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In my area, I have access to Comcast, Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and many other smaller ISPs. Since there is no ISP monopoly in my area, should these ISPs

In my area, I have access to Comcast, Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and many other smaller ISPs. Since there is no ISP monopoly in my area, should these ISPs be allowed to block content?

JumpCrisscross 8y ago
> Since there is no ISP monopoly in my area, should these ISPs be allowed to block content? You cherry-picked one point. Taken together, Apple’s lack of monopoly status, terms of use and lack of an explicit history of subsidies and markets exclusively granted by fiat make the First Amendment less applicable to it than e.g. Verizon. In the cases where customers dinged ISPs for throttling, it came down to the ISPs having marketed “Internet access,” not some convoluted expansion of the First Amendment to private actors. I believe in encouraging a public forum for the exchange of ideas. But I also believe in private citizens’—including corporations’—rights to decide with what they’re associated. In this particular case, we have someone who serially relays emotionally-charged and unambiguously-false information to his viewers. Not going to defend him unless a government tries to shut him down.
- jiojfdsal3 8y ago
  Except Apple receives tons of subsidies.[1] Apple is much more of a monopoly than the ISPs in my local area. I can choose between Google or Apple. On the other hand, I can choose between Sprint, AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, Sonic, or T-Mobile. [1] https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/07/03/google-tesla-apple-facebook-rake-in-massive-subsidies-report/ https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/07/03/google-tesla-apple-fa...
  - JumpCrisscross 8y ago
    > Apple is much more of a monopoly than the ISPs in my local area The courts disagree. ISPs can be treated as public utilities by states, if they so choose. (New York's Public Service Commission just kicked an ISP out of the state [1].) In any case, we are talking about specific products. Internet service with respect to ISPs; podcasting with respect to Apple. Apple does not have anything resembling a monopoly in podcasting. [1] http://www.wktv.com/content/news/New-York-PSC-orders-Charter-Spectrum-to-leave-New-York-State-489364571.html http://www.wktv.com/content/news/New-York-PSC-orders-Charter...
    - madeofpalk 8y ago
      > Apple does not have anything resembling a monopoly in podcasting. Really?
  - tpxl 8y ago
    What is Apples monopoly exactly?
    - xaqfox 8y ago
      They have a monopoly on phones with non-licensable operating systems preinstalled. You can thank the EU for that definition.

In my area, I have access to Comcast, Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and many other smaller ISPs. Since there is no ISP monopoly in my area, should these ISPs be allowed to block content?

JumpCrisscross 8y ago

> Since there is no ISP monopoly in my area, should these ISPs be allowed to block content? You cherry-picked one point. Taken together, Apple’s lack of monopoly status, terms of use and lack of an explicit history of subsidies and markets exclusively granted by fiat make the First Amendment less applicable to it than e.g. Verizon. In the cases where customers dinged ISPs for throttling, it came down to the ISPs having marketed “Internet access,” not some convoluted expansion of the First Amendment to private actors. I believe in encouraging a public forum for the exchange of ideas. But I also believe in private citizens’—including corporations’—rights to decide with what they’re associated. In this particular case, we have someone who serially relays emotionally-charged and unambiguously-false information to his viewers. Not going to defend him unless a government tries to shut him down.

jiojfdsal3 8y ago
Except Apple receives tons of subsidies.[1] Apple is much more of a monopoly than the ISPs in my local area. I can choose between Google or Apple. On the other hand, I can choose between Sprint, AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, Sonic, or T-Mobile. [1] https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/07/03/google-tesla-apple-facebook-rake-in-massive-subsidies-report/ https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/07/03/google-tesla-apple-fa...
- JumpCrisscross 8y ago
  > Apple is much more of a monopoly than the ISPs in my local area The courts disagree. ISPs can be treated as public utilities by states, if they so choose. (New York's Public Service Commission just kicked an ISP out of the state [1].) In any case, we are talking about specific products. Internet service with respect to ISPs; podcasting with respect to Apple. Apple does not have anything resembling a monopoly in podcasting. [1] http://www.wktv.com/content/news/New-York-PSC-orders-Charter-Spectrum-to-leave-New-York-State-489364571.html http://www.wktv.com/content/news/New-York-PSC-orders-Charter...
  - madeofpalk 8y ago
    > Apple does not have anything resembling a monopoly in podcasting. Really?
- tpxl 8y ago
  What is Apples monopoly exactly?
  - xaqfox 8y ago
    They have a monopoly on phones with non-licensable operating systems preinstalled. You can thank the EU for that definition.