Washington DC—The FCC’s requirement that broadband providers include basic information about pricing, introductory benefits, charges, speeds, and other data on “nutrition”-style labels went into effect on Wednesday, April 10.
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel praised the implementation as the beginning of a new era in broadband price and service transparency that will require internet service providers to display broadband consumer labels at point of sale.
“Today is an exciting day for consumers. Broadband nutrition labels are finally here. Consumers across the country will benefit from consistent, transparent, and easily accessible point-of-sale information about broadband pricing and service. Rosenworcel said. “These ‘nutrition label’ disclosures are designed to make it easier for consumers to know what they are getting, help suppliers keep their promises, and benefit from increased competition. This means better service and prices for everyone.”
Broadband consumer labels are similar to the familiar nutrition labels you see on food products. To ensure that labels benefit all consumers, the European Commission has adopted language and accessibility requirements for label presentation. Labels are required for all standalone home services, fixed internet services, or mobile broadband plans. According to the FCC, providers must display a label immediately adjacent to the relevant plan’s advertisement, rather than simply an icon or a link to the label.
The FCC asserts that the Broadband Consumer Label greatly assists consumers in making informed purchasing decisions when purchasing broadband providers.
This requirement stems from Congress’ passage of the bipartisan Infrastructure Act of 2021, which directs the FCC to require consumer-friendly labels with information about broadband services. In 2022, the FCC adopted a rule requiring broadband providers to display labels at the point of sale that display important information consumers seek regarding price, speed, charges, data allowances, and other important information.
By October 10, 2024, providers will be required to make their labels machine-readable so that third parties can more easily collect and aggregate data for the purpose of creating comparison shopping tools for consumers. You can Providers with fewer than 100,000 subscribers will also need to follow the rules.
