FCC Consumer Advisory Committee OKs Broadband Label Recommendations

The FCC’s Consumer Advisory Committee members approved its consumer broadband labels working group’s recommendations on disclosure. All members at Tuesday's virtual meeting (see 2203110064) voted in favor, with Next Century Cities being the sole abstention. NCC didn’t comment on why it abstained.

The group met to discuss its recommendation on how the commission should define what constitutes the point of sale for purposes of the label requirement and whether the label's type or form varies based on how a consumer interacts with a provider. Members also considered a recommendation on how introductory rates affect a consumer’s decision to buy broadband services. The working group had six meetings and "brought together diverse views into one particular recommendation," said WG Chair Debra Berlyn, Project to Get Older Adults onLine executive director.

The compromises reached by consumer groups, disability groups and industry "did not mean just settling for something less than what people originally wanted," said WG member Linda Vandeloop, AT&T assistant vice president-external affairs and regulatory. There was "some agreement," she said, and "we were able to listen to each other."

“Recognizing that there are limitations” for smaller providers, Massachusetts Department of Telecom and Cable Director-Consumer Division Joslyn Day asked whether any extension for these providers to comply with the label requirements should be allowed under a specific time frame. One concern about setting a specific timeline for any extension for smaller providers is that "there are other aspects of the timeline that are left open-ended," noted ACA Connects Vice President-Regulatory Affairs Brian Hurley. There's "no timeline specified for providers in general to meet the requirements" in the FCC's NPRM.

The amount of time smaller providers may need would “depend on a number of the decisions the FCC makes” in its rulemaking, Hurley said. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act gave the agency one year to implement rules on consumer broadband labels, said WG member Jonathan Schwantes, Consumer Reports senior policy counsel (see 2201270030). "That doesn't mean ISPs in November immediately have to start printing broadband labels at the point of sale," Schwantes said, and the FCC "has some discretion" on compliance.

The label is “an exciting new initiative to empower consumers,” said Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel in prerecorded remarks: Consumers “ought to know what they’re signing up for.” Rosenworcel said she hopes the labels will “end efforts to bury facts in the fine print that can lead to unexpected costs and fees.” Transparency is “the best disinfectant," said Commissioner Brendan Carr, and "some of the baseline transparency rules that we've had in place ... are a good starting point."

Consumers “need to know what they’re buying,” said Commissioner Nathan Simington, noting broadband labeling data could be “aggregated by consumer welfare groups to provide consumers with new tools” to compare services. Simington said the FCC’s rules should “balance critical consumer information with regulatory burden” and prevent “information overload.” Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau Chief Alejandro Roark thanked the group for working to help consumers "make smarter choices when shopping for broadband services.

"The FCC assigned the group to next look at text blocking" and members will hear more about it "in the near future," said CAC Chair Steve Pociask, American Consumer Institute CEO, possibly "as early as the end of August" (see 2110180071).