Causes.com
| 8.27.18
Verizon Throttles Firefighters’ Data Speed, Net Neutrality Rollback Blamed
Vote to see how others feel about this issue
What’s the story?
- Verizon Wireless has come under criticism for slowing California firefighters’ data speeds during a wildfire crisis.
- The Santa Clara County Central Fire Protection District said that during their effort to fight the Mendocino Complex Fire – the biggest wildfire in state history - the wireless giant throttled their “unlimited” data connection to a crawl—and didn’t restore speeds until the department paid for a better plan.
- The complaint was lodged in a legal brief filed Monday as part of a major lawsuit aimed at restoring net neutrality, the doctrine that says all internet traffic should be free to run at equal speeds.
What are the firefighters saying?
- "Verizon representatives confirmed the throttling, but rather than restoring us to an essential data transfer speed, they indicated that County Fire would have to switch to a new data plan at more than twice the cost, and they would only remove throttling after we contacted the Department that handles billing and switched to the new data plan," Santa Clara County Fire Chief Anthony Bowden wrote in a declaration, per Ars Technica. He continued:
"This throttling has had a significant impact on our ability to provide emergency services. Verizon imposed these limitations despite being informed that throttling was actively impeding County Fire's ability to provide crisis-response and essential emergency services.”
What is Verizon saying?
- Verizon visited Sacramento on Friday, where they announced the company has removed all speed-cap restrictions for emergency workers fighting wildfires on the West Coast. They also vowed to lift restrictions on public safety customers during other disasters.
- However, the company insisted net neutrality wasn’t to blame for the throttling.
“This situation has nothing to do with net neutrality or the current proceeding in court. We made a mistake in how we communicated with our customer about the terms of its plan. Like all customers, fire departments choose service plans that are best for them…Under this plan, users get an unlimited amount of data but speeds are reduced when they exceed their allotment until the next billing cycle.”
- But the Santa Clara Fire Department rejected Verizon’s claim that the throttling was just a customer service error and "has nothing to do with net neutrality."
"Verizon's throttling has everything to do with net neutrality—it shows that the ISPs will act in their economic interests, even at the expense of public safety," County Counsel James Williams said on behalf of the county and fire department. "That is exactly what the Trump Administration's repeal of net neutrality allows and encourages."
What do you think?
Are you concerned over ISPs ability to throttle speeds because of the net neutrality rollback? Should the FCC revisit the repeal of net neutrality? Or, as the FCC has maintained, did net neutrality stifle innovation? Click Take Action and tell your reps, then share your thoughts below.
—Josh Herman
(Photo Credit: @MendocinoNF via Twitter)
The Latest
-
SCOTUS Hears Arguments of Abortion Pill Mifepristone CaseUpdated March 27, 2024, 12:30 p.m. EST On Tuesday, March 26, the Supreme Court heard arguments about the mifepristone case, read more... Women's Health
-
IT: ⛑️ It's American Red Cross Giving Day, and... How will you give back today?Welcome to Wednesday, March 27th, philanthropists and entrepreneurs... It's American Red Cross Giving Day - a time to ensure the read more...
-
Moscow Concert Hall, Russia’s Deadliest Attack in DecadesOn Friday, March 22, at least four men fired automatic weapons into a sold-out show at the Crocus City Hall auditorium in read more... Public Safety
-
Discover Gravvy — A New Way to Support What Matters MostDiscover Gravvy — A New Way to Support What Matters Most Are you ready to optimize your giving? read more...