Wheeler Cites 'Chicken Littles" on Broadband Investment Under Title II

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said some net neutrality order critics were "Chicken Littles" for arguing broadband reclassification would end broadband investment. "Our experience of the last seven months is consistent with the experience" of rural carriers that had advocated to classify broadband under Title II of the Communications Act -- "the virtuous cycle of innovation is alive and well," he said Monday in prepared remarks to the NTCA fall conference in Boston. "We've seen significant private sector investment in broadband networks throughout the nation, and not just in the most densely populated cities in the country. Private industry -- including those of you in this room -- continues to invest billions of dollars to expand America’s broadband. Both fixed and mobile providers continue to improve broadband speeds, and current and new entrants to the market are investing and expanding broadband availability to many Americans with speeds in some locations exceeding 1 gigabit per second." Commissioner Ajit Pai and other Title II critics say the order discouraged broadband investment (see 1509090056).