FCC feedback
Google and Verizon's proposal followed the FCC's closed-door consultation period with web giants and providers in order to reach a consensus on net neutrality. However, the FCC has been accused of being less than speedy in finalising a binding set of rules.
Christine Springer, one of the protestors at the demo, reportedly said: "The FCC is sitting on their hands. They are hoping nobody will notice but unless we make a lot of noise the corporate giants will prevail. The job of the FCC is to regulate not negotiate with giant corporations."
The FCC's authority was rocked after a court found the body had no power to enforce its own rules about equal web traffic speed after one company slowed certain traffic down. However, it should now enjoy some weight behind it as the net neutrality decision is integral to the US government's broadband strategy to give every citizen high speed internet access by 2020.
At the protest for fair net neutrality, one punchy popular slogan reportedly went: "Net neutrality is under attack, stand up and fight back," while other stunts included a sing-a-long with a group of senior citizens calling themselves the ‘raging grannies' and a woman dressed up in Victorian grieving gear who said she was "mourning the death of the internet".
Adding weight to the protest, the organisers of the demonstration reportedly gave Google a petition which they said has 300,000 signatures for proper net neutrality.
Nicklas Lundbald, Google's head of policy, told the BBC: "This is an important issue, a complex issue and it deserves to be discussed. Google is a fierce supporter of an open internet and we see that we have a couple of key enforceable protections in our proposal with Verizon and that is much better than no protections at all."
Interestingly the company also seemed to criticise the FCC, as Lundbald reportedly said: "This issue has been at a standstill for quite some time and we think this proposal is a way to advance that discussion."
