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Stephenson has given $24,000 to candidates and political action committees since 1990.  97 percent of his contributions have gone to Republicans, including Representative Joe Barton, the Ranking Member of the House Commerce Committee, who last year sponsored a major piece of legislation that would have eliminated net neutrality.  Fortunately, that bill stalled in the Senate and failed to become law.

To learn more about net neutrality, visit: http://www.commoncause.org/StraightTalk