WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – Understanding the options on the internet should be as easy as reading the nutrition label on a cereal box. The FCC uses broadband consumer labels to help you understand the cost and performance of high-speed internet.
“Price is price and speed is speed,” said Carl Szabo, vice president of NetChoice.
These labels are similar to the nutrition labels you see everywhere in grocery stores and display price, initial charge, data allowance, and speed. This fosters competition, Szabo says.
“If Service Provider A doesn’t offer the speed and price I want, I can go to Service Provider B,” Szabo says.
By April 10, all internet service providers with more than 100,000 customers must issue these labels.
“You need to post that label for each service, whether it’s mobile or fixed,” said Steve Colan, WISPA Broadband Without Borders external advisor.
Collan said the FCC strikes a good balance with labels by not publishing too much information.
“It would be like the back of a credit card statement that no one reads,” Collan said.
Szabo said the added clarity would help consumers, but he didn’t want the FCC to penalize companies if they got these labels wrong in the first place.
“What I hope is that the FCC gives many of these companies a grace period and gives them the benefit of the doubt,” Szabo said.
Businesses with fewer than 100,000 customers must apply the label by October.
