The Federal Communications Commission is moving ahead with plans to require broadband nutrition labels that include details on the actual price of internet service and information about data caps and performance.
The consumer labels that home Internet and mobile broadband providers would have to provide at the point of sale will be similar to those adopted by the FCC in 2016 The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act approved by Congress in November 2016 requires the FCC to issue new rules mandating the display of the consumer labels, even though the FCC eliminated the labels and related rules under former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai.
The FCC approved a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that seeks public comment on the plan. The commission vote to issue final rules is usually at least a few months away. The deadline for initial comments is 30 days after the NPRM is published in the Federal Register, and reply comments are due 45 days after that. There is a docket where comments can be filed.
In 2016 the FCC adopted the same labels. The public draft of the NPRM was released before. The draft said that the home Internet labels would include information on performance and network management practices.
Information on pricing, when you exceed data allowance, other included services, and other monthly fees would be included on the mobile broadband labels. The FCC said that both the fixed and mobile broadband labels include a link to the provider's privacy policy.
The FCC is seeking comments on where the labels should be displayed to best inform consumers, on enforcement issues related to the label requirement, and on implementation issues, including the time by which broadband providers should be required.
The 2016 version of the fixed and mobile broadband labels is here.
A lack of competition is the most frustrating problem for many home Internet customers. The consumer labels should make it easier for users to determine the actual price of broadband.
The potential for the labels to aid customers in comparison shopping is greater in the mobile broadband market, which has three major national providers and a variety of smaller ones. FCC Commissioner Starks focused on the potential to help customers compare ISPs in his statement at the FCC meeting.
It can be difficult for people to find the right broadband plan.
Joshua Stager, deputy director for broadband and competition policy at New America's Open Technology Institute, said today that the FCC vote is a win for consumers. He said that internet service providers are notorious for keeping customers in the dark with hidden fees, surprise bills, and dense contracts.
Stager said that they look forward to working with the commission to implement the broadband nutrition label. The Open Technology Institute has been calling on the US to adopt a program that would allow people to know what they are paying for.
The FCC will likely be urged by broadband lobby groups to minimize the amount of information they provide, but consumer advocates plan to call for the labels to be more detailed.
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