It’s Cyber Monday, when consumers will spend billions on holiday deals without ever having to walk into a retail store.
And so, as the Federal Communications Commission mulls net neutrality, the KRIS 6 News Fact Check Team decided to ask whether the issue has an effect on consumers.
It’s definitely a hot topic on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers have questioned FCC officials and other experts on the affect net neutrality will have on the marketplace and consumers.
Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-TX) told KRIS-6 News he does not support net neutrality.
“The internet has prospered since its inception with little to no regulation," Farenthold said in a statement. "In a recent House Judiciary Committee hearing, I asked the Honorable Terrell McSweeney, a proponent of net neutrality, if the open internet rules are just a solution looking for a problem. During this questioning she responded that the status quo of the United States has been an open internet.”
Here’s the video of that exchange, which happens around the 76-minute mark.
As for whether net neutrality will affect consumers, it’s a "fact," according to one local economist. Here’s what we found:
