The Federal Communications Commission has approved a new set of rules aiming to prevent “digital discrimination.” It means the agency can hold telecom companies accountable for digitally discriminating against customers — or giving certain communities poorer service (or none at all) based on income level, race, or religion.
The new rules come as part of the Biden Administration’s 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which requires the FCC to develop and adopt anti-digital discrimination rules. “Many of the communities that lack adequate access to broadband today are the same areas that suffer from longstanding patterns of residential segregation and economic disadvantage,” FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said following today’s vote....