Policy Observatory

As expected, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) passed new net neutrality regulations today on a vote of 3-2, with the Commission’s two Democratic appointees joining Chairman Tom Wheeler in voting yes. The Commission’s two Republican-appointed members both voted no.

Notably, the FCC’s plan is now known to have undergone a last-minute revision to remove a potential weakness in its formation, pointed out by Google, that might have allowed for some paid prioritization. If you were curious about Google’s take on net neutrality, that fact should settle the question.

On 26 February 2015, MEP Timothy Kirkhope presented to the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties (LIBE) a revised draft of the European Union Passenger Name Records proposal (see revisions here).

Unfortunately, this latest revision to the PNR proposal doesn’t make many improvements when it comes to protecting private information. To make matters worse, several MEPs have proposed extending this type of data collection to other means of transport. This reinforces our concern that adoption of the PNR proposal could lead to the normalisation of mass surveillance, spreading to other areas of EU citizens’ personal life.

The European Commission withdrew proposals on Friday that would limit next year's abolition of mobile phone roaming charges after criticism that the rules should do more to favor telecoms firms' customers.

In a dramatic U-turn, four days after officials published rules to restrict how many days consumers could use phones abroad without extra fees, President Jean-Claude Juncker ordered the draft revised in what allies and officials said showed that the EU executive wanted to be seen to listen to ordinary voters.