12 Nov AT&T delays its investment in fiber optic lines until net neutrality rules are set
At a conference on Wednesday AT&T’s chief executive told investors that the company would wait on investing further in its network of fiber optic lines until the Federal Communications Commission illustrates it net neutrality rules.
“We can’t go out and invest that kind of money deploying fiber to 100 cities not knowing under what rules those investments will be governed,” said Randall Stephenson, according to Reuters.
Net neutrality laws are a fierce debate. Recently President Barack Obama came out in favor of a set of rules that would classify Internet access as a utility. AT&T, among other internet service providers, is promoting rules that would allow it to establish higher fees for faster service connections. Some are hopeful that the president’s endorsement will lead to a decision as soon as December, though others say a decision could be delayed well into 2015.