So is Netflix for or against net neutrality? Seems like a silly question, because it was one of the most high-profile tech companies to throw its support behind the FCC’s now-approved plan to ensure equal treatment of all Internet traffic.
But developments this week have prompted doubts about Netflix’s commitment to an open Internet.
CFO David Wells said at an industry conference Wednesday in San Francisco that the company wasn’t pleased that the Federal Communications Commission invoked Title II of the Communications Act to regulate Internet access like a common telecom carrier.
“Were we pleased it pushed to Title II? Probably not,” Wells said, according to Variety. “We were hoping there might be a non-regulated solution.”
No, no, just kidding, the company said in a statement later Wednesday. “Netflix supports the FCC’s action last week to adopt Title II in ensuring consumers get the Internet they paid for without interference by ISPs. There has been zero change in our very well-documented position in support of strong net neutrality rules.”
Talk about a well-documented position: Among other things, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings called repeatedly for strong net neutrality rules; the company participated in last year’s Internet Slowdown Day, which urged people to push for the FCC to pass strong rules; and it publicly complained, in more ways than one, about the Internet providers to whom it grudgingly paid “tolls” in order to ensure fast, smooth delivery of its streaming video.
Elsewhere this week — as in Australia — Netflix secured a deal that would exempt its streaming content from an Internet service provider’s data caps when the service makes its debut there on March 24. The company is facing calls of hypocrisy because Hastings has slammed similar deals in the United States. In 2012, he complained in a Facebook post that content streamed through the Xbox game console via Comcast’s Xfinity app didn’t count against data caps.
So what’s up with the deal with Australia’s iiNet ISP? Netflix told the Verge: “Zero rating isn’t great for consumers as it has the potential to distort consumer choice in favor of choices selected by an ISP. We’ll push back against such efforts, but we won’t put our service or our members at a disadvantage.”
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