President Biden has signed an Executive Order to reshape competition for the internet and Big Tech. The Order encourages the FCC to reinstate net neutrality, restoring Obama Administration rules that were rolled back during the Trump Administration. Net neutrality would prohibit ISPs from slowing down traffic on or blocking internet platforms. The Order also encourages the FCC to prohibit exclusive deals between landlords and ISPs that offer only one internet service option to tenants, and it encourages the FCC to revisit its plans for a “Broadband Nutrition Label.”
Aside from instructions for the FCC, the sweeping Order contains a total of 72 directives for more than a dozen federal agencies, including provisions that embolden the FTC and DOJ to strengthen their scrutiny ofr mergers and antitrust violations, as well as their protection of user privacy.
