AC’s post notwithstanding, it sometimes take me some time to read, read, read all about it.

Although Rep. Cooper did vote for the Markey amendment, which would have codified Net Neutrality into law, that amendment did not pass and yet Mr. Cooper went ahead and voted yes on HR 5252, aka COPE (Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act of 2006). In other words, he voted for a piece of legislation that does nothing to protect consumers and democracy and is, as many have pointed out, just another a boon to big business. To be clear, I find Rep. Cooper’s actions unacceptable (as I did when he voted for CAFTA).

There may be a few parts of the bill, such as requiring companies that allow you to make telephone calls using your Internet connection to provide access to 911 emergency services, that might benefit us but is this enough for our Congressman to have voted the way he did? No. COPE does much more harm than good giving big Telecom a pass not only on Net Neutrality but on their responsiblities as good corporate “citizens” as well. Jean Carter Wilson eloquently schooled me on the details:

COPE in general is a bill written by and for a limited number of telcom companies such as AT&T and Verizon and cable companies like Comcast. It takes control of cable and television franchises away from local and state regulatory authorities, and gives it to the Federal Communications Commission (run by Bush appointees - I don’t think I have to tell you what their policies are like.)

Under COPE, communications providers will no longer be required to ‘build-out’ their networks equitably; they can offer the new services in a wealthy neighborhood but neglect an adjacent low-income community (this is referred to as red-lining). As more and more content and services are available online, poorer communities will be left in the dust as companies go head to head to command a higher pricing structure. This is
anti-consumerism at its most refined.

Under COPE, one provider, like Comcast, can be given control of cable service in a city (let’s say Jackson, TN) and eliminate all the competition, which means they will be able to charge whatever fees they like. Jackson would have no say in the arrangement - the FCC will dictate the terms. This is pretty ironic, coming from so-
called small-Federal-government regulating Republicans, eh?

Phone companies like Bellsouth are in favor of COPE because they want to get in the business of providing cable-tv-like services and provide television over the Internet through DSL. Right now, because of the way the franchise arrangements are structured, this will require the phone company to apply for a franchise with a city like Nashville. Bellsouth doesn’t want to do that. They want to be able to bypass tose arrangements (that companies like Comcast already have to abide by) through the FCC. Bellsouth also doesn’t want want to have to agree with any provisions set up by the community to provide access to underserved communities. It’s basically the phone company saying, ‘Trust us - we’ll do what’s in your best interest.’

What happens when Comcast and Bellsouth begin to act in cahoots? They’ll shut out services like voice-over-IP telephone companies Skype and Vonage, and begin to act in coordination to set prices and coordinate ervices to maximize profits. It’s a gigantic profit-fixing scheme.

Right now, if you have a problem with your cable bill, you call Comcast. If your problem is escalated, it’ll go to the TN Regulatory Commission. Under COPE, your problem goes to the FCC - a huge government bureaucracy. Good luck requesting channels your cable company doesn’t offer right now.

COPE will also drastically affect public access television programming. Under COPE cities would receive a 5% fee from the cable company franchises, with an additional 1% going to finance public access television. This is the problem for many larger cities who currently receive a larger percentage. A ‘Do No Harm’ amendment
protecting existing public access programming by Baldwin/Wilson was voted down.

And all this is even outside of control of the Internet that’s now in COPE, thanks to the defeat of the Markey Amendment. I wonder whether this isn’t the Bush Administration giveback to the phone companies as
a quid pro quo for their participation in the NSA spying. Because you better believe BushCo will start telling their corporate allies to shut down access to sites like Truthout, et. al, once they have control of the Internet. (I did a quick search on OpenSecrets and telecom PAC donations average 70% giving to Republicans, vs. only 30% of donations to Democrats. Some individual CEOs and other executives give considerably more to Republicans.)

The worst part is, there is no experimental period with any of this. Once control of phone service, cable franchises and the Internet goes to corporations, it would be nearly impossible to get it back.

I think it’s unbelievable that the same Internet, virtually all of the construction of which was financed by U.S. taxpayers, is now being given wholesale to corporate interests, and that a monopoly of this size is being enacted without much notice.

COPE will come to the Senate soon. Let’s keep up the pressure.

ACTION: Call Rep. Cooper and ask him to explain, in detail, why he voted for COPE (Phone: 202-225-4311). Then call Senators William Frist and Lamar Alexander and demand support for Net Neutrality. Tell them to support the bipartisan Snowe-Dorgan Internet Freedom Preservation Act (S. 2917). Details regarding the Senate version of the COPE Act forthcoming.

Senator William Frist, Phone: 202-224-3344
Senator Lamar Alexander, Phone: 202-224-4944

And thanks to everyone for filling me in on the details of Rep. Cooper’s betrayal. Still on notice.

This post was written by Mary Mancini