Ajit Pai

Controversial FCC chair Ajit Pai to step down January 20

Ajit Pai, the head of the US’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC), has announced that he will step down on January 20 – the day of president elect Joe Biden’s inauguration.  Pai had served on the FCC since 2012, but became a more public-facing figure when he was appointed chair of the body in 2017 by president […]

FCC closes file on ‘unlock the box’

The US FCC is to officially close the once contentious ‘unlock the box’ proceeding initiated under FCC chairman Ajit Pai’s predecessor Tom Wheeler. The FCC is closing the proceeding for a new regulation that would have seen service providers forced to make their offerings available to devices they did not control rather than force customers […]

Pai: FCC will ‘unshackle’ broadcasters

The FCC has embarked on a deregulation drive to “unshackle broadcasters” from “regulations that no longer make sense” and open the way to further free market competition, according to chairman Ajit Pai, who addressed the NAB Show’s We Are Broadcasters Celebration awards event in Las Vegas on Tuesday. Pai said that “broadcast journalism drives meaningful […]

FCC votes to repeal net neutrality as Netflix and web giants protest

The FCC has voted to repeal net neutrality laws in the US, in a move that was welcomed by ISPs but has attracted widespread criticism from internet users and tech giants like Netflix. The Federal Communications Commission voted three to two in favour of rolling back rules that were introduced during the Obama administration, with […]

FCC to roll back net neutrality rules

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is due to roll back net neutrality rules in a major policy shift that looks set to impact on the way internet traffic is prioritised by ISPs. In a statement issued yesterday, FCC chairman Ajit Pai criticised the Obama administration’s “heavy-handed, utility-style regulations upon the internet”, describing these net […]

NAB: FCC chief promises bonfire of ‘outdated’ regulations

Outdated rules will be cast down as part of the FCC’s review of current media regulations, according to FCC chairman Ajit Pai. Speaking at the NAB Show in Las Vegas, Pai said that media regulations – including those relating to broadcast, cable and direct broadcast satellite – need to be revised and out-of-date rules thrown […]

FCC chair promises return to ‘light-touch’ regulation

The FCC’s new chairman Ajit Pai has promised a return to a “light-touch approach to regulation”, claiming the FCC has made clear mistakes in the past two years. Speaking at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Pai – who was appointed by Trump to lead the US media and telecoms regulator in late January – said that […]

Netflix: changes to net neutrality laws could impede growth

Changes to laws related to net neutrality could decrease demand for Netflix and increase its cost of doing business, the internet video giant has warned. In Netflix’s annual report, which it filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday, the company said that adoption or modification of internet laws or regulations could “limit […]

Trump names net neutrality critic as FCC chairman

US President Donald Trump has named an outspoken critic of net neutrality as the chairman of US media and telecoms regulator the Federal Communications Commission. Ajit Pai has been an FCC commissioner since 2012, appointed by former president Barack Obama despite their differing views on how the internet should be regulated as a hat-tip to […]

FCC opts for strong net neutrality and divides opinion

The US FCC has adopted strong net neutrality rules, going beyond goals set by FCC chairman Tom Wheeler last year and reclassifying broadband providers as telecommunication services under Title II of the US Federal Communications Act, effectively subjecting them to stronger regulation.  “There are three simple keys to our broadband future. Broadband networks must be […]