Broadband Nutrition Labels Should Be Everywhere Now
Larger ISPs had to display labels with their plans in April.
WASHINGTON, Oct. 10, 2024 – Broadband nutrition labels are required to be on all internet service provider websites as of Thursday.
The Federal Communications Commission required broadband providers with 100,000 or more subscribers to display FDA-style labels with information on their plans, including measured speed and latency, by April 10. Smaller providers got more time to reflect their relatively fewer resources.
Speaking at the Broadband Measurement Summit in March, Zac Champ, deputy chief of the consumer policy division at the FCC, highlighted the extensive considerations undertaken during the public comment period which will inform requirements for future iterations of labels.
Full keynote address by Carmen Scurato, legal advisor for consumer and public safety issues to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, at the Broadband Measurement Summit
Thursday is also the deadline for providers of all sizes to make the labels available in a machine-readable format. That could help researchers looking to supplement the FCC's broadband coverage data, which is based in part on advertised speeds.
The labels are mandated by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and are thus separate from the ongoing battle over how tightly the FCC can regulate ISPs under the Communications Act.
Speaking at the March 7 Summit hosted by Broadband Breakfast, Champ said: “When we released the order we also asked other questions about how to define the data. We asked about the interactivity of labels. We asked about our categories, and other ways of defining speed.”
Jericho Casper
“As much as we have a template. I expect there's going to be variations and [the FCC] wants to know what data is helpful with comparison shopping to get accurate information out to consumers when they need it,” he said.
Back in May, the Open Technology Institute at New America said it found some instances of “implementation that undermined the purpose of the rule or raised other concerns,” from larger ISPs, like requiring an address or other information before displaying an advertised plan’s label.
Broadband Breakfast
