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 NEWS  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974).  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE  NEWS  MEDIA  CONTACT:  August  5,  2005  Catherine  Bohigian  at  (202)  418-  1000 
 CHAIRMAN  KEVIN  J.  MARTIN  COMMENTS  ON  COMMISSION  POLICY  STATEMENT 
 I  have  long  believed  that  consumers  should  be  able  to  use  their  broadband  internet  access  service  to  access  any  content  on  the  internet.  1  Consumers  have  demanded  this  ability,  and  cable 
 and  telephone  companies  have  delivered  it.  In  a  competitive  marketplace,  providers  must  do  so.  They  provide  a  service  that  consumers  want,  or  they  do  not  succeed.  The  steps  we  take  today  to 
 place  all  broadband  internet  access  providers  on  a  level  playing  field  will  make  this  marketplace  only  more  competitive,  further  strengthening  the  forces  that  best  deliver  choice,  affordability, 
 innovation,  and  quality  to  consumers. 
 The  policy  statement  we  adopt  today  lists  four  principles  that  are  based  on  this  fundamental  ability  to  access  any  website  available  to  the  public.  While  policy  statements  do  not 
 establish  rules  nor  are  they  enforceable  documents,  today’s  statement  does  reflect  core  beliefs  that  each  member  of  this  Commission  holds  regarding  how  broadband  internet  access  should 
 function. 
 Cable  and  telephone  companies  have  led  the  way  in  bringing  broadband  to  millions  of  Americans.  The  evidence  today  is  that  their  internet  access  consumers  have  the  ability  to  reach 
 any  internet  content.  Indeed,  cable  and  telephone  companies’  practices  already  track  well  the  internet  principles  we  endorse  today.  I  remain  confident  that  the  marketplace  will  continue  to 
 ensure  that  these  principles  are  maintained.  I  also  am  confident,  therefore,  that  regulation  is  not,  nor  will  be,  required. 


 1  Subject,  of  course,  to  the  bandwidth  limits  and  quality  of  service  terms  of  the  particular  Internet  access  service  plan 
 that  they  have  chosen  to  purchase. 
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