Charter ‘Made Net Neutrality History’ as Condition of Its TWC Buy, Netflix Says

Charter Communications “made net neutrality history” when it committed to “open and free interconnection” across the Charter/Time Warner Cable network “if their pending merger is approved” (see 1507150038) Netflix CEO Reed Hastings and Chief Financial Officer David Wells said Wednesday in a quarterly letter to shareholders. “This move ensures that all online video providers can aggressively compete for consumers' favor, without selective and increasing fees paid to ISPs.” Charter's policy “is the right way to scale the Internet” because it means consumers “will receive the fast connection speeds they expect,” they said. “The Charter/TWC transaction, with this condition, would deliver significant public interest benefits to broadband consumers, and we urge its timely approval.” Netflix in Q2 exceeded 65 million subscribers, including 42 million in the U.S. and 23 million overseas, the letter said. “We are at the forefront of a wave of global Internet TV adoption and intend to make our service available throughout the world by the end of 2016.” To support its global expansion, Netflix is “focused on adding more languages, optimizing our personalization algorithms for a global library in local markets, and expanding support for a range of device, operator and payment partnerships,” the letter said. “We are also placing a greater emphasis on optimizing for mobile, which is the main means for Internet access in many emerging markets where we will be expanding in the future.”