Broadband Providers Form TAG

The country's biggest broadband providers and tech industry giants are seeking to calm the FCC's fervor over net neutrality with a massive "voluntary" initiative that focuses on a research group called TAG, or The Technical Advisory Group. The Technical Advisory Group was put together by AT&T, Comcast, Google, Intel, Microsoft and Verizon. The group is headed by Federal Communications Commission CTO Dale Hatfield and is compromised of mostly engineers.

The intention of TAG is to "minimize disputes over policy questions" - most notably - how broadband providers manage network traffic in the context of the FCC’s proposed net neutrality rules. Over the next several weeks the TAG group will develop a "consensus on broadband network management practices" and identify how this affect internet broadband users.

The language the group uses is real murky here because it says it will identify "the impact from applications, content and devices that utilize the Internet." File sharing and video streaming will no doubt be mentioned a lot.

“The TAG will function as a neutral, expert technical forum and promote a greater consensus around technical practices within the Internet community,” said Hatfield. “The TAG would consider a number of factors in looking at technical practices, including whether a practice is used by others in the industry; whether alternative technical approaches are available; the impact of a technical practice on other entities; and whether a technical practice is aimed at specific content, applications or companies.”

No doubt TAG will try to "educate the government" on how certain broadband activities affect traffic across entire networks.. DISH Network, EchoStar, Intel, Level 3 Communications and Time Warner Cable are also participating in the group.

Source: press release