From: "Declan B. McCullagh" <declan+@CMU.EDU>
Date: Wed, 27 Mar 1996 19:38:53 +0800
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: More on ACTA petition to FCC urging regulation of the Internet
In-Reply-To: <Pine.SUN.3.91.960326134252.9362B-100000@eff.org>
Message-ID: <IlKBf7C00YUvMUbVEr@andrew.cmu.edu>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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As soon as we challenged the Communications Decency Act in Federal court, 
another threat to the Net has arisen.

This one is a petition a group of long-distance companies has filed with the
FCC, urging the commission to extend its jurisdiction to the Internet and
regulate "the use of the Internet for providing telecommunications services." 
The America's Carrier's Telecommunications Association (ACTA) is whining
about voice-over-the-Net, and equating the Internet to telephone and cable TV
services. Some excerpts from the petition, filed by ACTA on March 4: 

     ACTA submits that the providers of this software are telecommunications
  carriers and, as such, should be subject to FCC regulation like all
  telecommunications cations carriers.  ACTA also submits that the FCC 
  has the authority to regulate the Internet. [...]
     ACTA asks the Commission to institute rulemaking to govern
  the use of the Internet for providing telecommunications services. [...]
     ACTA submits that it is incumbent upon the Commission to exercise
  jurisdiction over the use of the Internet for unregulated interstate and
  international telecommunications services. As a first step, ACTA submits
  that the Commission may deem it appropriate to issue a declaratory 
  ruling officially establishing its interest in and authority over
  interstate and international telecommunications services using the 
  Internet. [...] Ignored, such unregulated operations will rapidly grow and
  create a far more significant and difficult to control "private" 
  operational enclave of telecommunications providers and users. [...]
     The Commission should take the same action in 1996 with regard to
  the new technology of long distance calling via Internet as it
  did thirty years ago in 1966 with regard to the then-new technology of
  cable television: grant special relief to maintain the status quo so that
  it might carefully consider what rules are required to best protect the
  public interest and to carry out Its statutory duties. [...]
     Absent action by the Commission, the new technology could be used to
  circumvent restrictions traditionally found in tariffs concerning unlawful
  uses, such as gambling, obscenity, prostitution, drug traffic, and other
  illegal acts. 

(Note how ACTA not-too-subtly raises the spectre of the four horsemen!)

The deadline to file comments with the FCC in response to the ACTA petition
has been extended to May 8, 1996, the FCC announced yesterday in its Daily
Digest. 

A relevant back fight-censorship message about the original petition is at: 
  http://fight-censorship.dementia.org/fight-censorship/dl?num=1876

For more information, check out:
  http://www.cais.net/cannon/acta.htm

-Declan





---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Mon, 25 Mar 1996 20:46:24 -0500
From: Robert Cannon <cannon@cais.cais.com>
To: Multiple recipients of list <cyberia-l@warthog.cc.wm.edu>
Subject: ACTA Resource Page

        In conjunction with Henry Crawford, Craig Johnson, Andy Oram and
other members of Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility (CPSR), I
have uploaded an "ACTA Petition Resource Page."  It can be found at
http://www.cais.net/cannon/acta.htm  On that page I have posted the lively
and informative discussion of ACTA from Cyberia-L (I was careful to search
for anyone who did not give permission to have their message reposted - a
comment usually found in people's signature - if you object to having your
message posted, please let me know).  There is also a draft of a comment by
CPSR, an article from the American Reporter, the relevant Supreme Court
case, and, of course, the petition itself.

************************************************************
Robert Cannon, Esq.       |       ||      Leashes!
Online and Interactive    | \     @@==+   We Dont Need No
Telecommunications Law    |  ======       Stinkin' Leashes!
Washington, D.C.          |  ||  ||          -Pancho Villa
		http://www.cais.net/cannon
************************************************************