We Need A Broadband Bill Of Rights

The news that a service provider was forcing its broadband customers to pay a premium to use VoIP from Vonage shows that it's time for a "broadband bill of rights."The idea for a broadband bill of rights was suggested by Vonage's CEO Jeffrey Citron. The idea is that there are certain rights you have as a broadband consumer, for example, that your service provider can't block you from using a VoIP service from a competitor.Citron clearly has a vested interest in the idea, because it'll ensure that would-be customers always have access to his service. But vested interest or not, he's right.Unfortunately, the FCC is moving in the exact opposite direction. When it comes to broadband, it has a hands-off attitude. The FCC is wrong, and we can only hope it starts thinking of consumers instead of special interests.