FCC Investigates Internet Download Speeds – Thanks Largely to John Oliver?

This may be a bit late, but as I’ve been on a sort of hiatus for the last month or so as I geared up to take yet another bar exam (watch out Louisiana!). However, it’s a great story and maybe you missed it.

Earlier this month, FCC’s chairman, Tom Wheeler, announced that the FCC had opened an investigation into deals where companies like Netflix had to pay ISP’s like Comcast to ensure an internet fast lane for its services. The scope of the investigation is essentially whether customers are getting the speeds that they were promised by the ISPs.

What’s great about this story is that it seems Wheeler was convinced to act based on a John Oliver bit from his show, “Last Week Tonight.” In it, Oliver reviews the net neutrality debate and encourages his viewers to comment on FCC rules that could allow for fast and slow lanes. That led to 19,000 comments to the FCC requesting review, which clogged the systems.

Wheeler actually mentioned the Oliver clip, stating that he had reviewed it “a couple of times,” calling it “creative and funny.” Let’s see if anything comes of the investigation. In the meantime, you can watch the clip from Oliver’s show here:

NY Times – F.C.C. Begins Investigation Into Quality of Internet Download Speeds